With our return to the current timeline we immediately learn a few things:
- Jean Valjean has been recaptured
- During his trial and sentencing he refused to appeal
- His initial sentence was death
- It was changed to hard labor for life because of people appealing on his behalf
- As he had predicted, the city of Montreil-Sur-Mer suffered much in his absence
- Before he was caught again he took out a large sum of money he had made and saved, over $600,000!
- The police could not find that money and it was assumed he had hidden it somewhere only he knew
This turn toward “justice” seems anything but just in reality. Here was a person who had not only been “reformed” but was actively contributing to societies good and rather than that being recognized and accounted for, he is sentenced for a crime long since passed.
There are still a great number of unanswered questions here, like “where is Javert?” and “what became of Cosette”, but for the questions that we do have answers for we see only darkness. No real consideration is given to the fact that Jean Valjean had turned himself in and saved an innocent man. No real consideration is giving to all the ways he had grown and changed. No real consideration is given to the positive impact he had on countless lives. All tha tis seen is the cold letter of the law.