Posted on 03/14/2006 9:03:55 PM PST by Former Military Chick
A Franklin County Common Pleas judge says he relied on testimony from two psychologists when he decided not to imprison a man who admitted sexually abusing two boys for more than three years.
Judge John A. Connor came under fire this week from the man’s neighbors and victimrights advocates.
In December, Connor sentenced Andrew S. Selva, 46, to five years of probation under intensive sexual-offender supervision, including one year of home confinement with electronic monitoring. Violating probation would mean eight years in prison.
Selva pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual battery, a thirddegree felony that does not require prison time but can carry a sentence of up to five years.
"By sending him to prison, he gets no treatment and he gets out and does whatever he wants," said Connor, who ordered treatment as a condition of the probation.
But Catherine Harper Lee, executive director of the Justice League of Ohio, said probation is too lenient.
"In our society, we expect these offenders to be sent to prison," she said. "What message does it send to these two children, who had the courage to step forward and who endured years of trauma?"
Harper Lee attended a Tuesday meeting organized by residents of Selva’s Hilliard neighborhood, many of whom learned about the case last month when they got notices in the mail that a sexual predator was living nearby.
"It’s too bad these offenders can’t be moved next door to the judges," said Susan White, secretary of the Britton Farms Homeowners Association.
Selva, of 4669 Carrington Way, could not be reached for comment yesterday.
In January 2004, he was indicted on 20 counts of rape and two counts of gross sexual imposition. One of the boys was 5 years old when the assaults began in 1999, according to the indictment, which lists a series of rapes involving oral and anal sex.
The boys knew Selva because he helped their families come to America from Asia said detective Melinda Hunt, of the Columbus police child sexualassault squad. "He violated their trust. He was in a position to help these people. Instead, he raped their children."
Hunt was angered and saddened when she heard Selva’s sentence.
"I thought he deserved prison time. I still do," she said.
The indictment was dismissed in 2004 because the prosecutor discovered minor inaccuracies in some of the dates and accusations. The prosecutor could have returned to a grand jury, but Selva’s attorneys asked him to consider a plea.
Ronald Welch, who was the assistant prosecutor in the case, said the older victim, by then a high-school athlete, worried that members of the community might learn what happened to him. Protecting his identify was one of the factors in allowing Selva to plead guilty to the lesser charges, Welch said.
Prosecutors did not recommend a sentence, agreeing with defense attorneys to leave it up to the judge. Pushing for a prison term could have derailed plea negotiations, Welch said. "I felt confident that the acts themselves would result in prison."
Welch has since become an assistant prosecutor in Muskingum County, and another Franklin County assistant handled Selva’s sentencing hearing.
Connor said psychologists for the prosecution and defense both testified at the hearing that, if Selva received treatment, his chances of re-offending were not high.
"I can only consider what he pleaded to," Connor said. "If he had pled to two counts of rape, he would be in prison. I had two psychologists who said he’s treatable. He admitted he had a problem and said he wanted help. I made the best call on what I had in front of me."
This judge has had 8 DUI arrests and 3 convictions. WOW. Should that mean he not be on the bench?
Judge Connor said:
“He’s got a disease like I’ve got a disease.” And he’s referring to his acknowledged alcoholism and involvement in a 12-step program.
And he says, “I don’t know that prison would have helped, except for revenge, and revenge is not in the sentencing guidelines.”
Getting back to the sex offender, NO jail, this is like going back to the guy in Vermont ... perhaps worse?
This is a disturbing case. The following is some background on the judge.~FMC
2004-1761. Disciplinary Counsel v. Connor, 2004-Ohio-6902.
On Certified Report by the Board of Commissioners on Grievances and Discipline, No. 04-027. John Aloysius Connor, Attorney Registration No. 0013324, is suspended from the practice of law in Ohio for six months, stayed on condition.
Moyer, C.J., Resnick, F.E. Sweeney, Pfeifer, Lundberg Stratton, O'Connor and O'Donnell, JJ., concur.
Opinion: http://www.sconet.state.oh.us/rod/newpdf/0/2004/2004-Ohio-6902.pdf
The Supreme Court of Ohio voted unanimously to suspend the law license of Franklin County Common Pleas Court Judge John Aloysius Connor for six months, with the entire suspension stayed on conditions, stemming from a February 2004 drunk driving conviction, his second in five years.
The Court adopted the findings of the Board of Commissioners on Grievances and Discipline that Connor violated one provision of the Code of Professional Responsibility and two provisions of the code of Judicial Conduct including:
Engaging in conduct that adversely reflects on a lawyer's fitness to practice law
Failing to respect and comply with the law and acting at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary
Failing to avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety in all of the judge's activities
In setting the sanction for his misconduct, the Court noted that Connor's convictions originated from his admitted addiction to alcohol and looked favorably upon Connor's dedication to recovering from his disease, including participating in Alcoholics Anonymous, completing a respected inpatient treatment program in Maryland and signing a Lawyers Support System Recovery Contract sponsored by the Ohio Lawyers Assistance Program (OLAP).
The Court therefore adopted the recommended sanction of the Board of Commissioners on Grievances and Discipline that Connor receive a six-month suspension, with the entire suspension stayed on the condition that he complies with the terms of his OLAP contract until March 26, 2006, which extends his current two-year contract, executed on March 26, 2003, for one year.
Contacts
Jonathan E. Coughlan and Stacy Solochek Beckman, 614.461.0256, for the Office of Disciplinary Counsel.
George D. Jonson, 513.241.4722, for Judge John A. Connor.
The guy doesn't deserve prison time... he deserves to be hanging from a rope.
Idiot judges like this are the direct result of voters electing liberal politicians.
In Massachuseets, we're stuck with a dozen or more liberal judges just like this guy, who were appointed by Dukakis.
Richard
Not true, he would have gotten plenty of treatment from his cellmate, every night...
Selva pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual battery, a thirddegree felony that does not require prison time but can carry a sentence of up to five years.
Snippets: A philanthropist best known in Central Ohio for contributing reward money in local cases is now working to have a Franklin County judge removed from the bench
"The nation should be appalled at this because this just can't happen," Mammana said. "They need to remove this judge as fast as they possibly can."
Here is a picture of the pervert for those who live in Hilliard, OH:
DUH! Where has treatment of these perv's worked?
It's about the predator, the victim in the libs eye. The truth doesn't matter.
It should be about justice for the real victim and keeping society safe.
I use to think in order to be a judge you had to have a brain. Facts have proved me wrong. Very wrong.
This is exactly what the Catholic church got in trouble for.
Mrs VS
yeah, big bill has been on this big time
Which pervert, the "judge" or the scum who raped these children?
Good point. The picture is of the rapist.
He is missing a hole between his eyes!
The left ignored this and spends their time screaming that these same group of people should have the opportunity to take our boy's camping.
Yeah right.
Do that to my son and he'd be treatable all right. Treatable to a slow painful death.
It is criminal that subhuman scum like this aren't removed from the face of the earth. The judge shares guilt with this fiend.
The poor boys and parents. Imagine how they feel with this SOB roaming the streets unpunished.
The fact that our society is now so lenient with sex perverts, especially those who prey on children, is a symptom that we are heading off the cliff, culturally speaking.
Actually, the majority of the boys molested by wolves in sheeps' clothing in the church were adolescents - a favorite target of homosexuals throughout history.
Single cure works on both these guy's diseases...and would even cure the so called "judge's" drinking problem for no extra charge.
imagine what an inspection of the judge's hard-drive might reveal.
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