In particular, he is a thief, and a drug dealer. He's been the first for his entire life, and the second since high school.
Amazingly enough though, he has generally managed to avoid consequences for this. It's not that he hasn't been caught, it's that whenever he IS caught, they give him probation (which he never completes or complies with), and send him on his merry way.
Now, for the last two years, he's been dying, slowly and painfully, of pelvic and abdominal cancer. Malignant but slow moving, he's in terrific pain, and generally miserable.... but he's refusing treatment other than emergency and lifesaving measures.
He became septic earlier this year, almost dying in the process; and they cut out some of his cancerous lesions, which were in part causing the infection that was killing him. They could have cut out most of the cancer while they were in there, but he refused to allow it; only accepting treatment for the peritonitis and septicemia.
At this point, my brother wants to die; he just doesn't feel like committing straight up suicide. On his last birthday, he called me back late that night (I had left him a birthday message earlier in the day) and said "Hey, I just took 8 oxys and drank a half a bottle of Jack. Let's see if I wake up in the morning".
He didn't. He was out for two full days, but somehow he lived.
Amazingly, allthat hasn't stopped him from committing MANY felonies... but up until a few minutes ago, I hadn't known that he had been caught. Again.
In 2006, he was convicted of felony assault, and given probation.
In 2007 it was DUI, and driving without a license or insurance... probation again, and they didn't revoke his original probation for assault.
In 2008 it was felony possession with intent to distribute, and probation again; and again they didn't revoke his previous probation.
In 2008 he also got picked up again for DUI, driving without license, and driving without insurance. Again, probation, again no revocation.
Scattered among those are multiple failures to appear, resisting arrest, and other lesser included offenses.
...but I knew about all those ones.
I just found out, due to a Google search looking for my grandfathers obituary (he died 14 years ago yesterday), that my brother, who shares first last and middle name with my grandfather; was again convicted of felony posession with intent to distribute, this time in September of 2010 (he was arrested in July)....
AND THEY GAVE HIM PROBATION AGAIN!
...and again, didn't violate any of his previous probation.
That folks, is what conservatives are talking about when they say things like "revolving door judicial system".
My brother should be in prison. Frankly, at this point, it's the only thing that would save his life... maybe even get him to change it, though I very much doubt it.
Instead, he's living off my mothers disability, selling her prescriptions, sleeping illegally on one room of her three room "apartment"; and not complying with his probation.
AGAIN.
There is of course a warrant for him right now, for failure to complete his probation requirements. The know where he is. the system down in AZ is so screwed up right now, frankly, they just don't care.
Ain't that some shit?
