I've been there, done that. I was a victim myself too. I've been to the Penalty Box one time. I think that all parties involved in trolling and arguments should be thrown into the penality box, not just one. I see this as unfair sometimes. But I suppose its about the "popularity" of the people on this site. The more points you get, the more popular you are. No, its not spybots that throw people into the Penalty Box. It's the Community Leaders. And you're right. There should be a penalty for Community Leaders who just throw people into the Penalty Box. Some can abuse this priviledge.

There is no sitebot that throws anyone into the penalty box. The CLs or the staff do that. Normally, the CLs do the tossing, explain what happened to staff, and staff (Rich, usually) makes the final decision on the punishment. (Length of time in the PB.) You DO NOT get thrown into the PB for BEING DRed. In most cases, it's because an argument you were in went south, and YOU were the one who aimed it that way. There ARE times both arguers will be tossed to the PB, but it takes both ignoring at least one, if not more warning to knock it off. The warnings usually explain what you are doing wrong. If you don't stop that behavior, you face the consequences. DO NOT assume that CLs cannot be PBed. If they overstep their bounds, or do ANYTHING that anyone else would be PBed for, they can and will be. They must justify when they do put someone there, so don't think they can do what they want, when they want. They have a set of rules they go by IN ADDITION to the rules WE go by. IF you feel you have been ganged up on by people, and have proof (your feedback page filled with red negatives will do), take a screen shot of that/those pages, and send it and your argument/complaint to admin@answerbag.com . If you feel you have been unfairly PBed, send an email to the same place, with your arguments/complaints. The CLs are volunteers, asked by the staff to do the job of keeping AB as clear of spam, offensive language, trolls, etc. They've been chosen because of their impartiality... In other words, they could care less who's involved in an argument. They can follow the comment thread up and SEE who started it. ONLY Staff can see WHO has rated whom and when. That's why you must send the info to them. I hope this helps you understand a little how things work around here. (No... I'm not a CL, nor am I staff. I am simply observant.)