Let's take a look at some numbers.
To date, there have been 4,062 protesters arrested since the Occupy Movement began on September 17, 2011. [Source.]
Surely, those responsible for destroying the national and even global economy must at the very least be facing a similar rate of prosecution, right? Even despite the fact that protesters are largely peacably exercising their right to protest and the Wall Street crowd have been indulging in economic fraud? Eh. Not so much.
According to a new report from Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, Syracuse University, the number of prosecutions for financial instutition fraud is on record to be down 28.6% from 5 years ago. This means there were more prosecutions BEFORE Wall Street destroyed our economy than after.
Federal criminal prosecutions for financial institution fraud have continued their downward slide despite the financial troubles reported in this sector. TRAC's analysis of timely Justice Department data show that during the first eleven months of FY 2011 the government reported 1,251 new prosecutions were filed. If this activity continues at the same pace, the annual total of prosecutions will be 1,365 for this fiscal year, down 28.6 percent from their numbers of just five years ago and less than half the level prevalent a decade ago. [Source.]
So, for those keeping track at home:
Occupy Arrests: 4,062
Walls Street Prosecutions: 1,365
These numbers should, at the very least, be reversed. Institutions need to begin to apply their enforcement of the rule of law equally, across the entire spectrum of the American socio-economic spectrum. And so far, the instutions (police, government) seem to be serving to defend corporations (and willingly turning a blind eye from the people instead of serving the people.
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