Posted on 10/06/2006 8:41:04 PM PDT by Private_Sector_Does_It_Better
Man Beaten To Death In Low-Security O.C. Jail
(CBS) SANTA ANA, Calif. A Mission Viejo man awaiting trial on suspicion of possessing child pornography for sale was beaten to death in a jail unit for low-security inmates, an Orange County sheriff's representative said Friday.
John Derek Chamberlain, 41, was "murdered by an inmate or inmates while in the shower" at the Theo Lacy jail in Orange, the department's Jim Amormino said.
Guards got a call of a "man down" about 6:30 p.m. Thursday, and Chamberlain was declared dead at a hospital about an hour later, Amormino said.
Investigators were interviewing some 140 inmates, he said.
(Excerpt) Read more at cbs2.com ...
It's an interesting topic, isn't it? I think people are just fed up with the slaps on the wrist and paroles. I read somewhere that the biggest problem with guards is that after they are around prisoners for awhile , some harden and start to act like the inmates. When people cheer on mob justice, aren't they doing the same?
Trials did not cost one million plus dollars when our founding fathers were around.
There were not endless appeals either.
I agree with your previous statements about a trial being the right thing to do 99% of the time but do a google search on Joseph Duncan and see what you think. The facts in the case are absolutely overwhelming.
I would make a special exception in a case like this. If he were not a prior child sex offender I would probably want him to get a trial but in light of all the known facts I think we are wasting alot of money.
The founding fathers would have strung up Joseph Duncan from the nearest tree if one of them had not shot him before they found a rope. There were fewer attorneys, laws, technicalities, hired experts, etc etc etc when the founding fathers wrote the document we all love. We should be mindful of that and stop turning unnecessary trials into expensive circuses. Adams, Quincy, and Jefferson would not recognize most of what occurs in our courtrooms these days.
However, I do agree that the man referenced in the article starting this thread deserved a trial. I also agree that convicted child rapist should be killed like rabid dogs.
Night yall
See my post just prior to this one.
I agree the man referenced in the article that started this thread deserved a trial. I am talking about an animal who was previously convicted, should never have been released, got a low bail on a new charge, and absolutely/positively committed 4 murders, raped two children, and got caught with the kidnapped little girl.
Different circumstances but maybe my frustration with this subject is getting the best of me.
I agree with most everything that has been said here tonight. I am, however, having a hard time getting upset because some guy ended up dead in jail after being arrested for possession of child pornography while the police were investigating him for exposing himself to children. IMHO, this guy needed to 'get dead' as soon as possible so he could get in the express lane for hell. If the inmates saved the taxpayers some cash in the process that is just a bonus. Maybe they will get more time in jail as a result and the streets will be safer for a little longer because of this guys death.
I guess you don't believe in "presumption of innocence"?
Hope you never get pulled over and arrested for something you did not do.
I know it's hard to deal with this subject when you are so close to it.
I have had to deal with the same in my family... but I still cling to the system of justice we have in USA. I wouldn't want to see a deterioration of our Constitution and Bill of Rights.
That seems to be the broader issue here that some just can't comprehend. This guy was obviously not a model citizen, but based on some of the posts here, we'd all be better off just converting to Islamism.
Maybe part of my frustration is the length and expense of a modern day trial. Back in the day of our founding fathers trials were alot more about facts and less about lawyers bickering over technicalities. They were relatively simple affairs for simple laws vs the tangled mess we have today.
The victims in child rape cases (children) get traumatized again by trials, the taxpayers get hosed, and the lawyers get wealthy. What a great system!
Scene two: Mom wants custody of children
Scene three: Mom claims dad had inappropriate sexual contact with their children in a fradulent attempt to win custody
Scene four: Dad in jail awiating trial is murdered because he was accused of a crime
Epilogue: You hope that never happens to you. I wouldn't mind if it did happen to you since you don't give the victim the benefit of a trial
"you don't give the victim the benefit of a trial"
I killed him?
I do believe in presumption of innocence, however, if this guy truly was innocent then we have a much bigger problem than mob justice in jail. For him to be innocent the public is falsely reporting people to the authorities for exposing themselves to children and the police are carrying 'throw-down' kiddie porn so they can frame innocent citizens. It seems much more likely to me (way beyond a reasonable doubt) that this guy was a sexual predator than that the police and the public were involved in a conspiracy against him. That would be a scary society.
Wow, judge, jury and executioner. And you're a conservative how exactly?
Regardless, the system is in place for proper prosecution of criminals. Mob justice is no answer. Allow it once.. allow it again... who's to say if the mob was correct?
"With a name like Chamberlain from south OC in a Santa Ana jail, a city which is about 80% illegal immigrants , chances are he was beaten to death because he didn't fit the gang profile or speak the language of the other prisoners, doubtful they even knew or cared anything else, or if some of them were guiltless of the same crime."
It is a county, not a city jail. Maybe 35 percent of the county is hispanic-many NOT illegal.
No telling who got to him, or even why. In any case, it is premeditated murder, and it is probable the perp will be successfully prosecuted.
Just as this guy would have been, had he not been denied his right to a fair trial in our nation of laws.
The police wouldn't have to be involved in such a conspiracy, although in this case a setup by a private actor would be very difficult (though not impossible). And yes, people do falsely report incidents to police all the time. The problem is that the man never got a chance to defend himself. He never got a chance to point out things that could prove that it was a setup.
Was the man guilty? Possibly and perhaps even probably. But without examining the evidence and hearing the defense there is no way I could say that I think he's guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
"Wow, judge, jury and executioner"
I didn't kill the guy.
DISCLAIMER: I believe all people accused of a crime are entitled to a fair trial and should not be subjected to vigilante justice. HOWEVER, I reserve my right to be amused by vigilante justice should it occur.
"Just as this guy would have been, had he not been denied his right to a fair trial in our nation of laws."
You have no way of knowing that.
OC jail in Santa Ana houses a high proportion of illegal immigrants and gang elements... If you are from this area... you know that.
what they dispensed wasn't justice.
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