quote:Two teenagers who tortured a pensioner by tying him up and slashing his penis with a razor-sharp knife have been sentenced to five years detention.
Is it terrible of me to wish for these two get assigned to "Bruno the unlubricated impaler"'s cell as his personal chicken-bitches?
They will go to jail or whatever, but you can just tell both of them will wind up in the back of a dumpster in a dark alley after picking on someone a bit more hardcore. At least I hope so.
-------------------- "The best defense is not a good offense. The best defense is a terrifyingly accurate and devastatingly powerful offense, with multiply-overlapping kill zones and time-on-target artillery strikes." -- Laurence, Archangel of the Sword
Registered: Mar 1999
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quote: Is it terrible of me to wish for these two get assigned to "Bruno the unlubricated impaler"'s cell as his personal chicken-bitches?
I'd say yes, though not out of any sense of compassion towards them, but because I think rape is one of the most vile of crimes, and I cannot personally reconcile that belief with a desire to see it be used as a punishment, because I think the act itself presents...well, a social danger, regardless of where it is.
So, prison rape is bad. But I suspect that wasn't exactly the angle of this you wanted this thread to concentrate on.
Registered: Mar 1999
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posted
Ah, well, five years. Yes, that ought to straighten them right out. Especially the one who's been convicted of SIXTEEN CRIMES BEFORE AGE EIGHTEEN!
I mean, I can't condone the death penalty of course, but at least DON'T LET THE PSYCHO BACK OUT INTO THE FUCKING PUBLIC!
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Saltah'na
Chinese Canadian, or 75% Commie Bastard.
Member # 33
posted
If anything, the criminal justice system should be revamped against the youth. We've had a bunch of teenagers who nearly beat another kid to death, and yet they get two years in prison. The worst part is that the kids KNEW that they would get off lightly. And they taunted the kid and his parents with that fact and that they would be back.
Serious crimes deserve serious sentences. The formation of intent in this crime shows that the teen should be tried as an adult.
-------------------- "And slowly, you come to realize, it's all as it should be, you can only do so much. If you're game enough, you could place your trust in me. For the love of life, there's a tradeoff, we could lose it all but we'll go down fighting...." - David Sylvian FreeSpace 2, the greatest space sim of all time, now remastered!
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capped
I WAS IN THE FUTURE, IT WAS TOO LATE TO RSVP
Member # 709
posted
well, the youth protection has always been the 'kids will be kids' clause.. how can you punish someone for something they didnt know any better.. i think that crimes of violence and malice should be separated from that though.
i mean, i can see letting lil Billy out of juvenile hall when he's 18 because he played with drugs or stole license plates, and seal up his records so that he could try and have a normal life..
but cutting someone's genitals with razors? throw away the fucking key. honestly. WTF
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Cartman
just made by the Presbyterian Church
Member # 256
posted
These are two seriously fucked up kids.
Is society better off if they spend the rest of their lifes behind bars? Arguably yes.
Is society a better place if they are locked away for all eternity? Arguably no.
Will five years in prison straighten them out? No. Will ten? No. Will any? Absolutely not.
Mental patients need HELP. Special treatment, special medication. Entering them into the system like regular criminals will NOT benefit anyone.
Warping their minds even further should be the LAST item on everybody's checklist, NOT the first.
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted
The baser side of me agrees with FoT here that "Bruno" wouldn't be an excessive sentence... the "punishment fits the crime" idea.
But as Sol points out, that's not constructive at all -- and really, violence can only cause more violence. It's HELP that these people need... I would like to think that (violent) crime is the result of psychological issues that can be addressed. At least, for most people -- there can certainly be people out there who are simply "evil" (although that's a very perjorative term for a variety of potential motives).
-------------------- “Those people who think they know everything are a great annoyance to those of us who do.” — Isaac Asimov Star Trek Minutiae | Memory Alpha
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capped
I WAS IN THE FUTURE, IT WAS TOO LATE TO RSVP
Member # 709
posted
i would definitely support rehabilitation and counseling and whatever. from within the confines of a securely locked facility from which they could never return to the streets.
-------------------- "Are you worried that your thoughts are not quite.. clear?"
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Saltah'na
Chinese Canadian, or 75% Commie Bastard.
Member # 33
posted
Kids will be kids? They didn't know any better? Shoplifting, I understand. Simple assault, I understand. Even a car crash or a hit-and-run. But this is a maiming. And they meant to do it. The seriousness of the crime as well as intent to do serious harm alone means that they should be charged as adults and not juveniles.
From my vantage point, the Canadian justice system (and possibly the American, but that's just from watching Law and Order) for juveniles is seriously fucked up. We've got kids committing murder and only going to juvie hall for 5 years. We've got kids committing attempted murder and they get it bumped down to assault. And they get less than 2 years. In today's society (everywhere, not just Canadian or American), the Justice system for juvies should be revamped to reflect the changing attitudes on teenagers. And that includes charging teens in Adult court.
-------------------- "And slowly, you come to realize, it's all as it should be, you can only do so much. If you're game enough, you could place your trust in me. For the love of life, there's a tradeoff, we could lose it all but we'll go down fighting...." - David Sylvian FreeSpace 2, the greatest space sim of all time, now remastered!
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capped
I WAS IN THE FUTURE, IT WAS TOO LATE TO RSVP
Member # 709
posted
please note that when i used the phrase 'kids will be kids' i was referring to simple mischief, and went on to say that violent malicious fucks like this need to be edited out from the population pool (if not the gene pool).
Registered: Sep 2001
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posted
Out of curiosity, if we are treating, say, 16 year olds as adults in the legal system, shouldn't they recieve the right to vote as well? Not that I am implying that we should or should not in either case.
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capped
I WAS IN THE FUTURE, IT WAS TOO LATE TO RSVP
Member # 709
posted
and the right to stay out late with me as well!
Registered: Sep 2001
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posted
Out of curiosity, if we are treating, say, 16 year olds as adults in the legal system, shouldn't they recieve the right to vote as well?
We desperately need some sort of method for determining mental competency...
-------------------- "This is why you people think I'm so unknowable. You don't listen!" - God, "God, the Devil and Bob"
Registered: Mar 1999
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posted
Probably impossible, and definitely unfair, because any such definition is all too easily equated with "thinks like the powers that be want him/her to think." Blanket limits like being 18 to vote are ultimately arbitrary, but I do not think the problems they cause are worse than the problems some sort of "competency" exam presents.
Registered: Mar 1999
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posted
The problem I see w/ the arguement is that "adult" in one situation does not equal "adult" in another situation. Just because someone is mature enough for one thing doesn't mean they're mature enough for another. I'm not saying this is necessarily in contradiction to the current debate, but it's a problem, in general, w/ an arguement in the form of "if someone is old enough to do x, they're old enough to do anything".
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