Posted on 01/24/2006 11:41:49 AM PST by presidio9
It seems some people go into politics just before they go totally brain dead. This is the only explanation for the announced effort in New York State to increase the penalty for killers of children to life without parole from the current 25 years to life. "I hope that will play a deterrent," said a Brooklyn assistant district attorney, urging on the politicians. Where do we get these people? Let us see: Envision an enraged parent or some other custodian of a child (the sort of person the law has in mind) who is abusing his or her ward and, while in the throes of a homicidal rage, pauses before delivering the fatal blow to consider the penalty. Life without parole is too high a price to pay, he somehow reasons. But 25 years to life, that's a different story. With that, the blow is administered.
The proposed legislation is already being called "Nixzmary's Law" after Nixzmary Brown, the 7-year-old Brooklyn girl who was allegedly tortured and then murdered by her stepfather.
Little Nixzmary was starved. She weighed only 36 pounds at death. She was tied to a chair. She was repeatedly beaten. She was made to eat cat food. She was deprived of toilet privileges and had to use kitty litter. She was repeatedly kept out of school and when, finally, she supposedly helped herself to some yogurt, the authorities say, her stepfather killed her.
Over and over again officialdom reached out to her - often feebly, in the end futilely. Her school noticed her condition and made a report. A doctor examined her. Social workers went to the house, could not get in and went away. Neighbors must have suspected something was wrong. Her relatives must have known enough to worry or maybe just to wonder. Letters were
(Excerpt) Read more at nydailynews.com ...
"Envision an enraged parent or some other custodian of a child (the sort of person the law has in mind) who is abusing his or her ward and, while in the throes of a homicidal rage, pauses before delivering the fatal blow to consider the penalty."
Even if it saves the life of ONE innocent child, its worth it in my book.
Besides, our legal system seems to have totally divorced itself from any concepts of "justice". Its now about "rehabilitation" and "law" and "due process".
A legal system's primary objective should be Justice, and in this ours has totally failed. Where is there justice in permitting a killer to continue enjoying the gift of life when he/she has needlessly taken that gift from another? Who speaks for the dead victim in the Courts of Justice? The Prosecutor? Hardly. He represents the law which all too often is totally diosconnected from any concept of justice.
Justice demands that people who kill without justifiable reason, especially victims who are powerless to protect themselves, like little children, should forfiet their lives.
Its the only just process.
yes, but the supreme court of NYS would never allow anyone to be put to death in any case.
Actually he did. He said her injuries were consistent with her mother's story that she fell down the stairs.
If anything can deter this kind of crime, it is only the knowledge that this kind of crime meets with swift, harsh punishment.
US Punishment is neither swift, nor harsh. As mad as I was while reading about this poor girl, I could not help thinking that this was only the most recent, not the last, time I would have to hear about it.
There will continue to be Nixmary Brown's and Lisa Steinberg's until the strength of the threat of punishment outweighs the want to commit the crime.
These monsters sure aren't going find any helpless little kids to torture and kill as long as they're in a maximum security prison.
Child Welfare systems are civil service jobs. ALL civil services are a mess. Child Welfare should be made private enterprise. A Dream, I know, but...
Typically the shoe is on the other foot when these types get to prison. About the only thing criminals seem to have no tolerance for is people who hurt kids. Let's see if the Mexican gangs offer any protection to one of their own when this POS gets to prison.
I think it does bear repeating. The failure here was not one of inadequate punishment of offenders after the fact. 25 to life is one most people would consider a pretty darn good deterrent.
Cutting down on these horrors(not eliminating them, which isn't possible) requires, as the author says, more effective implementation of existing regulations and laws, not the passing of new, feel-good ones, such as changing 25-life to life.
I would have no problem with a death penalty for this kind of crime, but I don't fool myself that having one would prevent many of them. It would, however, eliminate recidivism.
The answer is to get violent maniacs permanently behind bars after their FIRST offense. Nixzmary's stepfather had a conviction in 2003 for an alarmingly impulsive assault on a complete stranger, got a slap on a the wrist (one day of community service and a $50 fine), failed to even comply with the slap on the wrist, and there was no follow-up.
http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/383782p-325683c.html
Yes, it's pretty pathetic when we have more faith in imprisoned illegal immigrant gang members meting out justice, than in our court system.
EXACTLY!! Prison and the death sentence are not deterrence. They are punishments. If prison were a deterrent then there would be no crime now would there? Some people need to get off this deterrence doesn't work therefore we should do something different thing. Deterrence doesn't even represent half of the equation of why we have criminal laws and why we punish those that break them.
which ADA in Morganthau's office cut that plea?
One who is keeping a very low profile these days, I would imagine.
They deter recidivism very effectively.
Actually, no, it's not.
Understand his point. He's not talking about a predator or repeat offender. I believe the Dad should be charged with murder and don't understand, even after reading the IDIOTIC explanation, of why he's not. This guy wasn't a predator, he's a murderer. THAT law needs changing as the threshold is too high.
Until I say a libertarian make some other argument first, it will remain so.
IT'S ABOUT PUNISHMENT!
"say" = "see"
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