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Post by MacBeth on Sept 4, 2009 17:46:43 GMT -5
I never said jail is always the answer. But the answer is more than posters and after school specials....
And violence toward one another should always be a crime. And with the crimes that reach the level of felony on the books, physical violence has to be dealt with strongly. I am a big supporter of probation, education, psychological assistance, observation of parenting, etc etc etc
But for someone who grabs a child, not their own, in a store because he is annoyed and slap her 4 times.....that person deserves something more substantial after a long psychological examination.
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wheelspinner
Are We There Yet? Member
Nobody's perfect, I'm a nobody, so ...
Posts: 4,103
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Post by wheelspinner on Sept 4, 2009 18:04:50 GMT -5
I never said jail is always the answer. But the answer is more than posters and after school specials.... And violence toward one another should always be a crime. And with the crimes that reach the level of felony on the books, physical violence has to be dealt with strongly. I am a big supporter of probation, education, psychological assistance, observation of parenting, etc etc etc But for someone who grabs a child, not their own, in a store because he is annoyed and slap her 4 times.....that person deserves something more substantial after a long psychological examination. You stated that slapping a two year old must be a felony and that the starting point in any such case must be that the person must be assumed to have committed a crime. What is the distinction between saying it is always a felony and that jail is the appropriate punishment? You have only just refined your position on that, after many posts taking the hard line. I have agreed all along that hitting someone else's kid four times warrants a serious charge of assault. Not because the victim is a child, but because you cannot hit anyone like that under the law. Your desire to introduce some sort of special considerations for hitting children, while noble in theory, opens up whole cans of worms that I don't think any legal process would be able to make fair and effective.
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Pax
Are We There Yet? Member
quod erat demonstrandum.
Posts: 5,103
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Post by Pax on Sept 4, 2009 18:49:10 GMT -5
I'm pretty sure that felonies ALWAYS come with jail time. Those laws that did not would be unenforcable laws. And we've been over how the laws we already have should always be enforcable. Ergo, people who slap children always involves jail time.
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deee
Junior Member
Posts: 86
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Post by deee on Sept 4, 2009 23:27:54 GMT -5
Beth, thanks for putting my reply on the right board. I must have had a senior moment. I'm in total agreement with you on this matter.
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Post by wayneinfl on Sept 5, 2009 2:49:28 GMT -5
Felonies don't always come with jail time, but they always can. They are *punishable* by a year or more in prison.
Speaking of enforcing existing laws, rather than passing fancy new overlapping laws, there was an existing law to deal with this long, long before anyone thought of "cruelty to children". Simple assault, a misdemeanor.
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Post by gael on Sept 5, 2009 6:06:46 GMT -5
I think the man should receive a firm reprimand. Stand before a judge. and I'm with the people who think he should have gotten slapped back. I think I would have reacted that way. He would never have gotten CLOSE enough slap her after the initial threat. I would have been between them!
He needs a psychiatric exam, if you ask me!
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Post by wayneinfl on Sept 5, 2009 14:21:41 GMT -5
I agree with most of that, Gael. Give him 30 days and community service. He won't try that again.
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Post by MacBeth on Sept 5, 2009 14:41:26 GMT -5
And if in the future he hits someone else's child in the future and the child is permanently injured, let's be sure not to ask why we did not do much of anything about an obviously violent person.
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Post by wayneinfl on Sept 5, 2009 15:48:58 GMT -5
How many people who have slapped a child and go to jail for it come right out and do it again, do you suppose? Very few I'd bet. Even fewer people who slap a child kill a child.
My mom, dad and and kindergarten teacher still haven't killed anybody, and they never even went to jail for it. Should we err on the side of caution and put them all in the clink for 5 years, just in case?
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