Ace of Spades HQ

December 13, 2013

Kid Kills 4 in Drunk Driving/Excessive Speed Rampage;
Sentenced to Only Probation, Because Judge Agrees He's Been So Spoiled By His Parents That He Doesn't Understand the Consequences of His Actions
— Ace

A very alarming story from Purple Avenger on the graveyard shift, also covered at Hot Air.

Even if one accepts that homicide-by-drunk-driving should not be charged like a murder or manslaughter, this particular case -- featuring a kid who stole beer, then got drunk at three times the legal limit, then sped around at 70 mph in a 40mph zone -- is one of what the law would call "willfulness," deliberately taking dangerous actions knowing the possible consequences but not caring. And that's manslaughter.

In some rare cases, a high level of willfulness has been found to be sufficient to charge someone with outright murder (which requires intent) -- the so called "depraved-heart murder" precedents. A rare thing, and I'm not sure I buy it, but such complete disregard for human life has been found to be the legal equivalent of intent to kill before.

Even if you don't think this kid should get life in prison, surely he owes the state a couple of years in prison, doesn't he?

A judge decided no, not at all. Not a year, not six months, not a month, not a week... no jail time at all.

Per CNN:

Simply put, Couch, 16, claims that his condition stemmed from having wealthy, privileged parents who never set limits for him.
But Eric Boyles, who lost his wife and daughter in the crash, said on CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360," "There are absolutely no consequences for what occurred that day. The primary message has to absolutely be that money and privilege can't buy justice in this country."

Even if the judge bought this nonsense -- then the decision was because this monster had previously faced no consequences for his behavior, he should continue facing no consequences for his behavior?

What? Because the kid think there's no such thing as consequences, he'll be sentenced to no consequences?

All he had do do was move out from his parents' control -- and what spoiled-rotten monster brat wouldn't love his own apartment? Half of them sue to be emancipated. He'll have ten years probation.

People will say this is a liberal judge. Perhaps, perhaps not. I tend to think liberal judges would tend to be outraged by bad behavior by the very rich. Why, they will sometimes treat rich felons the way conservatives say we should treat all felons.

Perhaps it is that.

But I don't know.

I can't help noticing that this sentence looks almost exactly like the sort of sentence the parents, the lawyers, and the brat would have imposed themselves. I can't help thinking that no one except the parents, their lawyers, and this little monster himself would approve of such a sentence.

So that makes me wonder why this judge decided this was a fitting sentence.

I'd like to see this judge investigated. I find this sentence to be impossible to justify, explain, or defend. So I'd like to know exactly what led to it.

I ain't accusin'. But I'm suspicious.

Correction (?) A commenter says the judge wasn't imposing the sentence per se, but was rather imposing an agreed-to sentence worked out as part of a plea deal.

Very well. Then I am suspicious of the prosecutors who gave up a career-making prosecution (it would be politically popular, and all prosecutors are really politicians) in order to let this little monster take a ten year vacation in Rehab Resort.

Posted by: Ace at 01:28 PM | Comments (232)
Post contains 627 words, total size 4 kb.

1 Can the state appeal the sentencing?

Posted by: Harry Reid (D-NV) aka The Searchlight Strangler at December 13, 2013 01:30 PM (yG+vv)

2 I'll take "Judge knows parents at least by reputation" for $1,000, Alec.

Posted by: Darth Cobalt Shiva, Sith Lord at December 13, 2013 01:30 PM (OY/SZ)

3 Your Bleeding Heart ...twang twang twang ... will never know ... Actions have consequences ...

Posted by: Adriane... at December 13, 2013 01:30 PM (jdRXP)

4 Darn sock. Ooh, and first!

Posted by: Pagliaccio at December 13, 2013 01:31 PM (yG+vv)

5 I'd like to see this judge investigated. I find this sentence to be impossible to justify, explain, or defend. So I'd like to know exactly what led to it.

The first thing I thought when I saw this was that the judge had been bought off somehow or was friends with the parents. This is such an obvious travesty of justice that something has gone horribly wrong here. He's letting a killer walk.

Posted by: Doomed at December 13, 2013 01:31 PM (wFfp9)

6 Parents have likely contributed to judges election fund or have some other connections.

Posted by: Buzzion at December 13, 2013 01:32 PM (MEsJf)

7 We've been working toward the old world aristocratic multi tiered legal system for decades now.

Rules for the leets (rich leftists and celebs) is one thing, rules for the plebs something else entirely.

Posted by: Grimmy at December 13, 2013 01:32 PM (uUsh9)

8

Logical, I guess. If you're insane.

Posted by: grammie winger at December 13, 2013 01:32 PM (P6QsQ)

9 The kid will end up in jail eventually. No way he does 10 years probation without fucking up.

Posted by: Aviator at December 13, 2013 01:32 PM (DI+ja)

10 That Darn Sock ... might make a good movie and it's not a Disney remake ...

Posted by: Adriane... at December 13, 2013 01:32 PM (jdRXP)

11 Many years ago on a far less serious juvenile case I was prosecuting, the defense argued that the court shouldn't lock the kid up because the court hadn't locked the kid up last time using similar logic. I thought it was the most ridiculous thing I'd ever heard.

Posted by: WalrusRex at December 13, 2013 01:32 PM (Hx5uv)

12 If the county the judge is in stand for election, MADD should be putting full size ads in the local paper every day from now to Election Day.

Posted by: John P. Squibob at December 13, 2013 01:32 PM (kqqGm)

13 @2 - "I'll take 'Judges' kids mysteriously getting Ivy League legacy admissions for $1000, Alex"

Posted by: JEM at December 13, 2013 01:33 PM (o+SC1)

14 Let me guess.... this judge is a knucklehead.

Posted by: dantesed at December 13, 2013 01:33 PM (88xKn)

15 If he's under 26, aren't these deaths covered by his parent's insurance anyways?

Posted by: t-bird at December 13, 2013 01:33 PM (FcR7P)

16 He's spoiled, so all consequences for his actions are null and void. Isn't that just perpetuating the spoiling?

Posted by: grammie winger at December 13, 2013 01:33 PM (P6QsQ)

17 Simply put, Couch, 16, claims that his condition stemmed from having wealthy, privileged parents who never set limits for him. If his name were Kennedy, he wouldn't have to spell that out.

Posted by: t-bird at December 13, 2013 01:34 PM (FcR7P)

He doesn't understand the consequences of his actions

Oh good, probation will really teach him about consequences.

Posted by: Darth Randall at December 13, 2013 01:34 PM (Zswg6)

19 Every time we are told mandatory sentencing guidelines are a bad idea, stories like this should be revisited...

Posted by: M. Murcek at December 13, 2013 01:34 PM (GJUgF)

20 You've been set up to live a life of no consequences, therefore I sentence you to...no consequences? Why does it feel like they are setting up a lifelong legal pass for the Kennedy clan via this ruling? Appeal appeal appeal, toss the judge out on his gavel.

Posted by: LizLem at December 13, 2013 01:35 PM (BF+2f)

21 One detail I find enlightening is that after the accident the kid ran away yelling to his friends, "I'll get you out of this. I'm Ethan Couch." Alas one of his friends was thrown from the vehicle and is now paralyzed in a coma.

Posted by: WalrusRex at December 13, 2013 01:35 PM (Hx5uv)

22 *ahem*

http://ace.mu.nu/archives/345648.php

Posted by: Purp[/i][/b][/s] at December 13, 2013 01:35 PM (UVadJ)

23 Your honor, he has never been disciplined, so to discipline him now would surely shock and upset him.

Posted by: fb at December 13, 2013 01:35 PM (JVEmw)

24 I can't say anything really. I live in AZ, though not Scottsdale, and the My Wife's a JAP murder defense flew through here, no problemo ...

Posted by: Adriane... at December 13, 2013 01:35 PM (jdRXP)

25 Dug around, the court is in Ft. Worth, TX (Tarrant County).

Anybody know where to find the political demographics of this county?

Posted by: John P. Squibob at December 13, 2013 01:35 PM (kqqGm)

26 "Affluenza" -- just making up diagnoses now too.

Posted by: L, elle at December 13, 2013 01:35 PM (0xqKe)

27 >>> The kid will end up in jail eventually. No way he does 10 years probation without fucking up. Agreed. Judge needs to be his cell mate.

Posted by: fluffy at December 13, 2013 01:36 PM (pkkOV)

28 BTW--The Judge has also suddenly announced her retirement....

Posted by: Kasper in Arrears..... at December 13, 2013 01:36 PM (HqpV0)

29 We should raise the death ceiling to five...

Posted by: John Boehner at December 13, 2013 01:36 PM (FcR7P)

30 The answer: http://youtu.be/rkRIbUT6u7Q

Posted by: Paid for by Citizens for Clyde the Orangutan at December 13, 2013 01:36 PM (QF8uk)

31 Welcome to the family, kid.

Posted by: The Kennedys at December 13, 2013 01:36 PM (VJpOJ)

32 Texas Judge Jean Boyd, who sentenced a rich teen drunk driver to probation at a plush rehab center for a nasty crash that killed four people and injured nine others in June, reportedly sent a 14-year-old black boy to prison last March after his punch resulted in one death.

http://tinyurl.com/oe3fjer

Posted by: grammie winger at December 13, 2013 01:36 PM (P6QsQ)

33
Judge Judy would have thumped this punks ass like a honey badger on a cobra.

Posted by: Detective Dirty Hairy at December 13, 2013 01:36 PM (pJF+c)

34 Nice incentive to put limits on your kids.

Posted by: RS at December 13, 2013 01:36 PM (YAGV/)

The kid should spend the next 20 years in the slammer. Then he would have a good understanding of consequences.

The judge should be impeached and thrown out of office, then procecuted.

Posted by: maddogg at December 13, 2013 01:37 PM (xWW96)

36 Sounds like every other day in Hollywood.

Posted by: Merovign, Dark Lord of the Sith[/i] [/b] [/s] [/u] at December 13, 2013 01:37 PM (qyfb5)

37 I went to school with kids like this. They'd total their car on Saturday night and on Monday, they'd have a brand new replacement waiting for them.

Posted by: Mr. Moo Moo at December 13, 2013 01:37 PM (0LHZx)

38 I don't understand how this could have happened. Underage drinking is illegal!

Posted by: Alcohol Free Zone at December 13, 2013 01:37 PM (JVEmw)

39 One of the terms of his parole is that he is no longer allowed kill people with a car, even if he is sober, so it's not like he got off with no consequences.

Posted by: Gristle Encased Head at December 13, 2013 01:38 PM (+lsX1)

40 See: OJ Simpson, gang banger and knife assailant while in high school. No consequences to him, or to USC - just to a couple of unimportant people later in the timeline.

Posted by: Vashta Nerada at December 13, 2013 01:38 PM (eGmvn)

41 purp-- sorry, I didn't see your post. I'll link it now and credit you.

Posted by: ace at December 13, 2013 01:38 PM (/FnUH)

42
Mom, you can't tell me what to do, so go fuck yourself.

Posted by: Rich Teenage Liberal Punk at December 13, 2013 01:38 PM (pJF+c)

43 Posted by: Purp at December 13, 2013 05:35 PM (UVadJ) Hide posts from (UVadJ) It's like you don't know where you posted.

Posted by: Merovign, Dark Lord of the Sith[/i] [/b] [/s] [/u] at December 13, 2013 01:38 PM (qyfb5)

44 find members of the local bar that have support the judge during his/her election or re-election. follow the money.

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sQuidProQuo at December 13, 2013 01:38 PM (OqeDl)

45 12 If the county the judge is in stand for election, MADD should be putting full size ads in the local paper every day from now to Election Day. Posted by: John P. Squibob at December 13, 2013 05:32 PM (kqqGm) Of course that is something that would be right up MADDs alley. But since they have gone so far off mission you probably won't hear a peep from them about it.

Posted by: Buzzion at December 13, 2013 01:38 PM (MEsJf)

46 Can the state appeal the sentencing?
-
Probably not. Unless the sentence was actually illegal or, perhaps, the result of actual corruption, double jeopardy kicks in and that's all she wrote.

Posted by: WalrusRex at December 13, 2013 01:38 PM (Hx5uv)

47 i actually went to sleep by 12:30 last night. I have been up much later lately.

Posted by: ace at December 13, 2013 01:38 PM (/FnUH)

48 Check out some of the commentary. The narrative is a false on in the opinion of those in the courtroom. After Zimmerman we should all be wary of false courtroom narratives. There is a woman from a local reporter who stated (a la Zimmerman) quite a bit different view of what went on the court room. - It was a sentencing hearing to a sentence that was setup and already pleaded guilty to, e.g. the judge had no role - The judge was unhappy at the sentencing that he was delivering and said so - The testimony was clear that the drugs were at fault. In fact there was a day of testimony, the affluenza comment was a 30-second throwaway line unrelated to much of anything but blown out of proportion - The comment the psychologist gave was in response to "why did this happen"? It was not an excuse, it was just the comment that the kid ended up on drugs, etc. because the parents were wealthy and permissive and the kid got away with stuff - The parents wealth was undoubtedly a factor in their ability to get the DA to agree to the plea deal that was arranged. In the pursuit of miscarriage of justice, that is supposedly the area to look. Everyone agrees there was a miscarriage, but that wasn't clearly reported either. Read some of the detailed accounts (one of the courtroom reporters went on a Twitter rampage about how this story has been misreported. I wish had the link, if someone can find check it out). I don't know for sure that all this is true - but as always with media memes, we do ourselves a favor by digging.

Posted by: PrincetonAl at December 13, 2013 01:38 PM (6nFwR)

I hope the families of the victims sue that kid's parents for every dime they have.

"The judge has one year left on her term, so she doesn't care."

-- I heard someone on Fox say this last night.

Maybe the judge got some retirement money?

Posted by: wheatie at December 13, 2013 01:38 PM (+SY5G)

Dug around, the court is in Ft. Worth, TX (Tarrant County).

Anybody know where to find the political demographics of this county?

Pretty conservative, actually

Posted by: Vashta Nerada at December 13, 2013 01:38 PM (eGmvn)

51 My imaginary friend just told me that if the relative of the victims took some kind of vengeance on this criminal monster, his parents and the judge, that the share price of Kleenex would not go up, nor would any jury convict.

Posted by: Andy in FL at December 13, 2013 01:40 PM (nf/Xx)

52 41 purp-- sorry, I didn't see your post. I'll link it now and credit you.

Posted by: ace at December 13, 2013 05:38 PM (/FnUH)

This is what happens when ewoks go out on extended hobo expeditions.

Posted by: John P. Squibob at December 13, 2013 01:40 PM (kqqGm)

53 Isn't this a variation of the liberal, social justice, "society made me this way" defense? The irony is that it was used to defend a spoiled rich kid.

Posted by: Chairman LMAO at December 13, 2013 01:40 PM (9eDbm)

54 >>>BTW--The Judge has also suddenly announced her retirement.... you're f***ing kidding me.

Posted by: ace at December 13, 2013 01:41 PM (/FnUH)

55 >>>People will say this is a liberal judge. Perhaps, perhaps not. I tend to think liberal judges would tend to be outraged by bad behavior by the very rich.

Check to see who their parents donate to, and who they are connected with before you draw that little conclusion. Liberal rich people, are miserably cursed with being rich and are just good people struggling to live with all that money remember? That's why they give so much of it to Obama.

Posted by: MikeTheMoose Laughing Maniacally While Throwing Matches. at December 13, 2013 01:41 PM (0q2P7)

56 Walter White would run him down with a Pontiac Aztec, then blow his brains out with a 1911 Colt .45.

Posted by: the littl shyning man at December 13, 2013 01:41 PM (eD6og)

57 >>>BTW--The Judge has also suddenly announced her retirement....

Before she gets removed and loses her pension?

Posted by: HeatherRadish™ BEAT IOWA at December 13, 2013 01:42 PM (ZKzrr)

58 When did this shit start happening?

Posted by: Zombie Ted at December 13, 2013 01:42 PM (0FSuD)

59 Who appointed her?

Posted by: Mr. Moo Moo at December 13, 2013 01:42 PM (0LHZx)

60 - It was a sentencing hearing to a sentence that was setup and already pleaded guilty to, e.g. the judge had no role

- The judge was unhappy at the sentencing that he was delivering and said so

The Judge can overturn a deal if it's too light.

Posted by: MikeTheMoose Laughing Maniacally While Throwing Matches. at December 13, 2013 01:43 PM (0q2P7)

61 I'd like to see this judge investigated. I find this sentence to be impossible to justify, explain, or defend. So I'd like to know exactly what led to it.

.....

54 >>>BTW--The Judge has also suddenly announced her retirement....
you're f***ing kidding me.
Posted by: ace at December 13, 2013 05:41 PM (/FnUH)

Best explanation that explains "what led to it" fits in with your comment.

Several hundred thousand dollars.

Posted by: jwb7605 [/i][/u][/s][/b] at December 13, 2013 01:43 PM (3Tv+N)

62 People will say this is a liberal judge. Perhaps, perhaps not. I tend to think liberal judges would tend to be outraged by bad behavior by the very rich.

Not if the punk's parents are rich LIBERALS and Democrats in good standing. Rich leftists don't hate money, they hate OTHER PEOPLES money. They have a rather worshipful view of their own money and wish to part with as little as possible of it

Posted by: kbdabear at December 13, 2013 01:43 PM (aTXUx)

63 Formation is a real thing.

Posted by: Mirror-Universe Mitt Romney at December 13, 2013 01:43 PM (gnLTi)

64 So the kid that worked since he was nine in his fathers machine shop would have gotten the maximum sentence. This is exactly the message the judge is broadcasting. Justice? Where?

Posted by: Soona at December 13, 2013 01:43 PM (MsUd8)

65 The family should be punished by having their Surname changed to "Kennedy"...

Posted by: sven at December 13, 2013 01:44 PM (9jfyN)

66 so if I win the lotto tonight, I can let nck loose on the world? heheheheheheh

Posted by: Queen Moochelle at December 13, 2013 01:44 PM (JFrBt)

67 Mary Jo Kopechne was not available for comment.

Posted by: Cicero (@cicero) at December 13, 2013 01:44 PM (8ZskC)

68 The judge is listed as a Republican (judges are partisan in Texas). The parents never donated money to federal candidates, according to fec.gov. I don't see how rich they can be. The father's a general manager for a sheet metal company.

Posted by: AmishDude at December 13, 2013 01:44 PM (T0NGe)

69 He killed a young woman who broke down with a flat tire, and the three people who came to her aid, including a local youth pastor.

Posted by: grammie winger at December 13, 2013 01:44 PM (P6QsQ)

70 ewwwwwwwwwwww what's up with this sock?

Posted by: navycopjoe CRUSH THE BROWNS!! at December 13, 2013 01:45 PM (JFrBt)

71 Posted by: Purp at December 13, 2013 05:35 PM (UVadJ)

Dude...Ace gave you the reach-around....

A very alarming story from Purple Avenger on the graveyard shift,

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at December 13, 2013 01:45 PM (QFxY5)

72 Allah prolly saw it here first.

Posted by: Purp[/i][/b][/s] at December 13, 2013 01:46 PM (UVadJ)

73 I don't know for sure that all this is true - but as always with media memes, we do ourselves a favor by digging. Posted by: PrincetonAl at December 13, 2013 05:38 PM (6nFwR) Hide posts from (6nFwR) Gell-Mann amnesia can strike anyone at any time...

Posted by: Merovign, Dark Lord of the Sith[/i] [/b] [/s] [/u] at December 13, 2013 01:46 PM (qyfb5)

74 The judge gave them a suspended sentence and they walked out that very day, then they turned to me and they SMILED!!

I said to my wife, for justice we must go to Don Corleone!

Posted by: Amerigo Bonasera at December 13, 2013 01:46 PM (aTXUx)

75 Texas Judge Jean Boyd, who sentenced a rich teen drunk driver to
probation at a plush rehab center for a nasty crash that killed four
people and injured nine others in June, reportedly sent a 14-year-old
black boy to prison last March after his punch resulted in one death.
-

Swell. Chis Matthews is drinking himself a new monologue now.

Posted by: WalrusRex at December 13, 2013 01:46 PM (Hx5uv)

76 Posted by: AmishDude at December 13, 2013 05:44 PM (T0NGe)

Maybe mommy is a dÃ©butante with rich parents who left her a fortune.

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at December 13, 2013 01:46 PM (QFxY5)

This isn't new. Didn't congress, Dear Leader, and many in his regime just exempt themselves from a law of the land?

They're grooming the nation for the ruling elite.

Posted by: Soona at December 13, 2013 01:46 PM (MsUd8)

78 Well shoot. There are an awful lot of "couch fucker" jokes going unused if he's not going to prison.

Posted by: Jenny Hates Her Phone at December 13, 2013 01:47 PM (q1uzA)

79 The judge is probably corrupt. A law education does not actually tend to produce "bleeding hearts" and people with "bleeding hearts" tend not to flock to that fundamentally blood-thirsty and authoritarian discipline.

Posted by: Mirror-Universe Mitt Romney at December 13, 2013 01:47 PM (gnLTi)

80 There is a woman from a local reporter who stated (a la Zimmerman) quite a bit different view of what went on the court room.

- It was a sentencing hearing to a sentence that was setup and already pleaded guilty to, e.g. the judge had no role

- The judge was unhappy at the sentencing that he was delivering and said so

Normally, the court has to approve a plea bargain.

Posted by: Cicero (@cicero) at December 13, 2013 01:47 PM (8ZskC)

81 55 MikeTheMoose Laughing Maniacally While Throwing Matches. at December 13, 2013 05:41 PM (0q2P7)

by the way this point is as old as the glory days of Rome....

Clodius Pulcher used a variation...

http://tinyurl.com/oegva3e

sure he debauched the Vestals but his heart is in the right place...

//Moonbat circa 45BC

Posted by: sven at December 13, 2013 01:47 PM (9jfyN)

82 Judge will be getting off lightly if she gets prosecuted IMO. This is the kind of miscarriage of justice that invites vigilante action --for judge, psycho teen, and parents; its a sign of our national restraint that the story is not already about some vigilante retribution.

As to why, hmmm did one of the parents gain access to NSA database? or other blackmail material or was it a simple money bribe?

Posted by: palerider at December 13, 2013 01:47 PM (dkExz)

83 68 The judge is listed as a Republican (judges are partisan in Texas). The parents never donated money to federal candidates, according to fec.gov.

I don't see how rich they can be. The father's a general manager for a sheet metal company. Posted by: AmishDude at December 13, 2013 05:44 PM

As we've seen this week, Republican doesn't mean not a liberal

Posted by: Amerigo Bonasera at December 13, 2013 01:48 PM (aTXUx)

84 Beloved youth pastor Brian Jennings, mother and daughter Hollie and Shelby Boyles, and Breanna Mitchell, 24, all died in the accident. The four deceased were standing at the side of the road outside their vehicles when they were hit. Pastor Jennings had stopped to help a stranded motorist shortly after celebrating the high school graduation of his oldest son, Evan Jennings, on the eve of Father's Day. Nine others were also injured in the crash.

Pastor Jenning's wife, Shaunna Jennings, said that although her family had forgiven the teen, they still believe he should be punished for his actions.

"You lived a life of privilege and entitlement, and my prayer is that it does not get you out of this," said the grieving wife. "My fear is that it will get you out of this."

Posted by: grammie winger at December 13, 2013 01:48 PM (P6QsQ)

85 PRO TIP: Never debauch a Vestal.

Posted by: Cicero (@cicero) at December 13, 2013 01:48 PM (8ZskC)

86 79 The judge is probably corrupt. A law education does not actually tend to produce "bleeding hearts" and people with "bleeding hearts" tend not to flock to that fundamentally blood-thirsty and authoritarian discipline. Posted by: Mirror-Universe Mitt Romney at December 13, 2013 05:47 PM (gnLTi)

Posted by: AmishDude, whistling *very* loudly at December 13, 2013 01:48 PM (T0NGe)

87 I am certain that were someone to kill my family, they and the judge would have a much shorter lifespan than they think they have, and their last few hours would be spent wishing for death. I just don't understand why that doesn't happen more.

Posted by: traye at December 13, 2013 01:48 PM (fXUZs)

Excuse me, but....a 'Plea Deal'?

A fucking Plea Deal?

Why would the prosecution need a plea deal in a case like this?

The kid was guilty...there were multiple witnesses!

Posted by: wheatie at December 13, 2013 01:48 PM (+SY5G)

89 74 Amerigo Bonasera at December 13, 2013 05:46 PM (aTXUx)

Bonasera you trusted your safety to men in robes who sell themselves like the cheapest whores...

//Don Clintonleone

Posted by: sven at December 13, 2013 01:48 PM (9jfyN)

90 Someone who has been maltreated in such a manner (being exposed to some sort of "law education") might very well end up believing that law breakers "owe the State."

Posted by: Mirror-Universe Mitt Romney at December 13, 2013 01:49 PM (gnLTi)

If the dead were from my family, I would have a difficult time accepting the sentence.

When we no longer have Justice and the rule of law, then Vendetta and Vigilanteism will fill the void. And punishment by vigilanteism is usually a binary solution set. --------- Dead or not Dead

Posted by: rd at December 13, 2013 01:49 PM (D+lxs)

92 Re the judge's retirement, she actually announced it in June of this year - at least it was referenced in a June 13 Ft. Worth Star -Telegram article. I'd try a link but would almost surely end up barrelized. However, she can be removed by a vote of the Texas legislature. Maybe lose her pension that way.

Posted by: Hoplite Housewife at December 13, 2013 01:49 PM (7Y+gf)

93 Soooo, if he had gotten wasted and subsequently killed someone with a firearm there would have been no consequences then either?

Posted by: Northernlurker, getting grumpy at December 13, 2013 01:50 PM (Xmw9g)

94 The teen's defense attorneys have asked the judge to sentence him to therapy at a small, private home in California that offers intensive one-on-one therapy to address his affluenza. Couch's father, they said, would pay the entire $450,000 price tag.

Posted by: grammie winger at December 13, 2013 01:50 PM (P6QsQ)

95 85 Cicero (@cicero) at December 13, 2013 05:48 PM (8ZskC)

If you're going to deny a friend fire and water you better be prepared for some WWE action Clodius...

//Milo

Posted by: sven at December 13, 2013 01:50 PM (9jfyN)

96 2/3 vote of the Texas legislature, and she is out the door

Posted by: Vashta Nerada at December 13, 2013 01:50 PM (eGmvn)

97 Of course, someone whose mind has been corrupted by Christianity might be inclined to ask "What would Jesus do?" And that's precisely why Christians are inferior.

Posted by: Mirror-Universe Mitt Romney at December 13, 2013 01:50 PM (gnLTi)

98 I read about this in the paper. There is nothing that is funny about someone being charged with man's laughter. The police acted stupidly.

Posted by: Barack Obama, Law Professor at December 13, 2013 01:50 PM (yFb77)

99 There is at least the likely possibility that civil suits will make sure this child and his parents are no longer or ever will again be rich.

Posted by: --- at December 13, 2013 01:50 PM (MMC8r)

100 Soooo, if he had gotten wasted and subsequently killed someone with a firearm there would have been no consequences then either?

Depends. Was the victim black and was he packing Skittles?

Posted by: Cicero (@cicero) at December 13, 2013 01:51 PM (8ZskC)

101 Send my parents to jail - yeah that will teach me.

Posted by: Drunk Kid at December 13, 2013 01:51 PM (d8wEw)

102 I suspect the feeling of the prosecutor is -- this kid will fuck up again, violate probation, and default to a hard 10, so this is no big deal.

Which, if the kid actually does fuck up again as predicted, is far worse than giving him 5 or so, which would be reasonable and have sent a valuable life lesson.

Posted by: Purp[/i][/b][/s] at December 13, 2013 01:52 PM (UVadJ)

103 O/T This has probably already been discussed in other threads today, but did you know that the white terrorist in Wichita Kansas today was actually MUSLIM?

From NBC news:

"Loewen, who is white, became radicalized after reading extremist Islamic material on the Internet, Grissom said."

Guess this can't be blamed on the Tea Party afterall! And, damn, I bet they thought a guy named "Terry Lee" would be one of them, lol! Brian Ross must be so disappointed today.

This will go down the memory hole.

Posted by: Aslan's Girl at December 13, 2013 01:52 PM (KL49F)

104 Texas Judge Jean Boyd, who sentenced a rich teen drunk driver to
probation at a plush rehab center for a nasty crash that killed four
people and injured nine others in June, reportedly sent a 14-year-old
black boy to prison last March after his punch resulted in one death.

--

Yeah, but the black boy's parents sent him to his room once for hitting the family dog. He knew about consequences. Something Richy Rich does not. Therefore, set him free.

Posted by: Lady in Black at December 13, 2013 01:52 PM (XB5Ak)

105 103 Aslan's Girl at December 13, 2013 05:52 PM (KL49F)

Maybe not AG...they can play a round of "beat Whitey"...

I do notice that the DC snipers were not reported as Black Muslims with zeal and verve though

Posted by: sven at December 13, 2013 01:53 PM (9jfyN)

106 The fundamental question in such matters is "What purpose is the justice system supposed to serve?" One might think that it might have something to do with justice, but that is surely not the case as that would be "Theocratic." Since we are living in the Age of Darwinism, one would next be inclined to believe that the purpose of the Atheistic justice system would be to exterminate inferior genes. Life unworthy of life, and all that. If so, then anything less than a death sentence for any crime is "suboptimal."

Posted by: Mirror-Universe Mitt Romney at December 13, 2013 01:54 PM (gnLTi)

107 A fucking Plea Deal?
Why would the prosecution need a plea deal in a case like this?

The kid was guilty...there were multiple witnesses!

Posted by: wheatie at December 13, 2013 05:48 PM (+SY5G)

------------------------------------------------

There's an old expression that describes this perfectly: Follow the money.

Posted by: Soona at December 13, 2013 01:54 PM (MsUd8)

108 When I first heard about the sentencing I thought that the victims impact statement played a role in the light sentenceÂ….especially since one of the victims was a youth pastor, but a friend of mine who went to school with the youth pastor says nopeÂ….the victims families are not happy (to put it mildly)Â….and they are suing the boys family for millionsÂ….and they should

Posted by: Kawfytawk at December 13, 2013 01:54 PM (EY4Et)

109 An idealist would be inclined to believe that the purpose of the justice system would be, or rather, should be rehabilitating the individual. And if that be so, then we are talking about an entirely different matter.

Posted by: Mirror-Universe Mitt Romney at December 13, 2013 01:56 PM (gnLTi)

110 - It was a sentencing hearing to a sentence that was setup and already pleaded guilty to, e.g. the judge had no role
-
Of course, I don't know the truth but they are reporting that the judge could have sentenced to twenty years.

Posted by: WalrusRex at December 13, 2013 01:56 PM (Hx5uv)

111 The difference between this and Obama's presidency? None, except for 6 magnitudes of scale on the victim side, with huge risk for future generations. *MSM shrug*

Posted by: Mike Hammer's Cat at December 13, 2013 01:56 PM (aDwsi)

112 If I had a princely son, he'd be reared just like this Couch lad.

Posted by: King Barry of the Middleshanks at December 13, 2013 01:56 PM (TKFmG)

113

There is a cure for this "afluenza"

1) It consists of having someone explain what you did.

2) a beating within an inch of your life.

Posted by: The Jackhole at December 13, 2013 01:57 PM (nTgAI)

114 I suspect the parents made a contribution to the DA Retirement Fund. I don't think he'll have to worry about his parents being too stinking rich after the families of the victims get done with them.

Posted by: Zombie John Gotti at December 13, 2013 01:57 PM (uzmcT)

115 The teen's defense attorneys have asked the judge to sentence him to therapy at a small, private home in California that offers intensive one-on-one therapy to address his affluenza. Lindsay Lohan's

Posted by: rickb223 at December 13, 2013 01:57 PM (CRyse)

116 There was a scandal some time ago involving judges (and maybe prosecutors?) getting kickbacks from for-profit youth detention centers---kids were given oddly long sentences if there was a chance they could go to one of these facilities. Could something similar be going on with these "rehab" places that offenders agree to be treated at as part of a plea?

Posted by: Jenny Hates Her Phone at December 13, 2013 01:57 PM (q1uzA)

117 I tend to think liberal judges would tend to be outraged by bad behavior by the very rich.

Like the Kennedys, for example. Liberal judges just hated those guys.

Posted by: Null at December 13, 2013 01:57 PM (DuH+r)

118 Yeah.. something about this whole "plea deal" stinks. Someone needs to do some digging.

Posted by: jewells45 trying to keep from going crazy at December 13, 2013 01:57 PM (u25eL)

119

Soona...here in OK, the kid's parents could go to jail for this.

Remember? Parents are legally liable for anything their minor children do.

Posted by: wheatie at December 13, 2013 01:58 PM (+SY5G)

120 Every sentence would have to be optimized so as to maximize the possibility of rehabilitation rather than instinctively pursuing "a level of punishment considered adequate or satisfactory."

Posted by: Mirror-Universe Mitt Romney at December 13, 2013 01:58 PM (gnLTi)

121 The purpose of the justice system is to exact justice from the guilty and to protect the innocent. To keep the wild things away from the ordinary citizen so they can't harm them again. Neither one of those things happened in any way shape or form.

Posted by: grammie winger at December 13, 2013 01:58 PM (P6QsQ)

122

103 O/T This has probably already been discussed in other threads today, but did you know that the white terrorist in Wichita Kansas today was actually MUSLIM?
_____________________________

He's also not a registered Republican, so I think it's just a local crime story.

Posted by: Brian Ross at December 13, 2013 01:58 PM (yFb77)

123 I do notice that the DC snipers were not reported as Black Muslims with zeal and verve though That was a harrowing and dramatic story. And it stopped cold once we found out who the shooters were. It's like the whole story disappeared.

Posted by: AmishDude at December 13, 2013 01:59 PM (T0NGe)

124 9 victims of this rich little punk, each with their own lawyer can clean out mommy and daddy in a major way.

Here's hoping they do, and they can't pay for Couch's spa vacation

Knowing that they were sweating the rent every month on a trailer home would be wonderful punishment

Posted by: kbdabear at December 13, 2013 01:59 PM (aTXUx)

125 Courts are not about dispensing "justice" in any meaningful way, they're about dispensing process/procedure.

Posted by: Purp[/i][/b][/s] at December 13, 2013 02:00 PM (UVadJ)

126 But lawyers are stuck in a mind set simultaneously Prechristian and prescientific. As such, it is always a matter of stoning sinners. Because anything less would be insufficiently sophisticated.

Posted by: Mirror-Universe Mitt Romney at December 13, 2013 02:00 PM (gnLTi)

127
It would seem to me, in my naivete, that if the kid had been brought up in such a way that he was a sociopath - which is what a person who has no idea of consequences is - that it was past time that he began to learn about consequences, in the steel motel.

Instead, he'll probably wind up being elected president.

Posted by: Brown Line at December 13, 2013 02:01 PM (VrNoa)

128 When the guy kills again, you're going to see some revenge killings....

Posted by: SFGoth at December 13, 2013 02:01 PM (JuoVO)

129 That was a harrowing and dramatic story.

And it stopped cold once we found out who the shooters were.

It's like the whole story disappeared.

Funny that. I wonder why.

Posted by: Cicero (@cicero) at December 13, 2013 02:01 PM (8ZskC)

130 Simply put, Couch, 16, claims that his condition stemmed from having wealthy, privileged parents who never set limits for him. If the parents are guilty, then send them to jail.

Posted by: Ms. Plinkett at December 13, 2013 02:01 PM (IXrOn)

131 I don't see how rich they can be. The father's a general manager for a sheet metal company. Posted by: AmishDude at December 13, 2013 05:44 PM (T0NGe) _________ In libtardville, anyone making $1 over minimum wage is loaded.

Posted by: Mr. Moo Moo at December 13, 2013 02:01 PM (0LHZx)

132 I don't think he'll have to worry about his parents being too stinking rich after the families of the victims get done with them.

Posted by: Zombie John Gotti at December 13, 2013 05:57 PM (uzmcT)

-----------------------------------------------

But that will only be punishing the parents, not him. No, the little Blue Boy will be skipping along his merry way. He probably already has an untouchable trust fund to keep him in the big bucks for a very long time.

Posted by: Soona at December 13, 2013 02:02 PM (MsUd8)

133 116 - Posted by: Jenny Hates Her Phone at December 13, 2013 05:57 PM (q1uzA) --------- It was up in Pennsylvania. Pretty sure the judges were sent to prison.

Posted by: Hoplite Housewife at December 13, 2013 02:02 PM (7Y+gf)

134 This just in, ace's next thread will reveal that LINDBERGH MADE IT!!!

Posted by: WalrusRex at December 13, 2013 02:02 PM (Hx5uv)

135 Posted by: Brian Ross at December 13, 2013 05:58 PM (yFb77)

Haha! I just read portions of a letter he wrote to an undercover FBI agent and it's all about what an inspiration Osama Bin Laden and Al-Awlaki are and how he wants to die for Allah. It's posted at Twitchy.

Posted by: Aslan's Girl at December 13, 2013 02:02 PM (KL49F)

136 But lawyers are stuck in a mind set simultaneously Prechristian and prescientific. As such, it is always a matter of stoning sinners. Because anything less would be insufficiently sophisticated.

Posted by: Mirror-Universe Mitt Romney at December 13, 2013 06:00 PM (gnLTi)

Not sure I follow what you are getting at.

Posted by: The Jackhole at December 13, 2013 02:03 PM (nTgAI)

137 Atheism, having produced a large number of "malformed" individuals sets out to correct its own misdeeds through violence. Since the time of Hammurabi, and before. Because Progress. Later, all. God bless. :-)

Posted by: Mirror-Universe Mitt Romney at December 13, 2013 02:03 PM (gnLTi)

138 But that will only be punishing the parents, not him.

If they wind up living in a cardboard box due to all the wrongful death suits, its gonna cramp the kids style a bit too.

Posted by: Purp[/i][/b][/s] at December 13, 2013 02:04 PM (UVadJ)

139

126 But lawyers are stuck in a mind set simultaneously Prechristian and prescientific.

__________

No we're not. We are simultaneously postchristian and postscientific. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are a floor was AND a dessert topping.

Posted by: Barack Obama, Law Professor at December 13, 2013 02:04 PM (yFb77)

140 Knowing that they were sweating the rent every month on a trailer home would be wonderful punishment Posted by: kbdabear --------------------------- Bear in mind that a considerable pay-out will be by insurance. Look for the tab in your next premium.

Posted by: Mike Hammer at December 13, 2013 02:04 PM (aDwsi)

141 Posted by: Mirror-Universe Mitt Romney at December 13, 2013 06:00 PM (gnLTi)

This makes no sense.

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at December 13, 2013 02:04 PM (QFxY5)

142 At sixteen years of age, this boy is old enough to answer for his own actions.

Posted by: grammie winger at December 13, 2013 02:05 PM (P6QsQ)

143 I strongly caution my peers against even thinking about driving while intoxicated. If you kill someone, the paperwork is a bloody nightmare.

Posted by: Ethan Couch at December 13, 2013 02:05 PM (8ZskC)

144 CNN article doesn't mention what Huffpo did, that the kid had been stopped before with a naked 14 y/o girl in his car, both intoxicated and no charges were filed. This stinks to high hell.

Posted by: Ragamuffin at December 13, 2013 02:05 PM (fzFF6)

145 Courts are not about dispensing "justice" in any meaningful way, they're about dispensing process/procedure.
-
Largely true although I would add that they like the appearance of doing something. Misdemeanor domestic violence cases, for example, have mandatory domestic violence classes. I doubt that any of those classes ever rehabilitated anyone given human nature but it looks like they are not ignoring the problem,

Posted by: WalrusRex at December 13, 2013 02:05 PM (Hx5uv)

146 Posted by: Mike Hammer at December 13, 2013 06:04 PM (aDwsi)

Most people don't buy insurance with the capacity to fund several multi-million dollar pay-outs.

This will hurt them.

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at December 13, 2013 02:06 PM (QFxY5)

147 $450,000 price tag.

Minus 8$ for a Big Book = I'm in the wrong line of work.

Posted by: DaveA[/i][/b][/s] at December 13, 2013 02:06 PM (DL2i+)

148 142 grammie winger at December 13, 2013 06:05 PM (P6QsQ)

I was a soldier 365 days later so to speak....

it amazes me that a 12 year old girl is old enough to get an abortion, a 26 year old is too childish to get their own insurance, a 16 year old is blameless b/c 'child', and a 17 year old can join the military.

Posted by: sven at December 13, 2013 02:06 PM (9jfyN)

149 But lawyers are stuck in a mind set simultaneously Prechristian and prescientific. As such, it is always a matter of stoning sinners. Because anything less would be insufficiently sophisticated.

*scratches head*

*makes sacrificial offering to Great Spirit in Sky*

Posted by: Cicero (@cicero) at December 13, 2013 02:06 PM (8ZskC)

150

I looked at his perfectly tailored wrongful death suit and thought that this man could be president someday.

Posted by: David Brooks at December 13, 2013 02:06 PM (yFb77)

151 Haha! I just read portions of a letter he wrote to an undercover FBI agent and it's all about what an inspiration Osama Bin Laden and Al-Awlaki are and how he wants to die for Allah. Challenge accepted!

Posted by: rickb223 at December 13, 2013 02:07 PM (CRyse)

152 Courts are not about dispensing "justice" in any meaningful way

--------------

Then what are they good for? Let's disband them and save ourselves a lot of money.

Posted by: grammie winger at December 13, 2013 02:07 PM (P6QsQ)

153 Posted by: PrincetonAl at December 13, 2013 05:38 PM (6nFwR) Hmm. Crichton's Gell-Mann Amnesia? Why should we trust the MSM on *anything*? That said, if (a big IF) things did go down as reported, and if (again, IF) I were Boyles (please note use of subjunctive mood to indicate unreality), that DA would come home one night to a scene straight out of Fatal Attraction except instead of the kid's rabbit in the pot, it would be… Along these lines, watch all the early Steven Seagal films to get templates of what to do when the burning times get here. Seeing how there isn't time between now and then to study Aikido for twenty+ years in Japan, pay attention, instead, to what the villains do.

Posted by: FRONT TOWARD LEFT at December 13, 2013 02:07 PM (V3kRK)

154 Courts are not about dispensing "justice" in any meaningful way, they're about dispensing process/procedure.

Criminal procedure is mostly an institutionalized "harrumph!"

Posted by: Cicero (@cicero) at December 13, 2013 02:08 PM (8ZskC)

155 I just watched the video over at Tepid Air. It said (the psychologist testifying) when the punk was 15, he was caught in a parked vehicle with a passed out, stark naked 14 year old girl and was not punished for it. Hence, he never learned the meaning of consequence...or something.

Posted by: Lady in Black at December 13, 2013 02:09 PM (XB5Ak)

156

144 CNN article doesn't mention what Huffpo did, that the kid had been stopped before with a naked 14 y/o girl in his car, both intoxicated and no charges were filed.

_______________

CNN didn't even run with the story when I got stopped with a naked 14 year-old boy in my car and we were both drunker'n Cooter Brown.

Posted by: Harry Reid at December 13, 2013 02:09 PM (yFb77)

157 Sometimes a good piece of hickory can dispense justice just fine

Posted by: The Jackhole at December 13, 2013 02:09 PM (nTgAI)

158 Bear in mind that a considerable pay-out will be by insurance. Look for the tab in your next premium. Posted by: Mike Hammer at December 13, 2013 06:04 PM

There's a liability limit, and I'm betting that the suits will far surpass the limits. The insurance companies might even go to court to say that the policy terms were violated, passing the liability on to the parents

Posted by: kbdabear at December 13, 2013 02:09 PM (aTXUx)

159 Hence, he never learned the meaning of consequence...or something.

Aha. Society's fault. That one never goes out of style.

Posted by: HeatherRadish™ BEAT IOWA at December 13, 2013 02:09 PM (ZKzrr)

160 Ten years supervised probation in a suitable venue, okay by me. By the time it's over he might even make Lance Corporal.

Posted by: Stringer Davis at December 13, 2013 02:09 PM (xq1UY)

161 Speaking of the criminal justic3e system: DEVELOPING: In new email from prison, Bernie Madoff claims he's been supplying info to feds in JPMorgan investigation.

Posted by: WalrusRex at December 13, 2013 02:10 PM (Hx5uv)

162 141 CharlieBrown'sDildo at December 13, 2013 06:04 PM (QFxY5)

sure it does, what MUMR is saying is that the courts are back to being a largely pure politics graft exercise.

Our system of justice is predicated on Judeo-Christian principles melded with a scientific approach to rehabilitation.

The court exists to minimize the likelihood of blood feuds and to mete out some form of justice....

the period of my lifetime has seen a devolution from both the rehabilitation mission and the clerical roots of our notions of courts.

We are literally devolving towards a Roman application of wholly political jurisprudence.

Posted by: sven at December 13, 2013 02:10 PM (9jfyN)

163 O/T again: the schizo "interpreter" story gets worse:

Mandela signer faced murder rap in 2003Â’ Thamsanqa Jantjie, schizophrenic interpreter who stood feet away from Obama, reportedly has extensive criminal record including kidnapping, rape

http://tinyurl.com/nxwf3qh

And he was inches away from world leaders including POTUS. Wow. I thought South Africa was more with it, being a Commonwealth nation and all.

Posted by: Aslan's Girl at December 13, 2013 02:10 PM (KL49F)

164
A commenter says the judge wasn't imposing the sentence per se, but was rather imposing an agreed-to sentence worked out as part of a plea deal.

No link was provided for that interpretation. I'm not so sure about taking that at face value.

Every version of the story I've seen has the prosecutors being pissed off about the light sentence. Granted, with no direct quotes from the DA, so there's room for interpretation.

Either way, this stinks like last week's mahi-mahi.

Posted by: IllTemperedCur at December 13, 2013 02:10 PM (TIIx5)

165 In the sleepy village of Erbum , in the town of Tillet , Hertfordshire lives a lady by the name Linda Lykes She owns the local pub called The Cock Inn. Her mail is addressed: Linda Lykes The Cock Inn ERBUM Tillet, Herts.

Posted by: Dr. Jesse Pinkman at December 13, 2013 02:12 PM (h4eud)

166 And he was inches away from world leaders including POTUS. Wow. I thought South Africa was more with it, being a Commonwealth nation and all.

Posted by: Aslan's Girl at December 13, 2013 06:10 PM (KL49F)

Too legit, too legit too quit !!!! *@&%$(*&#$%

Posted by: Thamsanqa Jantjie at December 13, 2013 02:12 PM (nTgAI)

167 149 Cicero (@cicero) at December 13, 2013 06:06 PM (8ZskC)

Come on Cicero tell us the one about
Sextus Roscius
http://tinyurl.com/lctbqxh

Posted by: sven at December 13, 2013 02:12 PM (9jfyN)

168 Bad sign language interpreters are not permitted in my former Commonwealth nation.

Posted by: Robert Mugabe at December 13, 2013 02:12 PM (yFb77)

169 Delurking for a bit... This case reminds me of a guy my step-brother and I went to high school with. He was drunk driving on the freeway, tried to pass a truck using the shoulder and then hit a vehicle, causing an 8 year old's death. He then proceeded to flee the scene of the accident, tried to get his car fixed the next day at a well-known auto body shop in the area and lied to the police. He was convicted of vehicular manslaughter and hit-n-run and served four years. Mind you, his parents did everything they could to keep him from going to jail. He tried to blame the accident on anything and anyone, even appealing his conviction, blaming the death of the 8 year old on him (the 8 year old) not wearing a seat belt. He had an older brother who I was really good friends with and he totally disowned his family after their behavior during this event. And this all happened in sunny Yorba Linda, California...the Land of the Gracious Living.

Posted by: I Be That Chick at December 13, 2013 02:13 PM (uiCJa)

170 Actually, I am going to sound like a bleeding-heart libtard here, but the picture of the kid convinced me he would not survive incarceration. No death penalty for minors as far as I know and regular prison, even juvvie, would be a death sentence. Judges are careful of some of the tiny-looking ones, even if they are stone killers. Just throwing that out there.

Posted by: Mustbequantum at December 13, 2013 02:13 PM (MIKMs)

171 I would say something about lawyers and the lack of anything like justice here, but I think I said all I needed to say this morning about lawyers.

For today.

Posted by: BurtTC at December 13, 2013 02:14 PM (BeSEI)

172 Nood.

Posted by: WalrusRex at December 13, 2013 02:15 PM (Hx5uv)

173 This kid got 8 years: http://goo.gl/A9OKKD

Posted by: Dr. Jesse Pinkman at December 13, 2013 02:15 PM (h4eud)

174 171 BurtTC at December 13, 2013 06:14 PM (BeSEI)

I do find myself preferring the era where barristers were held to be verbal magicians.

Posted by: sven at December 13, 2013 02:15 PM (9jfyN)

175 but the picture of the kid convinced me he would not survive incarceration.

Seems like more of an argument for prison reform than for letting a kid who killed four innocent people go chill in CA for a year.

Posted by: HeatherRadish™ BEAT IOWA at December 13, 2013 02:15 PM (ZKzrr)

176 Can something like this be re-visited by a different court ?

Posted by: The Jackhole at December 13, 2013 02:15 PM (nTgAI)

177 Has anyone ever met this elusive "Society" fellow? He should really be locked up if he's the source of all this mischief.

Posted by: fb at December 13, 2013 02:15 PM (JVEmw)

178 "All he had do do was move out from his parents' control"

Uh, didn't that article say that he's 16? As in, a minor and unable to form binding contracts (like, I dunno, signing a lease)?

There are other complications stemming from his minority, including available criminal penalties. He wouldn't go to a prison in any case. At worst, he'd end up in a juvenile detention facility for a couple of years and have his record sealed. At least this way keeps him on a probation hook for years longer without also destroying what remains of his youth.

You folks need to make up your minds. One day, you rail and scream at school systems that throw outlandish penalties at children for black letter infractions without regard to the specific situation because that's what their little books say, and on the next you damn a judge for showing mercy to another child based on that specific situation. So which is it to be? Is there room for judgment in the administration of justice, or isn't there?

And doesn't it matter at all that this 'little rich kid's' family is still on the hook for wrongful death to the slain's surviving family? It's not like this is the end of the matter.

Posted by: dawnfire82 at December 13, 2013 02:16 PM (1/hzQ)

179 If this was a plea deal then 90% of the blame is on the prosecutor. Judges are nutless wonders. One with principles would not have approved the plea.

Posted by: real joe at December 13, 2013 02:16 PM (xXhgd)

180 That kid looks like the boy king from Game of Thrones. Geoffrey?

Posted by: Xander Crews at December 13, 2013 02:16 PM (Ul91r)

181 This kid had to get a drivers licence, possibly driver's ed, and have seen a bunch of gory films they like to show high school students. So, to claim that he was unaware of the consequences of his actions is bullshit.

Posted by: Dr. Jesse Pinkman at December 13, 2013 02:17 PM (h4eud)

182 125 Courts are not about dispensing "justice" in any meaningful way, they're about dispensing process/procedure. Posted by: Purp at December 13, 2013 06:00 PM (UVadJ) Actually, the problem, IMO, is when they try to dispense "justice" instead of "the law".

Posted by: AmishDude at December 13, 2013 02:18 PM (T0NGe)

183
Actually, I am going to sound like a bleeding-heart libtard here, but the picture of the kid convinced me he would not survive incarceration. No death penalty for minors as far as I know and regular prison, even juvvie, would be a death sentence. Judges are careful of some of the tiny-looking ones, even if they are stone killers.

Just throwing that out there.

Posted by: Mustbequantum at December 13, 2013 06:13 PM (MIKMs)

If you can't do the time, don't do the crime.

Posted by: Detective Tony Baretta at December 13, 2013 02:18 PM (TIIx5)

184 Judges don't have to accept plea deals if they think justice isn't served by them, no matter what the prosecutor thinks. It's still on the judge.

Posted by: Socratease at December 13, 2013 02:18 PM (3V4IJ)

185 If you are a poor kid and get caught with a lot of drugs, it's assume it is possession for sales. If you are a rich kid and get caught with a lot of drugs, it's assumed it is for personal use.

Posted by: Dr. Jesse Pinkman at December 13, 2013 02:19 PM (h4eud)

186 One day, you rail and scream at school systems that throw outlandish penalties at children for black letter infractions without regard to the specific situation because that's what their little books say Four people are dead. He didn't point his finger in the shape of a gun, say "bang, bang" and get expelled for it.

Posted by: AmishDude at December 13, 2013 02:19 PM (T0NGe)

187 Either way, this stinks like last week's mahi-mahi. Dude. I agree. Every-fucking-thing stinks, and here is why: There is no reason to think that *anyone* (let alone *everyone*) along the reporting chain tells shit straight. The motherfucking "[l|r]eader of the free world" is a pathofuckinglogical liar. All the people bent that direction—whether in the public eye (and media) or just a schlub living next door to you—has a ready excuse to pull a monkey-see-monkey-do because of that. Trust no one. Trust nothing. This is what it has come to. Fuck it.

Posted by: FRONT TOWARD LEFT at December 13, 2013 02:19 PM (V3kRK)

188 26 "Affluenza" -- just making up diagnoses now too. Posted by: L, elle at December 13, 2013 05:35 PM (0xqKe) I'm not sure why the Affluenza label bothers me so much. Its like they wanted to put an amusing spin on this horrible travesty. And it just enrages me.

Posted by: Guido - 'now with 75+% more hate' at December 13, 2013 02:19 PM (LsF5M)

189 186 AmishDude at December 13, 2013 06:19 PM (T0NGe)

Quite...life evidently is full of false choices like...

"Zero Tolerance may be retarded but it is the only way to prevent quadruple vehicular homicides..."

Posted by: sven at December 13, 2013 02:20 PM (9jfyN)

190 This is weird indeed. But wouldn't try him as an adult I don't think. So most he would get is two in juvy most likely.

Posted by: prescient11 at December 13, 2013 02:21 PM (tVTLU)

191 I'm not sure why the Affluenza label bothers me so much. Its like they wanted to put an amusing spin on this horrible travesty.

Also to make people associate affluence with "bad people". Goes with the class war narrative.

Posted by: HeatherRadish™ BEAT IOWA at December 13, 2013 02:22 PM (ZKzrr)

192 i don't know, was the judge that stupid?

if you really wanted to built up class resentment against the "rich", by which leftie-liberal-commies-democrats mean the following: anyone who has more then the they deem they should have, i'd do exactly what this judge did. let a "rich" sociopath off the hook in an attempt to plant in the minds of people that justice is not equal and that being rich is bad and breeds this kind of sick person.

idk, just a though. but notice the amount of news coverage this story has received.

Posted by: asswipee at December 13, 2013 02:23 PM (eS0nh)

193 He isn't the first kid who has been convicted of multiple vehicular manslaughter. They got prison time. But they weren't rich. Again, this kid got 8 years: http://goo.gl/A9OKKD

Posted by: Dr. Jesse Pinkman at December 13, 2013 02:23 PM (h4eud)

194 You folks need to make up your minds. One day, you rail and scream at school systems that throw outlandish penalties at children for black letter infractions without regard to the specific situation because that's what their little books say, and on the next you damn a judge for showing mercy to another child based on that specific situation. So which is it to be? Is there room for judgment in the administration of justice, or isn't there?

-------------------

Are you seriously equating situations like the 6 year old who kissed a little girl on the hand , with a 16 year old who killed 4 people?

Posted by: grammie winger at December 13, 2013 02:24 PM (P6QsQ)

195 Is there room for judgment in the administration of justice, or isn't there? No heat to this whatsoever: 1. I completely understand that there is no telling whether what is reported bears any resemblance to WTF happened 2. What AmishDude said @186 3. The word, "justice" is a tricky ass little weasel word that can be distorted and stretched to mean whatever the motherfuckers trying to take everything that you have want it to mean

Posted by: FRONT TOWARD LEFT at December 13, 2013 02:24 PM (V3kRK)

196 The prosecutor is the victims lawyer. No way they should have agreed to a sentence without incarceration. The judge was just a pussy who wanted to clear his docket.

Posted by: real joe at December 13, 2013 02:26 PM (xXhgd)

197 Sentenced as a juvenile for vehicular m.s., he would get a mim of two years in cya. There is no reason to give him a concurrent sentence, so he would look at a minimum of 10 years. They would hold him in cya until he turned 21 and then transfer him to an adult prison. I don't know when he would be eligible for parole but it would probably be well before the 10 years was up.

Posted by: Dr. Jesse Pinkman at December 13, 2013 02:27 PM (h4eud)

198 Are you seriously equating situations like the 6 year old who kissed a little girl on the hand , with a 16 year old who killed 4 people?

Killed four people...it could have been worse. He could have drawn a picture of a US soldier carrying a firearm. *vapors*

O_o

Posted by: HeatherRadish™ BEAT IOWA at December 13, 2013 02:28 PM (ZKzrr)

199 Real Joe is right. Ace should correct his correction. A judge does not have to accept a plea bargain.

Posted by: Dr. Jesse Pinkman at December 13, 2013 02:31 PM (h4eud)

200 When the law suits are over I doubt he will be quite so privileged , life can be tough in those trailer parks.

Posted by: Semilitterate at December 13, 2013 02:32 PM (N7Du6)

201 Law Abiding Citizen. It's not just a movie anymore.

Posted by: Hanoverfist at December 13, 2013 02:42 PM (uM8td)

202 Don't buy the spin wealth had anything to do with the punishment after he plead guilty. He was in the juvenile justice system and what he got was the most he could get and not be freed when he was 18 even if given 20 years. What they used was the same mitigating circumstances used in, abused as a child as a reason why you did something.

This case shows the disparity between juvenile justice system and adult system. With weak drunk driving causing death punishment. DUI has become a revenue generating system and given a ticket and fine not a high felony with long prison time for simple blow over the limit DUI. Once the person is sober they are given a court date to see a judge and get the fine and be on your way. That is why people can have 15 convictions of DUI and then go out and get the 16th.

Posted by: Trevor@TJexcite at December 13, 2013 02:45 PM (bkAvJ)

203 141 Posted by: Mirror-Universe Mitt Romney at December 13, 2013 06:00 PM (gnLTi) This makes no sense. Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at December 13, 2013 06:04 PM (QFxY5) Best to just ignore the ramblings of the bigot.

Posted by: Buzzion at December 13, 2013 02:54 PM (FQqaD)

204 I have a cousin who was killed by a drunk driver at an intersection near Ft Lauderdale FL

He was acquitted of vehicular manslaughter because my cousin had been drinking herself and wasn't wearing a seatbelt. The driver was former Yankees catcher Jim Leyritz and he got a year's probation and $500 fine for the DUI

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Leyritz#Legal_trouble

Posted by: kbdabear at December 13, 2013 03:04 PM (aTXUx)

205 We've stumbled upon Senate material.

Posted by: UWP at December 13, 2013 03:07 PM (2hQRj)

206 This case shows the disparity between juvenile justice system and adult system. With weak drunk driving causing death punishment. DUI has become a revenue generating system and given a ticket and fine not a high felony with long prison time for simple blow over the limit DUI. Once the person is sober they are given a court date to see a judge and get the fine and be on your way. That is why people can have 15 convictions of DUI and then go out and get the 16th.
Posted by: Trevor@TJexcite at December 13, 2013 06:45 PM

Not in NJ. For over 30 years the law has been that a third DUI carries a mandatory 6 month jail sentence and a 10 year loss of license

Those with 15 or 16 convictions are usually illegals who simply use another license on another phony social security number

Posted by: kbdabear at December 13, 2013 03:08 PM (aTXUx)

207 For those banking on a civil suit against the parents ruining them there is a problem: http://www.statutes.legis.state.tx.us/SOTWDocs/FA/htm/FA.41.htm From the Texas Family Code. I'm not a civil attorney, so I haven't a clue if there is a way around this, but it seems like a problem to me.

Posted by: some dood at December 13, 2013 03:08 PM (xCSwl)

208 sratch that. That's property damage. So ignore that section.

Posted by: some dood at December 13, 2013 03:09 PM (xCSwl)

209

Was the familly known lefties? It could explain why the prosecuter or judge went easy on the kid.

I mean we've all seen how the left looks the other way when when a rich leftist does that which they crucify wealthy Conservatives for.

Posted by: Tilikum the Killer Assault Whale at December 13, 2013 03:17 PM (wvD9k)

210 Actually the parents on the hook for a civil trial. A criminal trial gave them the responsibility, in civil court this is going to be easy peasy.

Posted by: Drunkineastmesa at December 13, 2013 03:37 PM (RJMVo)

211 170 Actually, I am going to sound like a bleeding-heart libtard here, but the picture of the kid convinced me he would not survive incarceration. No death penalty for minors as far as I know and regular prison, even juvvie, would be a death sentence. Judges are careful of some of the tiny-looking ones, even if they are stone killers. Just throwing that out there. Posted by: Mustbequantum at December 13, 2013 06:13 PM (MIKMs) -------------------------------- Excuse me while I don't give a fuck about his problems during what should have been his incarceration.

Posted by: Mark at December 13, 2013 03:38 PM (WUugL)

212 Not saying this happened, but there was certainly an excellent opportunity for the judge/prosecutors/both to receive a bribe. Teens do stupid crap and sometimes a judge will let an otherwise good kid go if this was the first time, sometimes for renumeration. This doesn't seem to be the case here (by arguing that your son is a moral retard or sociopath) so the bribe if there was one probably was pretty substantial.

Posted by: The Albino Freckled Desert Sand-Breathing Fish at December 13, 2013 03:38 PM (0cMkb)

213

"We are disappointed by the punishment assessed but have no power under the law to change or overturn it," said Assistant District Attorney Richard Alpert. " Alpert is known for being tough on drunk drivers. He's not to blame here.

This same judge was going to give a similar deal to a kid who sucker punched a stranger, who later died from a head injury sustained when he fell to the pavement. Only reason the kid ended up doing time was because no facility would take the kid due to his violent behavior. This judge is the problem.

Posted by: DFWite at December 13, 2013 03:52 PM (q1SrS)

214 On a related note: having worked in the justice system for years, and having read news accounts about cases with which I was directly involved, all i can say is that reporters seldom if ever understand what happens in a criminal case. Usually they manage to screw up at least one major fact. Keep that in mind when reading the news.

Posted by: PabloD at December 13, 2013 04:00 PM (CDfd+)

215

There is a happy, if you can call it that, medium here. For most kids I don't believe in locking them away and tossing the key. Heck, I'm even ok that this kid was tried as a juvenile. That said, there are options that would give him sufficient time for reflection (juvenile systems are specifically not about punishment) and treatment too. This kid was definitely not treated like the mostly poor kids that would be coming through the door.

Posted by: xyz at December 13, 2013 04:21 PM (hwb1d)

216 The comment at 213 is correct, another kid would have received probation from this judge but didn't because no facility would take him, there was no special privilege here and the kid isn't a 'monster'.

Posted by: booger at December 13, 2013 04:37 PM (xRDdL)

217 If you want justice for your family ... in today's society ... you have to take it yourself - as a vigilante. Period. End of sentence.

Posted by: ScoggDog at December 13, 2013 04:41 PM (6/+vz)

218 I found the article and twitter comment on Twitchy again. Here it is: http://twitchy.com/2013/12/13/is-the-affluenza-psychologist-being-mischaracterized/ Liz Buddie's upset about something. I don't know enough except to say read it to the last line in the article. The zinger on Kennedy and MSM's Toobin is spot on. The smarter people can figure out who is to be outraged about the verdict. Have at it.

Posted by: PrincetonAl at December 13, 2013 04:47 PM (6nFwR)

219 >>>If you want justice for your family ... in today's society ... you have to take it yourself - as a vigilante.

Stupid.

Posted by: Jeff B. at December 13, 2013 05:05 PM (hDIEK)

220 It's a sad, sad story looking at all aspects.

Posted by: Misanthropic Humanitarian at December 13, 2013 05:14 PM (HVff2)

221 Here is a local article. Not agreeing with it, but it corrects some of the mistakes I made in my earlier post: http://www.star-telegram.com/2013/12/11/5411680/16-year-olds-sentence-is-hard.html

Posted by: PrincetonAl at December 13, 2013 05:17 PM (6nFwR)

222 I haven't read all the comments, but I sure hope I'm not the first to say this--this sentence puts THE PARENTS on the hook for civil damages. Normally, parents aren't financially liable for their children's accidental harms, but this court ruled THEIR neglect to be the CAUSE of his crime. If I were the victim, I'd rather get a million dollars from daddy and mommy than send junior off to jail. Maybe ten million.

Posted by: Scott Somerville at December 13, 2013 05:19 PM (RPB5M)

223 >>>The smarter people can figure out who is to be outraged about the verdict.

I have to say, Liz Buddie (whoever she is) seems to have a very good point. This case is, quite predictably, being completely fucked up and botched in its reporting. The "Affluenza" thing is a complete red herring, a one-word tossed off statement a psychologist familiar with the kid said under questioning from the judge at a sentencing hearing, not part of any defense. (It's also -- and I note that nobody's pointing this out -- almost certainly true, a fact which can be acknowledged independently of the question of how it should affect a sentencing.)

The real issue is the sentence, which is down to the judge, but which might have more arguments in its favor than most people here are currently willing to admit. The fact that this kid was a juvenile what makes sentencing such a difficult problem.

Posted by: Jeff B. at December 13, 2013 05:22 PM (hDIEK)

224 And so the judge kicks the can of "reality" down the road like a Paul Ryan budget. The parents and the kid LEARNED NOTHING from this, to repeat it another day. That is the travesty of this event!

Posted by: Ringo Phonebone at December 13, 2013 05:40 PM (pnwfX)

225 I <3 Ringo Phonebone

Posted by: Hoser Refugee at December 13, 2013 05:42 PM (pnwfX)

226 I have a nephew doing ten years for killing one person while driving drunk. Too bad his old man is only a locomotive engineer.

Posted by: I have MS-NBC for that at December 13, 2013 06:48 PM (sq9q3)

227 The CNN report said Ethan Monster Couch told his friends at the scene, "I'm Ethan Couch! I'll get you out of this!"

Then the little shit tried to run away.

Hope the family who sued his evil parents (Ethan has been arrested before for drunken rioting) get every dime of the $20 million they're after. And I hope that everyone who knows this little murderer gives him the freeze for the rest of his miserable life.

Posted by: Beverly at December 13, 2013 08:18 PM (iPXvt)

228 116 There was a scandal some time ago involving judges (and maybe prosecutors?) getting kickbacks from for-profit youth detention centers---kids were given oddly long sentences if there was a chance they could go to one of these facilities. Could something similar be going on with these "rehab" places that offenders agree to be treated at as part of a plea? In Wilkes-Barre. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kids_for_cash_scandal

Posted by: m at December 13, 2013 11:47 PM (omrQI)

229 It's a good thing I'm not related to any of the victims. Otherwise, it would be two to the head, on in the chest[/i[. Wut?

Posted by: I R A Darth Aggie © at December 14, 2013 05:59 AM (1hM1d)

230 A sociopathic kid is let off the hook by a sociopathic judge.

Posted by: Warren Bonesteel at December 14, 2013 07:06 AM (klGLB)

231 So when are the parents getting charged as accessories?

Posted by: tankdemon at December 14, 2013 08:30 AM (V6zvv)

232 In Texas the judge would be involved in the plea deal before it was offered. The prosecution would be required to run it past her before making the offer. She's involved from the get go.

Posted by: Chargrove at December 15, 2013 07:37 PM (HKyhY)

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