She was licensed for 5 children.

On many occasions she kept more than 5 children.

She was charged with willfully breaking the rules of her license.

The charge was class 1 felony.

Class 1 felony has penalty of death, life imprisonment, or $100,000 fine.

There is no victim in this case.

Judy has exemplary record with child protective services to the point of this charge.

Judy has exemplary record with every parent whom she has served.

Judy has nurtured many children over her career with selfless love and dedication.

The charges that have been filed against her (for a victimless crime) have this effect:

• Judy's business has been destroyed
• Judy's reputation has been ruined
• All parents whom she has served are impuned by the charges
• The community has lost a valuable service
• The children whom she served will be worse off
• Judy has no income
• When Judy was arrested she was physically attacked while in the detention cell
• Judy's mental, emotional and physical health have been attacked with longterm consequences
• The state and federal governments will lose income tax
• The state has lost credibility for all those affected
  • The community who know Judy
  • The parents whom Judy served
  • The friends who know Judy
  • Judy's family
• Other day care operators will leave the business

Has this law been applied uniformly? What has been the treatment for similar violations?

The child care regulations are flawed.

• The penalty for breaking them is irrational
• The limit of 5 children is arbitary
  • I am 1 of 6 children - should 1 of them have been taken from my mom?
  • Judy is 1 of 7 children - should 2 of them have been taken from her mom?
  • My mom is 1 of 11 children - should 6 of them have been taken from my gandma?

An unjust law is itself a species of violence. Arrest for its breach is more so. -- Mahatma Gandhi

If you have ten thousand regulations you destroy all respect for the law. -- Winston Churchill

The best way to get a bad law repealed is to enforce it strictly. -- Abraham Lincoln

Law and justice are not always the same. -- Gloria Steinem

Law is a bottomless pit; it is a cormorant, a harpy that devours everything. -- Jonathan Swift

Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws. -- Plato

Good men must not obey the laws too much. -- Ralph Waldo Emerson