Comments on: Accidents no more: Everything’s a crime

By: Gideon

Gideon — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 03:29:51 +0000

There’s actually no way of knowing, because it would be a juvenile case and that’s hidden from public view. Without a name, I have no way of finding out. I suspect, however, that this did not go anywhere.

By: Gideon

Gideon — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 03:25:47 +0000

Are you serious?

By: Jen

Jen — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 03:24:16 +0000

Whatever happened to this case?

By: SPO

SPO — Thu, 22 May 2008 14:41:24 +0000

Hey Gid, can you, if you can, post updates to this. I’m sure you’ll hear some things that won’t be widely reported.

By: Gideon

Gideon — Sat, 17 May 2008 17:09:36 +0000

So the two options are a nolle (heh) or commitment to DCF?

What are the chances this will actually be prosecuted?

By: Nollequeen

Nollequeen — Sat, 17 May 2008 14:45:45 +0000

Welcome to the world of Juvenile Justice in Connecticut!! We don’t have an infancy statute, so we pretty much rely on the competency statute to screen out the wee nippers that show up in the system.

I once represented a 5 year old accused of Reckless Burning. (He set fire to his own hair…which was pretty reckless, ya gotta admit
At the arraignment the judge asked him to stand. He was already standing, so I asked the judge if he would like me to pick him up so the judge could see him better. The humor/irony of it all was lost of the judge who then engaged in a discussion of what Santa might be bringing the kid for Christmas. AAAAGH.

The maximum by the way is an 18 month commitment to DCF with the possibility of re-commitment. Not that makes it any better mind you.

By: Gideon

Gideon — Sat, 17 May 2008 02:27:07 +0000

Well, I still hold out hope that the prosecutor’s office will not prosecute.

By: SPO

SPO — Sat, 17 May 2008 02:25:38 +0000

I can think of a lot of curse words to describe this nonsense, but Gid, I think you hit the nail right on the head. Since when did the word, “accident” disappear from the English language? I don’t think I want to live in a society where an 8 year old kid playing with matches or whatever is subject to the full panoply of the criminal law. And let’s not forget about the emasculation of the kid’s parents. What, are they supposed to sit and take this sitting down? How would I answer the question, “Daddy, why did you let them do that to me?” Not something I care to think about. Accidents happen. That’s life. And I cannot imagine myself thinking any different if my own child died at the hand of such an accident. Prosecuting 8 year olds for “reckless” behavior is an exercise in stupidity. There’s no way, simply on the basis of the fact that the kid was playing with matches and it got out of hand, to determine whether this kid is someone in need of intervention or just the one that got hit by lightning, so to speak. That, coupled with the obvious harm here, makes this about as cruel an act as I can imagine.

Sorry for the rant. This just pisses me off.