16-year-old sentenced to 20 years in prison [addicted to OxyContin]

news-press.com ^ | 10-14-03 | news-press.com

[ambrose]

Richard Lee Daniel was 15 when he went on a crime spree that started with seven stolen vehicles and ended in the brutal beating and robbery of a 73-year-old woman.

The North Fort Myers boy is 16 now and began paying the price of his actions Monday when he was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

[Tall_Texan]

And when Rush Limbaugh steals seven trucks and sets them ablaze while beating a 73-year-old granny with a flashlight, I'll be glad to throw him in prison and throw away the key.

It's not the drug addiction, it's the crimes. He's not getting 20 in the slammer for being hooked on Oxycontin. He's getting 20 years in the slammer for auto theft, burglary, assault while committing a crime, etc.

A very important difference that the Rush-bashers and Drug Worshippers will conveniently overlook.

And before anyone says it, I'm not willing to excuse Rush's alleged lawbreaking just for who he is. If the local DA wants to pursue a case, he should gather his evidence, file charges and let the courts decide guilt or innocence, just like anyone else. If there are no charges, I'll assume the DA knew he could win the case.

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[Tall_Texan]

...could NOT win the case. (time for bed)

[dennisw]

In this case the oxycotin use confirms his degeneracy and added to the sentence. Rush liked oxycotin too much but kept it all to himself. Rush is the polar opposite of this Clockwork Orange criminal.

[leadpenny]

Sure leaves a lot of "questions" in my mind.

[Always Right]

In this case the oxycotin use confirms his degeneracy and added to the sentence.

And just what orfice did you pull that fact out of? The article said nothing of the such, and in fact contradicts such claims:

Daniel could have been sentenced to life in prison for two of his crimes ? burglary resulting in personal injury and armed robbery.

He pleaded guilty Sept. 15 in exchange for 20 years. Reese also ordered Daniel to serve five years of probation.

[laredo44]

Drug Worshippers will conveniently overlook

Still feeling a little peevish the WOD caught one of its own? Still a little sheepish you've got to pull a little "carville" or "begala" hypocrisy and defend in one of yours what you condemn in others?

So Rush's illegally taking of drugs (an opiate for heaven's sake) is OK becasue it made him feel better?

[R. Scott]

Richard Lee Daniel was 15 when he went on a crime spree that started with seven stolen vehicles and ended in the brutal beating and robbery of a 73-year-old woman.
…
“Ricky is an extremely intelligent, loving, caring, sensitive, impressionable child,” Diane Mullins said…
Mullins blamed her son’s actions on drugs, which made him incapable of making good decisions.

I would say that Mom didn’t know her son very well.
It was the drugs! My sweet innocent little boy!

[mass55th]

"So Rush's illegally taking of drugs (an opiate for heaven's sake) is OK becasue it made him feel better?"

Oh, and don't forget another excuse some here use...that he's been a productive member of society. I can't be a hypocrite. Drug abuse is drug abuse, no matter who does it.

[ambrose]

I can't be a hypocrite either. That's why I uniformly oppose the War on Drugs, whether its target happens to be Tommy Chong or even Rush Limbaugh.

[laredo44]

I can't be a hypocrite. Drug abuse is drug abuse, no matter who does it.

I'll be no hypocrite either. But again, I've always contended that what an adult puts into his body is his own business -- Ghandi drank his own pee, how yucky is that?

Criminalize all the acts of theft and aggression, whether perputrated by the sober or the intoxicated. Make intoxication at the time of the offense an aggravating factor, I'm all for it.

Rush took drugs to make himself feel better. Fact is, everyone taking drugs does it for that same reason. That someone believes they should be able to pick and choose who gets to feel better scares the hell out of me.

[laredo44]

That's why I uniformly oppose the War on Drugs, whether its target happens to be Tommy Chong or even Rush Limbaugh.

What Rush did may have been illegal, but it was not wrong. Same for Tommy.

[Moby Grape]

The anti-WOD crowd love to chase amblulance and stand in front of them as a back drop while they spout their losing silly arguments...a real classless, self-absorbed, single issue lot....they never miss an opportunity to preach to us poor ignorant unelightened dolts who just can't see that addiction, death, crime and misery are a RIGHT.

[milemark]

Rush took drugs to make himself feel better... after said drugs were prescribed by a doctor, due to pain from surgery on his back. Apparently he became hooked on the highly addictive medication and maybe continued using it illegally after treatment ended. Maybe. That isn't clear yet. In any case, getting hooked on something prescribed by a doctor for legit medical reasons is a bit different than becoming addicted after recreational drug use.

[snopercod]

The media would love to see Rush in jail.

We'll be seeing a lot more stories like this over the next few months, saying, "If poor little Johnny has to go to jail, why not the rich and powerful Rush Limbaugh"? It's only fair.

[mhking]

And when Rush Limbaugh steals seven trucks and sets them ablaze while beating a 73-year-old granny with a flashlight, I'll be glad to throw him in prison and throw away the key.

It's not the drug addiction, it's the crimes. He's not getting 20 in the slammer for being hooked on Oxycontin. He's getting 20 years in the slammer for auto theft, burglary, assault while committing a crime, etc.

Exactly! So many folks are overlooking this point! Did you hear Michael "Diahrrea of the Mouth" Moore's article from yesterday?

[GovernmentShrinker]

I'd like to know where mom was while her 15 year old was out buying hard drugs, stealing cars, and beating old women. Are we supposed to believe that she didn't know anything was wrong until he got arrested for the beating?

[bvw]

That dichomy shows why drugs should be legal. They are not a crime. A crime is a crime, and a felony a felony. Old style felony, old style understanding of crime. The arbitrary definition of crimes and arbitrary classification of these mock crimes into felonies is an invention of the political class -- a franchise opportunity for them, like pork, like the tax code.

Such law perverting legislation is a misdemeanor. We seem to love electing men and women of suspect ethics and often, amorality -- figuring if we in each of our states, each of our districts elect a better thief and a swell grifter that then that foolishly esteemed cad of a personage will be bringing more swag home with him.

We also love to set a childish borders on adults, fellow adults for the sake of fear-mongering, furthering mistrust and casual mocking -- e.g. "You worthless druggie, you. Piss in this cup or be fired!" A generation of childish adults and wanna-be parents, unwilling to know an adult for what an adult must be. The zeitgeitz: "Since I'm a child-adult, I must make sure to hobble you from ever being a free adult-adult!" Fools!

[shuckmaster]

Rush had sponsors paying for his dope. That doesn't make him any less a dope addict.