If you need an illustration of why there is little public confidence in the criminal justice system, look no further than the federal prosecution of four East Haven police officers. The case ended with a howl, and a whimper, this week when David Miller, leader of the eponymous “Miller’s Boys,” was sentenced, despite the government’s plea for leniency, to four months in prison.
That’s right. The government asked Judge Alvin Thompson to let Miller walk right out the courthouse door after Miller pleaded guilty to being a “bully with a badge,” to recite the government’s initial comments about the case. When the judge refused to oblige, and instead slapped Miller on the wrist, Miller’s wife howled, and his lawyer, Donald Cretella, looked stunned, according to press accounts.
