Bernie Madoff Needs to Come Clean

Bernard Madoff, perpetrator of the crime of the century that spanned probably three decades (and two millennia), was yesterday sentenced to a measly (if maximum) 150 years in prison for his multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme. Madoff's defense attorneys had sought a laughable 12 years, which would have offered the scoundrel the possibility of seeing freedom at the ripe old age of 83.

Manhattan District Court Judge Denny Chin threw the book at Madoff in order to send a clear message to the world that a man capable of such "extraordinary evil" should be shown no leniency. Judge Chin said he was especially moved by a letter he received describing how Madoff conned an 86-year-old widow by putting his arm around her and told her not to worry, that her money was safe with him. The judge also noted that he had not received a single letter from friends or family coming to Madoff’s defense. Madoff's thousands of victims are estimated to have lost $13 billion to nearly $65 billion of their wealth. The rest of us have lost our faith and trust in our financial system, our government's ability to protect us and in humanity itself.

Does a 150-year imprisonment represent real justice for Madoff? Burt Ross, a Madoff victim and a former mayor of Fort Lee, N.J., who lost $5 million with Madoff, said he was satisfied with the sentence and that Madoff deserves to go to his grave "an unmourned man." However, in a letter to the court, Mr. Ross also wrote that Madoff's crime "far transcends the loss of money, it involves his betrayal of the virtues people hold dearest—love, friendship, trust—and all just so he could eat at the finest restaurants, stay at the most luxurious resorts, and travel on yachts and private jets. He has truly earned his reputation for being the most despised person living in America today." Mr. Ross's words have persuaded me that much more needs to be done not merely to punish Madoff but to learn from his crime, prevent its recurrence and to restore our faith in our financial system and in each other. (Mr. Ross's full letter invokes vivid imagery from Dante’s The Divine Comedy, is available at The Daily Beast and is well worth reading in its entirety.)

Keeping Madoff from being murdered by any one of his victims and allowing him to spend the rest of his natural life in prison, at taxpayers expense, is not nearly enough punishment, especially if Madoff ends up in anything less than the most horrific penitentiary imaginable. Madoff has robbed thousands of their life savings, their families of their dreams and has caused some to take their own lives.

Has he shown any remorse for his repeated and continuous acts of betrayal, fraud and complete indifference toward the welfare of others? I think not. His courtroom speech shortly before sentencing was a half-hearted plea for his own leniency and a manifestation of self-pity. A true act of contrition would include, at minimum, his full disclosure of how he perpetrated the crime and an identification of others, including members of his own family, who assisted him. He also needs to either relinquish the remainder of the wealth he has stolen over the years and secretly stashed away somewhere, or convince us there is none.

Our legal authorities need to show Bernard Madoff no mercy unless and until he fully cooperates with them and answers all the requisite questions. Until that time, his incarceration should be as unpleasant as legally possible and should allow each and every one of his victims an opportunity to torment him each and every day until he comes clean or dies.