The Brutalism of Ted Cruz - The New York Times:
"In 1997, Michael Wayne Haley was arrested after stealing a calculator from
Walmart. This was a crime that merited a maximum two year prison term. But
prosecutors incorrectly applied a habitual offender law. Neither the judge nor
the defense lawyer caught the error and Haley was sentenced to 16 years.
Eventually, the mistake came to light and Haley tried to fix it. Ted Cruz
was solicitor general of Texas at the time. Instead of just letting Haley go for
time served, Cruz took the case to the Supreme Court to keep Haley in prison
for the full 16 years.
Some justices were skeptical. “Is there some rule that you can’t confess
error in your state?” Justice Anthony Kennedy asked. The court system did
finally let Haley out of prison, after six years."
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