Is Curb influencing our judicial system?

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals approved 'Scarlet Letter' theft sentence saying that forcing a mail thief to wear a sandwich board announcing his crimes did not violate the Constitution or the Sentencing Reform Act.

If you don't understand the title reference then you missed this episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm.

update: It's quite possible that Law & Order has some influence as well.