For a murder conviction and a long sentence there has to be both: someone killed and "malice". You punch someone in anger and they die: murder, years in prison. You punch someone in anger and they are not seriously injured: relatively minor. You accidentally shoot your wife while cleaning your revolver: relatively minor.
What I don't like is when they try to convict people for having conducted some kind of feasibility study. Sometimes this results in people who would have decided against committing the crime going to prison for decades as if they had committed it. Sometimes it results in people who would have committed the crime going free because the jury thinks, "This is ridiculous". I know it's more expensive and often a bit dangerous, but probably the police should wait until the gang actually arrives at the bank, or whatever, before making their arrests, rather than trying to prosecute a bunch of people who were talking about perhaps raiding a bank.
I agree; minority report and other fiction works aren't talking about some future where people are judged on potential futures. They are talking about now.
What I don't like is when they try to convict people for having conducted some kind of feasibility study. Sometimes this results in people who would have decided against committing the crime going to prison for decades as if they had committed it. Sometimes it results in people who would have committed the crime going free because the jury thinks, "This is ridiculous". I know it's more expensive and often a bit dangerous, but probably the police should wait until the gang actually arrives at the bank, or whatever, before making their arrests, rather than trying to prosecute a bunch of people who were talking about perhaps raiding a bank.