Your thoughts on the Marco Muzzo sentence

Impaired driver Marco Muzzo was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Tuesday, for his role in a Vaughan, Ont., crash that killed three children and their grandfather.

Muzzo had pleaded guilty to four counts of impaired driving causing death and two counts of impaired driving causing bodily harm.

• Marco Muzzo sentenced to 10 years in prison for Vaughan crash that killed 4
• Marco Muzzo tells sentencing hearing: 'I'm tortured by the grief I've caused'
• CBC Forum: Are we making progress in the battle against impaired driving?

We've discussed the progress made in the battle against impaired driving, but we wanted to know how you feel about the sentence given to Muzzo.

You shared your thoughts, comments and insights via CBC Forum, our experiment to encourage a different type of discussion on our website. We've rounded up some of the best contributions to the forum discussion below.

Please note that user names are not necessarily the names of commenters. Some comments have been altered to correct spelling and to conform to CBC style. Click on the user name to see the comment in the blog format.

Many thought the sentence was too light.

• "If he killed four people with a knife or a gun, would he get 10 years? If not, then it is not a just sentence. It was murder and entirely preventable. His weapon of choice was a vehicle, that is the only difference." — mde
• "It's equivalent to 2.5 years per life. That is basically a slap on the wrist. At minimum, it should have been 10 years per life." — rizaroni
• "The justice system is broken. The sentence MUST reflect the crime. The sentence given Mr. Muzzo does not do this; this sentence reflects only the disdain judges have for Canadian victims of horrible crimes." — Ken

Others thought the sentence was too harsh … or just the right amount.

• "I feel the sentence was much too harsh. Something in the nature of four years, with time off for time served, would seem more reasonable. Perhaps he could speak to school groups on the evils of drinking." — gabriel
• "I believe 10 years is reasonable. Nothing will be gained by depriving more life with a longer sentence. I just hope that the sentence is served. I have little faith in a system in which an esteemed judge issues a sentence and a civil servant undermines the same." — Craig Pedersen

Several acknowledged the complexities with the case.

• "I'm conflicted. It's a very challenging case. On the one hand you feel terrible for those children and grandfather and their families. On the other hand our system is based on rehabilitation and not punishment. I honestly don't believe that these sentences serve as a deterrent. In that sense you have to be in the mind of the drinker at the time and assume that they are thinking rationally, when they decide to drive, which by definition they're not." — Shawn
• "I'm conflicted on this one. My initial reaction was the same extreme disappointment at the weak 10-year sentence. Then on the other hand I'm wondering if a punitive sentence that puts him in prison for life is good for anyone. Ten years is a long time by some standards, but when I think of the reality that he killed multiple people across generations of a family, it doesn't feel like nearly enough." — Mike Berlin

There were also some alternative solutions offered.

• "Mr. Muzzo should be made to volunteer, once he is out, with an organization that raises awareness about impaired driving: MADD, SADD, BADD, Sober Rides, Smart & Sober, DDPO, IDDPA, the list goes on. He took something very precious away. At the very least, he should have to give something of himself — why not his time? — back." — Thoughtful
• "This man could be an amazing speaker on the perils of drinking and driving. Community service for drunk drivers with the purpose of showing real life tragedies should be attached to all convictions." — Christine Brewster
• "There are far too many people who drink and drive. I would prefer to see more effort spent on deterring. If you wanted to send the message that drinking and driving is wrong, then there should be a zero tolerance policy on all people who drink and drive. That way the [government] is sending the message that no amount of alcohol is safe for consumption while driving." — Shawn

You can read the full CBC Forum live blog discussion on the Muzzo sentence below.

Can't see the forum discussion? Click here