Bye Bye to the Barbie Bandits

The criminal justice system has had its say. According to CNN, one of the 19-year-old girls convicted of being the "Barbie Bandits" after a bank robbery in Georgia last year has been ordered to prison for two years, eight years of probation to follow. The other lucked out and (perhaps because she agreed to plead guilty) merely gets probation. They were recorded on tape as laughing during the heist, were the subject of immediate national publicity, and police caught them within days after a short chase. From what I can tell from the stories about them, they're still laughing . . . and may in fact giggle all the way to another bank . . . if plans to turn their adventure into a movie come through.

The parents of one of the girls seem horrified by what happened but...neither of the girls has expressed more than what appears to be passing, or witness stand, remorse about the incident. In fact, one of the young women grinned through most of an interview on ABC, saying she only did what "alot of people have talked about doing" and didn't think for a moment about the fear they might have caused other customers in the bank at the time.

It was supposed to be a prank. It turned into a lark. No one was hurt and the women, both former "exotic dancers," got their fifteen minutes of fame. Of course the teller, who was in on the caper, will go to prison for five years. Another man is to be sentenced this week. Neither of them is a cute, young blonde. One has already done time for another crime.

The one girl got off easy. The other, also convicted of drug distribution, gets a slightly more painful slap on the wrist.

In the view of this old cynic, both girls should spend time in prison, and for longer than two years apiece. Especially in view of the levity with which they still seem to view their actions.

However, both girls now are convicted felons. Finding work may be difficult. Movie deals notwithstanding, if they're like many young people who pass through the criminal justice system at an early age, both may discover it's far easier to return to their lowlife friends and easy money schemes rather than to work on improving their lives. I doubt either one truly grasps the seriousness of their deeds.

My guess is that we will read about one, or both of them, again. And not as stars of a movie. Not even as stars in their own lives. More likely they'll get popped again, probably for drugs, possibly for prostitution or other crimes. If they are as foolishly fearless as they have appeared so far, they may hurt someone else someday. And laugh about that, too.

What really concerns me are all the other young people who see this case not as two girls doing something stupid and getting caught and punished, but as a wild adventure that they, too, would like to experience. National media attention? Wow! Go for it, dude!

By giving the Barbie Bandits a break, the courts may have caused more problems than they solved.