why bad guys get off good

bernie madoff who is currently awaiting sentencing could possibly get a sweetheart plea bargain for allegedly ripping people out of millions or billions of dollars. here we have a rich man stealing from, in some cases, poor people and he gets a sweatheart deal. go figure. why is it that bad people who do bad things get off scott free and many poor people who do bad things are locked up for a lifetime? what is it about our criminal justice system that allows for this to happen? is our democracy really free? can we truly be equal; one for another? can every citizen believe in the justice system? i think not. i believe that the recent case of not only bernie madoff but other rich and famous people have led to an erosion of the criminal justice system as we know it. people all over the country have lost hope in our system because of the sweatheart deals of a wealthy few. we must gain control over our justice system one case at a time.