Posted on 02/16/2006 1:59:50 PM PST by DuckFan4ever
SALEM, Ore. (AP) — It may have been a borderline call, but it was still a third strike.
The Oregon Court of Appeals on Wednesday upheld a ruling that sent Nicholas Meyrovich to life in prison under a 2001 three-strikes law. Meyrovich got his third strike, a felony sex offense, for delivering an unwanted kiss.
Meyrovich, in his appeal, claimed that a life sentence for the kiss violated the Oregon Constitution's ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
Meyrovich, 60, an exterminator, was inspecting the home of a Salem woman in October 2003 when he suddenly grabbed her and kissed her. The woman pushed Meyrovich away, but he took hold of her again and sucked her on the neck, stopping when a neighbor walked in.
Meyrovich was later convicted of first-degree sexual abuse, which under Oregon law requires the forcible touching of the "sexual or other intimate parts" of another person.
Meyrovich argued that the neck is not an intimate part of the body; the court disagreed.
"In ordinary social intercourse, one adult does not touch the neck of another adult outside of intimate relationships, at least not without some unusual but reasonable justification," Judge David Schuman wrote for the panel that decided the case.
The court also disagreed that the sentence was cruel and unusual, noting that the three-strikes law was not aimed at the gravity of a particular crime but at habitual offenders. Schuman wrote that Meyrovich had been convicted of nine prior sex offenses before the kiss.
Meyrovich is one of only four inmates serving life sentences under Oregon's sex offender three-strikes law.
Of course if he'd kissed a guy he'd be given a position of honor at a parade.
It always worked for Cary Grant!
"Meyrovich away, but he took hold of her again and sucked her on the neck, stopping when a neighbor walked in."
I suspect he would have done much worse to her had that not occurred (the neighbor).
Ah, the triumph of "Sexual Harassment" PC BS!
You must remember this
A kiss is just a kiss, a sigh is just a sigh.
The fundamental things apply
As time goes by.
I wonder how far he would have gone if the neighbor had not walked in.
He's wrong. My wife has a super hot neck. ;-)
This sounds pretty awful ... life in prison for a kiss. But this was an assault, grabbing her, kissing her and sucking on her neck. If this is his third sexual assault it sounds to me that he has gotten what he had coming.
My sensitivity is running low since I cannot get too concerned about a likely rape being prevented by the fortunate appearance of a third party.
Does anyone really believe this guy was just after a little smooch? I mean other than a reporter from the Treason Media.
The founders were opposed to assaults, and that's what this was.
this goes far beyond 'sexual harrassment'.
This guy is a dumbass, and like someone else said, would likely have gone further had he not been interrupted.
Great show. :-)
Have you always been gullible or is it a recent state?
This sounds like a sexual assault that was interrupted by the neighbor.
I think he chose a profession that put him in peoples homes so he could pick and choose his victims.
Yikes...
So this was the guys 10th sex offense? No sympathy here - throw away the key, the community needs protected.
No, we jail people for assaults. And since this was his third, I've got no tears for him.
He went far enough. It was a sexual assault.
How would you feel about it if it was you he grabbed and kissed? Or how bout your wife/daughter?
This guy had NINE prior sexual offenses. In the days of the founders he would not get a chance for a 10th.
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