Posted on 12/21/2006 8:00:39 PM PST by ellery
ATLANTA (AP) — The Georgia Supreme Court has turned down an appeal from a teen who was sentenced to 10 years in prison for having sex with a 15-year-old.
In a ruling released Friday, the court denied a motion for reconsideration filed by lawyers for Genarlow Wilson, who was 17 when he and the 15-year-old engaged in consensual oral sex. He was sentenced for aggravated child molestation.
Wilson’s case was one of two cases that were cited earlier this year when lawmakers passed a law that otherwise strengthened penalties for sex offenders, but reduced the penalty from a felony to a misdemeanor for some teenagers convicted of sodomy. Presiding Justice Carol Hunstein noted that in easing the penalties for teens, ‘‘the Legislature expressly chose not to allow the provisions of the new amendments to affect persons convicted under the previous version of the statute.’’
Hunstein added she was ‘‘very sympathetic to Wilson’s argument regarding the injustice of sentencing this promising young man with good grades and no criminal history to 10 years in prison without parole and a lifetime registration as a sexual offender because he engaged in consensual oral sex with a 15-year-old victim only two years his junior,’’ but said the court was bound the by limits set by the Legislature. ——— On the Net:
Insane.
Just damn.
They're practically the same age.
Absolutely insane.
for oral sex no less... pregnancy argument is not in play... the ruination of a young man's life to assuage the prurient interests of Georgia legislators. Hopefully the US supremes will find some basis for invalidating this injustice. If not maybe the governor will see the light.
That's the only bright spot in this case. It's refreshing to see judges who don't try to create law.
I feel terrible for the poor bugger- why is it that this kid gets 10 yrs, yet scumbags elsewhere get outpatient treatment and a lollipop? It seems like something so egregious should have parity at least.
I'm pretty familiar with the GA law (and the GA Supreme Court, which is EXTREMELY liberal). Just last year they struck down a similar case on something called the "Rule of Lenity" -- when the same act is chargeable as a felony and a misdemeanor, it must be sentenced as the misdemeanor.
This can't be the whole story. Stand by.
What's more, I get the scandal sheet (the Fulton Daily Report), and there was nothing about this at all this week. If this were true, the writers at the Daily Distort would have been all over it.
Something's up here.
This sucks.
Genarlow Wilson and a group of friends had the kind of bash no parent would want their teenager to attend. Crime scene investigators combing the room in a Days Inn in the small town of Douglasville, Ga., found evidence of drinking, as well as condoms and wrappers littered all over. Plus, there was a video camera.
* Related: Do Most Americans Engage in Pre-Marital Sex?
In a portion of a tape obtained by "Primetime," Wilson, then 17 and an honor student and star athlete who was homecoming king, is seen having intercourse with a 17-year-old girl, who was seen earlier on the bathroom floor. During the sex act, she appears to be sleepy or intoxicated but never asks Wilson to stop. Later on in the tape, she is seen being pulled off the bed.
Other portions of the tape show a second girl, who was 15 and later said she did not drink that night. She was recorded having oral sex with several boys in succession, including Wilson.
The following morning, Wilson got a phone call that would change his life. He learned from a friend that the 17-year-old had gone to the police to report that she'd been raped.
"I was, like, 'What? When was this happening? Did this happen at the same party I was at?'" Wilson said. "It was shocking to me."
As far as I remember, according to Bubba, oral sex isn't really sex...
Well, the court upheld the law, and did the right thing in that regard instead of legislating from the bench. The governor should pardon him and get his record expunged, and the legislature should get rid of whatever dumb-ass law that makes getting blown by a girl two years junior to oneself punishable by 10 years in prison.
Forcible rape is not a capital felony any more, but it's still a felony. And drugging a girl or giving her alcohol until she is unable to resist is forcible rape.
I think when the whole story comes out, there will be multiple convictions (including forcible rape and possibly kidnapping), and the story just focusses on one enumeration of error where they tried to get the child molestation conviction thrown out.
I'm not familiar with the statute in question, but it probably provides for an enhanced sentence when the child molestation is committed in the course of another felony (like kidnapping, rape, etc.)
Well, I found this article: http://abcnews.go.com/Primetime/LegalCenter/story?id=1693362&page=1
The "something" might be this:
In a portion of a tape obtained by "Primetime," Wilson, then 17 and an honor student and star athlete who was homecoming king, is seen having intercourse with a 17-year-old girl, who was seen earlier on the bathroom floor. During the sex act, she appears to be sleepy or intoxicated but never asks Wilson to stop. Later on in the tape, she is seen being pulled off the bed.
Looks like they might really be punishing him for this act, but the one with the 15 year old was easier to prove. That's not right -- if they want to punish him for this act, he should have been tried for it -- but that might be what's going on...
Pray the governor pardons.
With the videotape evidence, I would be very surprised if the DA didn't charge every crime he could think of (and for that matter, if the jury didn't convict. Videotape is powerful stuff.)
Looks like Mr. Goody Two-Shoes was a scumbag. And who taped all of this?
Pardons him for having sex with an intoxicated girl who later said she was raped?
This insanity is a direct result of legislative reaction to the insane sentences ordered by liberal judges.
When one controls the reactionary, emotional response caused by your blunt but accurate description... yes, a pardon would be appropriate.
I suppose seeing some of the responses here ... we're supposed to wink at a adult by legal age and a MINOR having sex? Laws are there to PROTECT MINORS even if they give "consent".
GEESH!
if it is true and it were my son then I would have him shipped out of country so fast it would make everyones heads spin!
This really needs to be righted.Poor kid
Every now and then we see a judge who understands his (or her) power is not without limit.
Thanks for the additional info.
According to the article, he was acquitted of the rape charge. It was the child molestation charge that was the issue -- the age of consent in GA apparently is or was 16.
What a mess.
http://abcnews.go.com/Primetime/LegalCenter/story?id=1693362&page=1
Good point -- this isn't for the judge to fix. I wouldn't have objected to jury nullification, though.
Talk about mixed signals to the youth. Clintongue said ORAL Sex was not sex. But this poor kid gets 10 years for having it done to him. Our TV and Movies push sex ALL the time. But this poor kid gets 10 years. We have teachers that have sex with their students and gays having sex with anything that walks or crawls, yet this kid gets 10 years. WE HAVE TO MORELS ANY MORE, ALL WE HAVE IS A LAW BASED ON THE WHIM OF THE DAY.
They were both minors.
But now that I've read post #14, my opinion has changed somewhat.
Let me suggest another take on this. The young man's problem is that there is an age of consent in Georgia of 16. So legally, she could not consent to sex and it was rape. This raises some questions.
1. Should there be an age of consent? If so, what? In other words, is the objection that a 17 yr old boy should be able to have sex with anyone of any age? If 15 is OK, how 'bout 14? Or 13? What if the boy is 15? (If we agree that an age of consent is a useful law, then we have to remember that any line, regardless where drawn, produces some apparent injustice. See point 3 below.)
2. If GA changed the age of consent, and she could legally consent to having sex with a 17 year old, how can we say she cannot consent to having sex with a 55 year old? That would also mean a 15 year old boy would be legally able to consent to sex with a 55 year old man. And do we really want to go there?
3. Good laws draw clear lines so people can predicate their behavior on the law. The GA law sounds pretty clear in that regard. But any clear line will have spots really close to the line that seem unfair--it happens over and over again in the law. If we fuzzify the line to get justice in a particular case, we make it harder for everyone else to know where the line is. Do we really want to make it harder for other, more responsible, people to obey the law so that this one, very irresponsible young man can escape the consequences of his actions?
Uh...is there a statute of limitations on sex between consenting children?
I can't believe this sentence is being allowed to stand. Absolute insanity.
Yet, other sumbags get elected to the Presidency for the same conduct with a much larger age difference.
That's only for female teachers who molest their students, where have you been the last 5 years?
(((ok, sarcasm OFF)))
Of course, that just constitutes proof that DUers don't watch South Park.
He was aquitted of the rape charge since the video proved his innocense. Michael Medved has been on this for the past couple of weeks.
Then it's an open and shut case *UNLESS* she lied and he could not have reasonably known otherwise. Under such a circumstance I'd have hung the jury even if I was the only one to vote not guilty.
That would've been something for the jury to sort out. Clearly they were able to conclude he was not guilty of raping the other girl so I imagine they would've sorted out the age circumstances among them.
It's sad that he'll be doing SO MUCH time and have a lifetime of being a registered sex offender but that's the law in GA. When he's released at 27 (or however old) he'll be another person entirely and not for the better.
The governor (via pardon powers) and the legislature can address this case and possible failure in GA law. I would suggest those in GA who are unhappy with the outcome should petition the governor and their representatives.
This judge's hands were tied. We should thank him for not legislating from the bench.
The law has since changed and he would've gotten no more than 12 months and not been required to register as a sex offender.
As for why girls get no punishment? It's a perverse and outmoded legal bias that treats males unequally and presumes guilt or culpability. You won't see feminists trying to work for "equal rights" in this area.
simmple conclusion:
boy=bad
girl=victim
The result would have been the same if the ages were reversed.
Well bingo indeed! This kid is in jail for rape, plain and simple.
Sad that the Ga. supremos couldn't use the Clinton impeachment hearings as a guideline on the sentencing part of the trial.
If I were the young man, during the court procedure I would have stated to the people. I did not have sex with that young lady.
It has worked in other procedures.
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