Originally Posted By mele <a href="http://www.nbc4.com/news/9278770/detail.html" target="_blank">http://www.nbc4.com/news/92787 70/detail.html</a> Judge Says Child Molester Is Too Short For Prison Excerpt: LINCOLN, Neb. -- A judge's decision to sentence a 5-foot-1 man to probation instead of prison for sexually assaulting a child has angered crime victim advocates who say the punishment sends the wrong message. But supporters of short people say it's about time someone recognizes the unique challenges they face. ___________ Disgusting.
Originally Posted By TALL Disney Guy <Disgusting.> And I couldn't agree more, mele. Short people are indeed disgusting.
Originally Posted By chickendumpling Ooooh, Tall honey, but you are gonna end up in soooo much trouble now. When it all comes crashin' down just remember we love you.
Originally Posted By RoadTrip <<Disgusting.>> I'm not so sure. A 6'6" guy who weighs 320 lbs isn't going to be hassled too much in prison. A guy who is 5'1" is going to be everyone's 'girlfriend' within a week. Assuming that rape is cruel and unusual punishment, which I think it is, I find the judge's decision is at least partially right. Keep him out of prison... I agree with that. Give him probation?? No way. At minimum he should be confined in a Federal Prison or a Hospital for the Criminally Insane where he will not pose a danger to others and at the same time not be unduly punished because he is extraordinarily short for a guy.
Originally Posted By chickendumpling You who know me know I don't "WE" so I am only gonna say this: I'll bet the child he victimized was under 5'1". Absent extreme mental deficienies, offenders against children get no mercy from me.
Originally Posted By Shooba >>I'll bet the child he victimized was under 5'1"<< So very true. I understand the reasoning behind this decision (post 7 acknowledges this nicely) but why should the guy get a pass? There are consequences to breaking the law. So this guy becomes a plaything in prison? It might not be fair that he doesn't have it as "nice" as the rest of the inmates, but in the end he has only himself to blame.
Originally Posted By RoadTrip I understand the emotional reaction. But if there is a law against cruel and unusual punishment it needs to apply to all equally. Should the child molester who is 6'6" get lesser punishment because of his height than the child molester who is 5'1"? I really don't see how anyone could say yes to that question.
Originally Posted By mele Hey, everyone knows that if they go to prison, they'll get raped. This guy took that risk...he deserves to get the same punishment as every other molester. What if a molester was really, really attractive? He'd probably get passed around more, should he get probation for the same crime that uglier men go to prison for? Where do the excuses end?
Originally Posted By TALL Disney Guy <because he is extraordinarily short for a guy.> Come on Trippy, admit it...you puffed out your chest when you got to type that line. ;-)
Originally Posted By mele I don't mean he deserves to get raped (necessarily) but he deserves to go to jail like someone taller would. As a person who has been raped and who has been molested, I really couldn't care less how short he was or how sad his little ego is because of it. He took something from a child that will stay with her forever. I say he deserves to experience something that will change his little life forever. Probation sure aint it.
Originally Posted By RoadTrip <<I don't mean he deserves to get raped (necessarily) but he deserves to go to jail like someone taller would.>> I absolutely agree with that and said so in my original post.
Originally Posted By mele I wonder what the fallout for the judge will be for this decision. (Or if there even will be fallout.)
Originally Posted By Shooba >>Where do the excuses end?<< Right - to be fair you'd have to have special prisons for short people, tall people, pretty people, weak people, etc (or keep everyone in solitary). Prisoners should be protected from physical abuse (it's not really part of their sentence), but I don't like the way this guy is being let off so easily.
Originally Posted By Shooba >>I wonder what the fallout for the judge will be for this decision. (Or if there even will be fallout.)<< Perhaps the judge didn't exactly want to make this decision, but acknowledged that the prison experience is different for different people. Maybe this decision will force some changes to be made.
Originally Posted By StillThePassHolder While I can see the logic here to a point, we all know that prisons are filled with guys this short and have been forever. Suddenly there's a height requirement? You must be this tall to go on this sentence? It's akin to the court here in California who said lethal injection was cruel and unusual because there was pain from the needles. In my old life, when I was arresting people, I can remember plenty of short, feisty guys who gave me a very hard time. I can remember plenty of 5'10" skinny guys who I snapped like twigs taking them down. I can recall a 6'5" 250 lb. guy whose ankle I broke in five places while I tackled him. Heck, my brother looks a lot like Ricky Schroeder. When he was in Orange County Jail on his second DUI they had to segregate him from everybody else for precisely the reasons people are talking about here. I'd hate to be this judge if the guy turns out to be a recidivist. It wasn't sentencing guidelines, such as what the judge on the East Coast had to deal with earlier this year, but simply because the guy is too short? I dunno......
Originally Posted By PlainoLJoe Randy Newman Comes to Mind Short People Short People got no reason Short People got no reason Short People got no reason To live They got little hands Little eyes They walk around Tellin' great big lies They got little noses And tiny little teeth They wear platform shoes On their nasty little feet Well, I don't want no Short People Don't want no Short People Don't want no Short People `Round here Short People are just the same As you and I (A Fool Such As I) All men are brothers Until the day they die (It's A Wonderful World) Short People got nobody Short People got nobody Short People got nobody To love They got little baby legs That stand so low You got to pick 'em up Just to say hello They got little cars That go beep, beep, beep They got little voices Goin' peep, peep, peep They got grubby little fingers And dirty little minds They're gonna get you every time Well, I don't want no Short People Don't want no Short People Don't want no Short People 'Round here
Originally Posted By Kennesaw Tom It is the governments responcibility to make sure that any prisoner is safe while in jail. The "government" is legally responcible for the inmates welfare while the inmate is incarcerated. The fact that the inmate is short is a moot point. I think its rather telling when a judge believes that there are certain groups of people who are at greater risk of violence while incarcerated. Just plain stupid to me.
