If you read this piece by ignoring the first paragraph and skipping directly to the second, you’d see how I originally envisioned it: as an indictment of our legal system, highlighting the disparity between punishments for Marion Jones and Scooter Libby. However, between conceiving of the idea this morning and gathering my thoughts to begin writing, I heard ESPN’s J.A. Adande tackle this very issue on the Steve Mason show. I was frustrated that I was beaten to the punch, but honored that the well-spoken and thoughtful J.A. shared my sentiment. Kudos, Mr. Adande for a very articulate, heart-felt breakdown of why Marion Jones’ six month prison sentence is unfair. But here’s my take.
When I discovered that Marion Jones would be sentenced to six months in prison for lying to a grand jury about her steroid use, my first thought was of Scooter Libby. Where is the consistency in our legal system? How can President Bush swoop in and commute Libby’s sentence to zero days in prison, while he allows Marion Jones to serve the harshest jail sentence permissible by law? The one element each has in common is the federal perjury charge, but that’s where the similarities end. Let’s examine each case step by step to prove the incredible injustice against Jones.
Firstly, the crimes. Marion Jones broke IOC rules involving steroids and substance abuse. She ran the risk of damaging her own body with the harmful drugs, but more prominently disgraced herself, her sport, her teammates, and the Olympics in which she competed. Her crime was largely symbolic, though I do not deny the gravity of her misdeeds. Then there’s Scooter Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney’s former chief of staff who outed Valerie Plame as a CIA operative shortly after her husband, former Ambassador Joseph Wilson, published an op-ed piece questioning whether or not Iraq had actually sought uranium yellowcake from Niger. It is an indiscretion that, politically motivated or not, bears enormous consequences for Plame, personally, leaves our national security exponentially more vulnerable, and causes our intelligence infrastructure to grow mistrusting of the executive branch. Do we really hold the purity of sports to a higher standard than we do the life and death issue of war? Marion Jones doped up to get a competitive edge and did not do so as a deliberate attempt to destroy others. Libby’s indiscretion was directly infringing on somebody else’s safety, valuing his own political career above another’s life.
Secondly, the sentences. Remember, the sentences they received were not for the crimes they initially committed, but for perjuring themselves later. But the importance of the initial crime must be considered when determining how much they should pay for lying. Marion Jones got six months; Scooter Libby received two and a half years. Five times the sentence for lying about issues of national security. He essentially committed treason, and yet, lying about it is only marginally worse than lying about taking drugs? Consider who was hurt by each lie. Jones’ lie was expressly for the purpose of protecting her own image. Libby’s lie was an obstruction of justice to further not only his own political career, but that of others, to perpetuate the weapons of mass destruction myth in Iraq, and to smear Plame’s name. Jones lied out of embarrassment; Libby out of defiance.
And lastly, the commute. Essentially, a pardon from Bush to ensure that Scooter Libby didn’t see the inside of a jail cell. Where’s that saving grace for Marion Jones? Where’s that voice from above declaring that everyone deserves a second chance and that her children deserve to have a mother for the next half a year. Why isn’t that heavenly hand saving her from further punishment, considering she’s already been stripped of medals and endorsement deals and her reputation has been completely obliterated?
To an athlete, those medals are everything. Championships, not contract money, are the validation of a life spent pursuing something. That is the ultimate black eye on an athletic career, losing what you once earned. As much as the media perceives that athletes are all about the money, none of them would have made it to where they are now if they didn’t have a burning desire to compete and win. Steroids can’t create determination or instill a work ethic inside of you. I’m also sick of people pleading that it’s “for the kids.” That Marion Jones, as an athlete, has a responsibility to set an example for the youth in this country. While it would be nice, where is the parenting? Why must Jones pick up the slack of lazy parents? No public figure is responsible for teaching values to kids. It would be great if they all did, but holding her to a higher standard because she’s a role model is just another way this country gives bad parents a free pass and allows them to pass the buck onto the media, sports, and rap music. The more positive role models we have in celebrity life the better. But when people like Marion Jones let us down, that is when we need strong parenting the most.
I am not condoning what Marion Jones did; in fact I feel betrayed like many do because we trusted her charisma and were sorely misled. But in the grand scheme, she hurt herself more than she hurt anybody else and if she is going to do six months behind bars I want to see Scooter Libby back there with her for at least that much time. Fair is fair. When will our legal system shake its bias for old, rich, white guys?
