Posted on 05/06/2005 8:16:03 AM PDT by kiwi_hawk
A little person support group has dismissed the sympathy card played by dwarf Hamilton arsonist Shane Reid.
The "tear-jerking" antics of Reid's lawyer do not ring true, says Little People of New Zealand liaison officer Katy Sinclair –- the mother of a 13-year-old with the most common form of dwarfism.
Reid, 27, was jailed yesterday for 2 1/2 years for arsons on Cambridge High and Forest Lake classrooms which caused $400,000 damage.
He will be kept in a secure facility for intellectually disabled prisoners.
During his trial, lawyer Tom Sutcliffe told the court about Reid's claims of a tragic upbringing and the ridicule his small stature attracted.
Reid told a health specialist, who examined him prior to sentencing, he lit the fires because "society was destroying me so I destroyed it back".
Mrs Sinclair said claims that Reid was ostracised were hard to believe. When he was growing up, little people were no longer hidden away in institutions as they were decades earlier. "I don't buy it (Reid's claim). If he was aged 60 there would be a chance he was ostracised."
AdvertisementAdvertisementThe society had been offering support and information for little people and their families for 36 years.
Mrs Reid said she had unsuccessfully tried to contact Reid since the mid 1990s. He slipped through the system and had not received the level of support he needed.
During sentencing yesterday, Judge Denise Clark noted a 1981 paediatric report which said Reid's late diagnosis meant growth hormone treatment was not an option as his ligaments had already set.
More details of Reid's transient life emerged yesterday. Mr Sutcliffe said Reid was ostracised at school and in adulthood.
He had wanted an independent life, with a family and a job, and his inability to achieve that resulted in frustration and, ultimately, arson.
Judge Clark said Reid expressed no remorse for his crimes, and instead talked of the thrill and adrenalin rush of his fire-lighting.
She said it was clear Reid had significant physical and intellectual difficulties, and was likely to reoffend.
Outside court, Detective Scott McDougall –-said Reid was intelligent "but he's got a dark side to him and he can be vindictive".
He thought it'd only be a little fire.
This is great Friday fare.
At least it's a short sentence.
I can see why.
This is the height of stupidity.
Have those two words ever been placed together in the entire history of the English language?
So to speak.
He definitely need a HIGH level of support.
<<<..awaiting the requisite Munchkins photo...>>>>
A "matchkin"?
Well, that headline dwarfs anything I could have come up with.
He was sentenced by a bunch of small minded people.
"He will be kept in a secure facility for intellectually disabled prisoners."
2.5 years stuck in DU is a very harsh punishment!
Nope. Couldn't think of anything clever at that point. But you gotta admit, an arsonist dwarf is perfect for the humor that seems to happen on Friday.
Wonder if the poor little guy will get a reduced sentence?
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