Slog
News & ArtsThursday, August 11, 2011
Crime / Film Barefoot Bandit Nets $1.3 Million Movie Deal
Posted by Brendan Kiley on Thu, Aug 11, 2011 at 11:24 AM
SEATTLE — The Barefoot Bandit has signed a movie deal worth as much as $1.3 million with 20th Century Fox.
While Colton Harris-Moore, 20, will not earn a dime, the money will be used to help pay the minimum $1.4 million he owes in restitution to the victims of his two-year long crime spree.
Some of you Sloggers might remember the fight we had a couple of months ago about Colton's plea bargain—it stipulated that he would never, ever see a dime for selling or writing his story, no matter what. I said that was unfair. The court should have set a restitution amount, made him pay it back, then let him keep anything over and above that.
Now he's nearly able to pay back his restitution. So if he lands another million-dollar deal, who's going to get the money?
2
He shouldn't get the extra. Him getting ANY money will encourage copycats. Economically, if you let him score off this, even though he "lost" a lot of money paying back restitution, you make the economics favor committing the crime(s).
Maybe his victims could pick an appropriate charity.
Maybe his victims could pick an appropriate charity.
4
He isn't cute, he didn't do anything noble or productive or beneficial. If he was entertaining, it was at the expense of others.
If he wants to make a profit, he can get a job or write a book (besides a confessional) or go be an actor (in something besides a movie about his crimes) or something.
If he wants to make a profit, he can get a job or write a book (besides a confessional) or go be an actor (in something besides a movie about his crimes) or something.
6
@2 perhaps that principle is better applied to the large banks, although your concern for this miscreant is touching.
7
$1.3 and $1.4 million seem like weirdly coincidentally close amounts. I wonder if they kept it under the limit to prevent any sort of legal wrangling that might hold up the deal.
(Not that $100K is a small amount and if anyone has it lying around, I'd gladly take it off their hands.)
(Not that $100K is a small amount and if anyone has it lying around, I'd gladly take it off their hands.)
8
@2 i'd like to see some copy cats try to pull that shit off.
I'm sure there's lawyers lining up to help him get around that OR society just built the coolest crazed new philanthropist ever.
I'm sure there's lawyers lining up to help him get around that OR society just built the coolest crazed new philanthropist ever.
10
He shouldn't get the money. He's famous for being a criminal asshole. The idea that if you do particularly infamous crimes, you can profit off telling the sordid details is just ridiculous.
(Besides the fact that it's probably pretty annoying to people that he's making money recounting how he fucked them over. If the victims weren't getting restitution, there'd be no redeeming quality to letting him put a book out at all.)
Perhaps the money should go towards law enforcement. Or youth offenders programs. Or something of that nature.
(Besides the fact that it's probably pretty annoying to people that he's making money recounting how he fucked them over. If the victims weren't getting restitution, there'd be no redeeming quality to letting him put a book out at all.)
Perhaps the money should go towards law enforcement. Or youth offenders programs. Or something of that nature.
12
How about any extra go to the law enforcement agencies that actually had to use their resources (our tax dollars) to investigate him?
13
The thing is, nobody cares. It's all about punishment and retribution. Nobody cares if it keeps him from doing it again or other people from doing it. Nobody cares if he is able to build a life for himself afterwards. The only thing anybody cares about is punishing him and making sure he is punished forever.
Americans are obsessed with punishment. All of us, even me, are obsessed with finding and identifying people who are doing bad things and punishing them for it. We aren't even particularly interested in whether they are guilty or not. Notice the other day a follower of Rick Perry said "it takes balls to execute an innocent man" -- APPROVINGLY.
Notice also the strong support across the country for torture. Americans LOVE torture and they love hearing about it. If you broadcast waterboarding of randomly picked-up accused criminals on TV it would be the most popular show. I think if you held a national referendum on the proposition that all crimes, no matter what they are, should be punished by life imprisonment, it would pass by a wide margin.
This was made apparent by the recent fever over Norwegian prisons, wherein the right-wing murderer is likely to have what we would consider to be a shockingly easy time of it. Norwegian prisoners, including murderers, get big-screen TVs and internet and wholesome food and access to a recording studio and sunshine and a hundred other things that strike an American as outrageous coddling. But they have virtually no recidivism, while we have close to universal recidivism.
So maybe their system works, while ours is designed to create more crime. Harris-Moore is a criminal, and he will always be a criminal, and it is almost certain that he will commit further criminal acts when he is released, because he will have received a world-class education in committing criminal acts in prison, but will have received absolutely nothing that prepares him for an honest life.
I think our addiction to punishment is rapidly increasing in the post-9/11 environment. We are all prison guards.
More...
Americans are obsessed with punishment. All of us, even me, are obsessed with finding and identifying people who are doing bad things and punishing them for it. We aren't even particularly interested in whether they are guilty or not. Notice the other day a follower of Rick Perry said "it takes balls to execute an innocent man" -- APPROVINGLY.
Notice also the strong support across the country for torture. Americans LOVE torture and they love hearing about it. If you broadcast waterboarding of randomly picked-up accused criminals on TV it would be the most popular show. I think if you held a national referendum on the proposition that all crimes, no matter what they are, should be punished by life imprisonment, it would pass by a wide margin.
This was made apparent by the recent fever over Norwegian prisons, wherein the right-wing murderer is likely to have what we would consider to be a shockingly easy time of it. Norwegian prisoners, including murderers, get big-screen TVs and internet and wholesome food and access to a recording studio and sunshine and a hundred other things that strike an American as outrageous coddling. But they have virtually no recidivism, while we have close to universal recidivism.
So maybe their system works, while ours is designed to create more crime. Harris-Moore is a criminal, and he will always be a criminal, and it is almost certain that he will commit further criminal acts when he is released, because he will have received a world-class education in committing criminal acts in prison, but will have received absolutely nothing that prepares him for an honest life.
I think our addiction to punishment is rapidly increasing in the post-9/11 environment. We are all prison guards.
14
@13
I'm all for him being able to build a new life. Without rehabilitation, justice is all but useless.
He just shouldn't be able to found that new life on profits from a crime. He should have to do it in one of the myriad ways normal people do it.
I'm all for him being able to build a new life. Without rehabilitation, justice is all but useless.
He just shouldn't be able to found that new life on profits from a crime. He should have to do it in one of the myriad ways normal people do it.
15
Maybe they'll make it into a comedy starring Michael Cera? Just make sure that Shia stays the fuck away from it.
16
@14, those avenues are not available to him. "Normal people" are not convicted felons. Convicted felons are not allowed to rebuild any kind of life in our society. Harris-Moore's got nothing. Never will.
17
Boo-fucking-hoo. Maybe he should have thought about that before, you know, committing those felonies.
18
Actually, @3, @6, @8, I like the guy. I like his story. I like him FLYING PLANES WITH NO TRAINING.
But I think that's the rationale for the law. I honestly don't know what the fuck to do with the extra moola.
The kid is fucked. He was fucked pretty much the second time he stole a vehicle, I would guess.
Maybe the CIA will take him. They could use guys like him.
But I think that's the rationale for the law. I honestly don't know what the fuck to do with the extra moola.
The kid is fucked. He was fucked pretty much the second time he stole a vehicle, I would guess.
Maybe the CIA will take him. They could use guys like him.
19
"Who's going to get the money?"
Probably who ever the PLEA AGREEMENT he FREELY CHOSE to ask the court to agree to stipulates.
Probably who ever the PLEA AGREEMENT he FREELY CHOSE to ask the court to agree to stipulates.
20
@17, yes, he should have. But what are you going to do with him NOW? Would you like him to commit more of them? Because he's going to, when he comes out of our prison system. He's going to know how, too; armed robbers and safecrackers and identity thieves and all the rest are going to be lining up to swap notes with him; he's a celebrity. And there will be no other career paths available to him.
That's what you want, isn't it? To increase the amount of human misery? That's your bag, isn't it? Asshole.
That's what you want, isn't it? To increase the amount of human misery? That's your bag, isn't it? Asshole.
21
@11- His mom is a broke crazy woman in a trailer. I don't think he's got any legal bills because the lawyers must have been working pro-bono or have been public defenders.
I don't know if his victims can go for civil damages after he's already paid restitution. If so, he might get slapped when he gets out of jail.
I hope not, he had a great run as an expensive and entertain nuisance, it'd be good if he had a chance to use his powers for good instead of chaotic neutral.
I don't know if his victims can go for civil damages after he's already paid restitution. If so, he might get slapped when he gets out of jail.
I hope not, he had a great run as an expensive and entertain nuisance, it'd be good if he had a chance to use his powers for good instead of chaotic neutral.
23
@2: What would an appropriate charity be—the Association for the Advancement of Camano Island Home-, Boat-, and Small-Aircraft-Owners?
I don't (necessarily) think Harris-Moore should profit from what he did, but it was just property damage—no one hurt, no one killed. The venom directed at him for this shows a disturbing latter-day American reverence for ownership, a reverence that supplants any empathy for a kid from a tough background who found a strange, lonely way to live in a hostile world.
We used to idolize outlaws, even ones who shot people full of holes while robbing banks. Now everyone wants this kid's head on a pike because he broke into some houses, took some clothes, crashed someone's (doubtlessly insured) small plane... I like to think we're more magnanimous, with more imagination, than that.
I don't (necessarily) think Harris-Moore should profit from what he did, but it was just property damage—no one hurt, no one killed. The venom directed at him for this shows a disturbing latter-day American reverence for ownership, a reverence that supplants any empathy for a kid from a tough background who found a strange, lonely way to live in a hostile world.
We used to idolize outlaws, even ones who shot people full of holes while robbing banks. Now everyone wants this kid's head on a pike because he broke into some houses, took some clothes, crashed someone's (doubtlessly insured) small plane... I like to think we're more magnanimous, with more imagination, than that.
24
I remember when we had "Career Day" in middle school. Somehow, I got shanghaied into listening to a cop. He mentioned that one of the things that made him proudest about his job was that, whenever someone he helped put behind bars was going to be released, he followed them around (figuratively) and made sure that any future employers would be well aware of their past history.
I didn't say it at the time (too scared), but in my head, I wondered, "So if you're doing everything you can to prevent these guys from having a normal life, then won't they just go back to crime?".
I'm saddened to see that so many people here have the same attitude as that cop.
I didn't say it at the time (too scared), but in my head, I wondered, "So if you're doing everything you can to prevent these guys from having a normal life, then won't they just go back to crime?".
I'm saddened to see that so many people here have the same attitude as that cop.
25
No comment on the fact that the deal means 20th Century Fox gets to pocket essentially 100% of the profits made by the film once it's released and distributed? Off the back of this douchebag and by extension his victims? See, even when it's about people, it's still about corporations.
26
@23 - read my response at 18. I know it was just property damage. I don't want the kid pilloried.
If there's any venom in my post at 2, it's in part because I think Kiley is putting on blinders here. The reason he's being punished so harshly is because he's being made an example of. Kiley keeps talking about this without acknowledging that.
He fucked himself, and that really sucks. Fnarf has it, here. (Although I wouldn't be surprised if he can wrangle a reality show out of it at the end, which WOULD allow him to make money, I would think. But he'll have to be that much smarter.)
If there's any venom in my post at 2, it's in part because I think Kiley is putting on blinders here. The reason he's being punished so harshly is because he's being made an example of. Kiley keeps talking about this without acknowledging that.
He fucked himself, and that really sucks. Fnarf has it, here. (Although I wouldn't be surprised if he can wrangle a reality show out of it at the end, which WOULD allow him to make money, I would think. But he'll have to be that much smarter.)
27
Wow Bethany, do we really have to go over this again? If this kid were running around breaking in and stealing people's belongings on Capitol Hill, you'd all be having a shit fit. But because it's Camano Island, which for some reason everyone here seems to think is full of "rich" people, and because he stole a couple boats and a plane, that somehow makes it okay. Let's ignore the loss of the sense of security one should have in their own home Or that most of the victims were everyday lower- to middle class people who worked hard to earn what they have only to have some crafty douchebag use it for his personal...amusement, I guess? I'm not really clear what he got out of the whole thing. I know that's partly influenced by the conditions in which he grew up. And it has nothing to do with "latter-day American reverence for ownership", whatever in the blue hell that means. I'd be hard-pressed to think of many places in the world where this joker wouldn't have been seriously hurt or killed if caught. Hell, try being a petty thief in someplace like Saudi Arabia or Thailand. This guy is lucky he, or, gods forbid, some innocent person, didn't get plugged with a shotgun blast at any point. I'm glad he didn't, in fact. Now he can be properly judged and punished appropriately within the confines of our legal system.
29
@27: Again with the punishment! Yes, what this guy did sucks. But punishing him will not accomplish anything. We want to fix all the problems that he caused, as best as possible, and we want to prevent him from committing crimes again in the future. Punishment will not do either of those; it will simply make him more angry, and *more* likely to commit crimes in the future, especially if he has no other legitimate career options.
30
@29, Ok then, so what's the solution? Say, "Don't do that again, you little rascal!" and send him on his way? Keep in mind we're basically talking about the entire basis of the legal system here. Crime & punishment. Law & order. Recourse for those who have been wronged.This is pretty much how things have worked for the past 3,000 years or so. Theft has been deemed worthy of confinement in prison as a means of punishment, rather than just a whoooole bunch of community service. I'm genuinely interested to hear what alternatives might exist. Like I said, things could have ended a lot worse and I still don't understand what is so special about this guy to elicit so much hand-wringing.
31
But Bush kept all the money from his book that celebrated his criminality? So why can't this kid? Oh wait, HE stole from the rich white folks, Bush killed people who aren't white and rich.
Never mind....
Never mind....
32
I am saying that the kid should pay his "debt to society"—finish his prison sentence, pay his restitution—and then be free. Putting a lifelong chokehold on his most promising avenue for a legal source of income is small-minded, short-sighted, and petty.
I repeat from my previous post: what would Genet, Burroughs, and the rest of literature's long and venerable list of criminals have done if they couldn't turn to writing to finance themselves? They would've done more crimes and more harm to themselves and others.
As Bethany points out, the kid stole clothes to keep warm, food to eat, and a few recreational vehicles—that's peanuts. He wasn't even stealing for profit, just for necessities. And as Fnarf points out, prison will likely only make him a more efficient criminal.
Want to dramatically increase Colton's chances of being a good citizen with a decent life? Give him a typewriter, an extremely gifted and patient editor, and a book contract.
I repeat from my previous post: what would Genet, Burroughs, and the rest of literature's long and venerable list of criminals have done if they couldn't turn to writing to finance themselves? They would've done more crimes and more harm to themselves and others.
As Bethany points out, the kid stole clothes to keep warm, food to eat, and a few recreational vehicles—that's peanuts. He wasn't even stealing for profit, just for necessities. And as Fnarf points out, prison will likely only make him a more efficient criminal.
Want to dramatically increase Colton's chances of being a good citizen with a decent life? Give him a typewriter, an extremely gifted and patient editor, and a book contract.
33
Necessities. Right.
And I think most people can survive on less than $1.4 million of other people's property.
I'm not interested in seeing Harris-Moore rot in hell, but your apologism is fucking ridiculous. He was an adult when he made the deal; he gets to live with it.
a few recreational vehicles
just for necessities
Necessities. Right.
And I think most people can survive on less than $1.4 million of other people's property.
I'm not interested in seeing Harris-Moore rot in hell, but your apologism is fucking ridiculous. He was an adult when he made the deal; he gets to live with it.
34
You're already equating this guy with Genet and Burroughs? Wow. Oh, and Bethany provided "reasons" for the stealing, so that makes it okay, uh, I guess? Every thief and petty criminal in the history of mankind has justification at the ready for doing what they do.
So, it seems that if I follow Stranger legal expertise, the following should be able to happen to me:
1) Steal stuff
2) ???
3) Profit!
Why does this guy deserve to steal shit and then make money off his story, when you and I have to go to work and earn our keep to get through life? And again, I'm genuinely interested to see what an appropriate punishment should look like. I am totally with Fnarf that our prison system is fucked up beyond belief but what is the alternative at hand? Keeping in mind that having a fucked-up prison system doesn't necessarily obviate the need for any prison system.
Cato, see what I posted earlier. Look at who's really walking away with the big $$$ at the end of the day. Not Colton-Moore and certainly not his victims. And we're all going to go see that movie and put money into the pockets of corporate movie executives.
So, it seems that if I follow Stranger legal expertise, the following should be able to happen to me:
1) Steal stuff
2) ???
3) Profit!
Why does this guy deserve to steal shit and then make money off his story, when you and I have to go to work and earn our keep to get through life? And again, I'm genuinely interested to see what an appropriate punishment should look like. I am totally with Fnarf that our prison system is fucked up beyond belief but what is the alternative at hand? Keeping in mind that having a fucked-up prison system doesn't necessarily obviate the need for any prison system.
Cato, see what I posted earlier. Look at who's really walking away with the big $$$ at the end of the day. Not Colton-Moore and certainly not his victims. And we're all going to go see that movie and put money into the pockets of corporate movie executives.
35
@ 34. Just for fun, I'm going to answer all of your questions. And then I'll shut up.
1. The Genet and Burroughs comparison: Their jailers probably wouldn't have predicted that they had any literary genius in them either. How wrong they would've been. And the gap between professional crook and writer is smaller than you think.
2. Why people steal: They steal for an infinitely long number of reasons. Sometimes for profit, sometimes for survival, sometimes for kicks. The motivation for the crime is important to consider.
3. Stranger legal expertise: None. I'm making a moral argument, not a legal one.
3. Why you have to work and other people don't: Life is long and weird and unfair. This isn't about you. It's about the best thing for a troubled kid whose sentence (yes, voluntary plea bargain—it's still a sentence cooked up between lawyers and a judge) is actively hurting his chances for a productive life.
4. I have described an appropriate punishment any number of times: Do the time, pay the restitution, go on with your life and career, whatever it may be. If he can turn his life (criminal and otherwise) into writing, let him profit from it once he's paid his restitution.
I'm just going to keep saying it because it's true: Putting a lifelong chokehold on his most promising avenue for a legal source of income is small-minded, short-sighted, and petty.
1. The Genet and Burroughs comparison: Their jailers probably wouldn't have predicted that they had any literary genius in them either. How wrong they would've been. And the gap between professional crook and writer is smaller than you think.
2. Why people steal: They steal for an infinitely long number of reasons. Sometimes for profit, sometimes for survival, sometimes for kicks. The motivation for the crime is important to consider.
3. Stranger legal expertise: None. I'm making a moral argument, not a legal one.
3. Why you have to work and other people don't: Life is long and weird and unfair. This isn't about you. It's about the best thing for a troubled kid whose sentence (yes, voluntary plea bargain—it's still a sentence cooked up between lawyers and a judge) is actively hurting his chances for a productive life.
4. I have described an appropriate punishment any number of times: Do the time, pay the restitution, go on with your life and career, whatever it may be. If he can turn his life (criminal and otherwise) into writing, let him profit from it once he's paid his restitution.
I'm just going to keep saying it because it's true: Putting a lifelong chokehold on his most promising avenue for a legal source of income is small-minded, short-sighted, and petty.
36
Hm, well, the stipulation is that he can't profit from "his story". That doesn't mean he couldn't still become a successful writer through other, shall we say, creative literary approaches? I do apologize for conflating others' statements about punishment with yours. You've been clear on that point. Nice work on ducking out of my "you and I" statement. Thanks for telling me life is unfair, dad. ;^)
Advertisement
Most Commented on Slog
-
Los Angeles Gay Bar Bans Bachelorette Parties Until Marriage Equality Is Attained by David Schmader
-
The Sunday Morning News by Unpaid Intern
-
Idiot Tries to Defend Bigoted Anti-Gay-Marriage Preacher on Anderson Cooper by Paul Constant
-
Six Moms with Too Much Time on Their Hands and a Shitty Website Decide to Fight Gay Superheroes by Paul Constant
-
Former Sen. Alan Simpson (R-WY) Says Members of His Party Have Rocks for Brains by Charles Mudede
-
The Saturday Morning News by Unpaid Intern
-
Why Mayor McGinn's Wife Canceled Her Family's Seattle Times Subscription by Eli Sanders
-
Barack Obama Smoked a Lot of Pot as a Young Man by Paul Constant
-
The Limits of Keynesianism by Charles Mudede
-
Rural America by Charles Mudede
RSS
Facebook
Twitter
Comments (36) RSS