Posted on 11/01/2009 9:13:45 PM PST by The Magical Mischief Tour
Victim's Family Says Justice System Failed
NASHVILLE, Tenn.- Sunday night Percy Thompson was out of the hospital and back in jail. Thompson has a lengthy criminal history behind him, and many are not surprised by the charges now before him: vehicular homicide of a 3-year-old boy.
"He should not have been on the road. My baby should still be here," said Paige Buchanon. Her son was killed Saturday in an accident that some say could have been avoided.
Courtroom testimony the day before the accident revealed very real fears that Percy Thompson, if let out of jail, could kill someone, and just 12 hours after his release, Thompson, according to police, killed Darius Marquise Buchanan: an innocent 3-year-old, who looked forward to trick-or-treating Saturday night.
"It's sad that somebody would want to take a child's life, and he took it with no remorse. It's like, as soon as he heard me say, "My baby," he took off!" Paige Buchanon, Marquise mother.
Sensitivity doesn't seem to be high on Thompson's list, according to those who know him. His list of offenses is lengthy: 59 arrests by Metro Police, and he's only 23-years-old. He's a convicted felon for robbery.
Thompson was released from the Davidson County jail on Friday and then picked up perhaps his most serious charge yet: vehicular homicide.
"He was speeding -- I mean, it was like he was like a lightning bolt toward a car. There was no way we could have dodged him or anything," explained Buchanon. "Please do not give him another slap on the wrist," she said regarding Thompson's punishment.
Metro police said Thompson, behind the wheel of his girlfriend's Lexus, crossed the median on Brick Church Pike and Broad-sided a Ford Taurus. Paige Buchanon was a passenger in that car. Her only son, Darius was strapped in the backseat on the side that was hit. Darius was not ejected as police first thought; however, he was killed almost instantly allegedly by a man who, according to many, should never have been out of jail.
A Nashville couple, once victimized by Thompson said they begged Judge Mark Fishburn on Friday to keep Percy Thompson behind bars. Still, he was released reportedly wearing an ankle device for tracking purposes. Witnesses to Saturday's crash say Thompson had been drinking, and that he left the scene in his girlfriend's Lexus, eventually attempting to flee on-foot.
I hope the judges are elected and not appointed in this district - he’s GOT to go !!!
It sure did fail, this creep’s record should have kept him locked up forever!
All I can say is our legal system is not a ‘justice’ system.
Yep, their first mistake is thinking it is a “justice” system.
I tried to look him up, but Tennessee requires a 9 digit SS#. Michigan takes a first and last name and you check each hit. Michigan’s is called OTIS.
In TN its easier to get the name, address and DOB of a handgun permit holder than it is a convicted felon who is currently in prison or on parole.
I wish we could sue the justice system for their failures.
There’s no sense “tracking” a monster who really does not care what happens to him.
I know of a similar incident in the Spencer area. The guy has multiple DUI’s, has lost his license multiple times. He still drives while he is waiting for three (yes three) DUI charges (this is the current lot) to work their way through the system (keep getting delayed). Just waiting for him to kill someone - truth - hope its himself and not someone else.
Some of the “good ole’ boys” in the county sheriff’s office look the other way, or pull him out of the vehicle and take him home. They should throw him in jail and leave him there until the DUI charges are all processed and he is in jail for good.
I can’t understand why they don’t see this man as a homicide waiting to happen.
This man has had too many chances as it stands. If out of jail he is a serious threat to innocents in society. As such his bond should be made high enough that he just can't seem to come up with it or better yet be held without bond till trial because of his behavior.
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