Playing up the &quot;equal access to justice&quot; angle here is shortsighted. Rich people have historically served as an important counterweight to government. When the government prosecutes them, it raises special interests, beyond the abstract interest in justice implicated whenever the government prosecutes someone. After all, it was the new-money commercial interests that lead the revolutions that gave us many of our modern democracies, including here in the U.S. And history is littered with examples of rich, powerful people being prosecuted precisely because of the threat they pose by virtue of their means.<p>An interesting example is Joseph Nacchio. While he was probably guilty of what he was accused of doing, at least he was declared guilty after putting up the best defense money could buy. Given the dynamics of the situation, it would&#x27;ve been troubling if he hadn&#x27;t been able to do that.