[jacquesm]

I think it's just fine, it exactly shows what's wrong with 0 tolerance.

One day driving along Hwy 17, rural Ontario I picked up a kid, about 17 years old. We talked for a while and it turned out that he'd been suspended/kicked out from school for some small time nonsense under the 0 tolerance policy.

He'd been well on his way to be a Canadian hockey player, #1 player in his school. Because of his 'example function' he was expelled. He was looking to find work in construction.

Now, arguably being a hockey player is not the same as being a judge, but it's a damn sight better from an income perspective than being a labourer. And it would have gotten him to finish his school, instead of hitch-hiking cross country to chase the buck.