Teen gets branded a felon for life for robbing man of $0.07

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by Metroplex79, Aug 30, 2011.

?

Yay or Nay?

  1. Yay

    118 vote(s)
    76.6%
  2. Nay

    24 vote(s)
    15.6%
  3. Indifferent

    7 vote(s)
    4.5%
  4. OTHER

    5 vote(s)
    3.2%
  1. ErbFan28

    ErbFan28 Well-Known Member

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    Well, if he beat him up then he deserved it.

    If he hadn't have, I'd say its bullshit
     
  2. Red Alert

    Red Alert Security

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    Just watch the vid if you think it's overkill.

    The kid showed no remorse or regret.
     
  3. exomega255

    exomega255 Emerald Green

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    Charges shouldn't be based on the amount he stole, but his actions, motivation. He showed no remorse. It was his actions that got him branded.

    The Media irks me on this. They try to incite the public to anger by conveying that "he seems to be charged much more for doing so little", to get attention.
     
  4. TrueNomadSkies

    TrueNomadSkies Well-Known Member

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    Well, if it'll sell a story...
     
  5. Dark Skull

    Dark Skull Well-Known Enabler Moderator

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    Only problem is, if you try to call em out for inciting ignorance in the form of a public outcry, they'll excuse themselves by saying they included the video of the guy showing no remorse so it wasn't like they were condoning the kid's actions blah blah blah blah blah. I agree....its bullshit. Anything for ratings right?
     
  6. firehawc_69

    firehawc_69 cloppers = ignore list

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    I agree that the judge shouldn't have said he gave him the max because he plead not guilty. He should have just done it based on the merit of the crimes. The outcome would have been the same, it's just in a different context now. Pretty much the same as the title of the article, the seven cents is irrelevant but it was put in that context because it stood out as an abnormal detail.
     
  7. TrueNomadSkies

    TrueNomadSkies Well-Known Member

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    Hmm, guess the kid shouldn't have listened to Shaggy after all.

    Say it wasn't you? Yeah right.
     
  8. Aernaroth

    Aernaroth <b><font color=blue>I voted for Super_Megatron and Veteran

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    The idea of "if you can't do the time don't do the crime" is flawed, especially in the case of a 15 year old. As a society, we don't trust a 15 year old to have the responsibility for his actions to drive a car, smoke or consume alcohol, vote, join the military, or take care of himself, so why would we assume he has the ability to responsibly make legal choices of arguably even greater impact on his life than the things I just mentioned? That's the point of trying someone as a juvenile in the first place, to recognize that they may not have the maturity, presence of mind, or sheer experience to fully recognize the impact of their choices, on themselves or on others.

    Furthermore, the idea is flawed because it implies punishment should be the focus of sentencing, though sy-rein did recognize the importance of rehabilitation in his response. Punishment does not effectively prevent recidivism, especially in cases where the crime was motivated by circumstance rather than mens rea, and similarly, it does not effectively act as a deterrent in cases where the perpetrator does not think about getting caught (or expect to be caught), as could be more likely in a situation with an immature perpetrator, lacking the ability to make responsible choices. Rehabilitation, however, can remove many of the incentives to reoffend, and contribute to an environment where unacceptability of an offense is more universal, acting as a more effective deterrent. To say "well if they do it again they should get used to punishment" doesn't really protect the victims of their re-offenses, where effective rehabilitation would prevent such victims.

    I'm glad that Sy-rein agrees with me on the importance and the role of rehabilitation, though without getting too political, I think he overestimates the resources assigned to it, and underestimates the desire for many inmates to reform. There's no mention of the defendant's intent or even the real circumstances of the crime in question in the very short article, so we really can't comment on those. But both these posts seem to be projecting a considerable amount of negative attitudes on him, and are examples of the stigma that follows many convicts long after their debts to society have supposedly been paid. What point is there for someone to reform, if everyone's just going to treat you like a criminal anyway?

    This kid did something terrible, that's (barring an appeal) been shown. That he deserves some form of punishment is reasonable. The question now is, how do you help a 15 year old kid learn from his poor decision, pay for it fairly, and move into a better life as a useful member of society?
     
  9. pud333

    pud333 Well-Known Member

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    The amount of money stolen is besides the point. They assaulted the old man and used BB guns that looked like real guns. I have no sympathy. Admitting guilt and apologizing would have gone a long way; instead, he clearly showed he won't accept responsibility. Enjoy jail, dumbass.
     
  10. KnightSaberAmi

    KnightSaberAmi Nyan Nyan

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    Exactly. I don't know why parents refuse to be parents and discipline their kids, instead they let them run wild and want sympathy when their child has a case of dumbass. He got what he deserved and most likely should have gotten more.
     
  11. Dark Skull

    Dark Skull Well-Known Enabler Moderator

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    Sorry, but the kid showed no remorse for his actions (and it almost makes me question his upbringing). He denied even doing it when there was evidence of his crime. So I now throw the question at you, how are we going to teach this child (or any other possible delinquent) any example of responsibility had the judge let him get away with "fighting the charges", "denying what he did" when he damned well knew he did it. Like I said, lack of accountability. If he had any whatsoever, why try to say "I didn't do it!" (Which is essentially what he was doing)? He may or may not have had the presence of mind or the maturity to "fully recognize" the impact of his choices, but he sure as hell had the presence of mind to try to weasel his way out of it.

    Well we were never told why he said he did it in the first place so we can't really speak about motivation in terms of circumstances vs criminal intent. But in general, I would agree and yet disagree. While we still don't know why he did it, we do know he tried to weasel his way out of it. To me, that's disgusting. Rehab works, yes. But doesn't that also depend on whether or not the individual wants to? Its like the saying, "You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make the fucker drink it."

    I'm glad you put the word "seem" in there. Yeah, there is some negative attitude towards him. To me, if he had pleaded guilty, that would have shown me that he at least acknowledged the crime he committed. But his actions showed the opposite. I do believe that everyone deserves a second chance in life as we all make mistakes, but when you have been shown to do something that isn't right, and you try to escape any responsibility or accountability.....then I'm sorry. That's just compounding your "sin." To me, that's unacceptable.

    Define reasonable? People will have varying "reasonable" punishments they would like to have done on certain "criminals", but like we're discussing here, it will differ from person to person. Sometimes, "reasonable" has been seen as "not enough", and sometimes it has been seen as "too much." I guess this is where to law comes into play. But then, aren't the laws written by people like you and me? Imperfect beings? How do we help a 15 year old kid learn from his poor decision? It depends on him. Does he want to? Initially, it doesn't seem like he gave a shit. Who knows. Maybe his stint in juvenile hall may help him out. Maybe it won't.
     
  12. KnightSaberAmi

    KnightSaberAmi Nyan Nyan

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    So just so I understand what your saying here: because he's 15 he should get off right, because he clearly didn't understand what he was doing? Gonna have to call BS on this one. I have worked with these knuckleheads and that's exactly what they are: knuckleheads. You know right from wrong, I know right from wrong, and its not reasonable for me or you to believe this kid knew what he was doing at the time was not wrong. He did and did it anyway thinking he wouldn't be caught...but he was and now because of the amount the money, we should all feel sorry for him, he has his life ahead of him, we as a society are being so mean to a 15 year old. He's a thug who robbed an elderly man if he could have had a real gun in his hand the old man may have been shot dead for only having 7 cents in his pocket. Get real. I worked in a jail and one young lady was given 30 to 40 years at the age of 16. He's lucky he didn't get more.
     
  13. rxlthunder

    rxlthunder Banned

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    Look, I get it, he's 15 and doesn't deserve it, but I'm 14 and honestly think that he does. He made his mistake and deserves proper punishment. People my age usually get off easy and this guy didn't. He deserved it and has to pay for his crime.
     
  14. Dragonclaw

    Dragonclaw Briefly the owner of KB Toys

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    THIS! Yes, the kid is 15....my 10 year old knows right from wrong. This kid, who chose to pick up a GUN...toy or not is irrelevant when using it in an ARMED ROBBERY...and ASSAULTS a 73 year old man with an accomplice. Did this kid's parents fail him? Likely...but not the point since we can't jail THEM for his crime. Would he have comitted the same crime repeatedly if he had gotten more $$$ and not been caught? I'd say it's highly likely considering how he tried to fight the responsibility of this caseand his demeanor...I see no hint of remorse and even the final statements made by his representative are how the 7c is what makes his CRIME minor...no it f*cking doesn't! The kid was obviously on his way to being a felon as it is...now he's official, to which all I can say is "congrats, dumbass".
     
  15. rxlthunder

    rxlthunder Banned

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    Off topic, but this would be slightly funny if the kid used a Megatron toy.
     
  16. Stryker055

    Stryker055 Trying my best here!

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  17. Grimlocks Pretender Shell

    Grimlocks Pretender Shell Member of the Church of Quake.

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    The law is the law. That amount is irrelevant even in a legal context.

    People saying that branding him a felon is just going to make him one in later life. Newsflash! the kid is already a felon. He committed First Degree Robbery which is a Class B felony in the State of New York.

    The kid knew full well what he was doing he made that choice to live as a thug. His parents should be looked at too but thats the limits of the legal system.
     
  18. Dark Skull

    Dark Skull Well-Known Enabler Moderator

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    I think you quoted the wrong person. I'm saying he does deserve it, especially with the way he's handling himself. Besides, the video would seem to indicate he didn't think much of his sentencing anyway.
     
  19. rxlthunder

    rxlthunder Banned

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    Oh... gotta fix it.

    EDIT:

    Fixed. Yeah, sorry about that. I used it since it was so big.
     
  20. Dran0n

    Dran0n miss me w/ that

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    Well, he beat the shit outta the old man. I think I vote "yay".