"Not Guilty by Reasons of "Afluenza"

[R_Bert]

The parents should be serving time..........

 

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/12/12/affluenza-defense-probation-for-deadly-dwi_n_4430807.html

[Dolomite_supafly]

Why should the parents be serving time?

 

The kid should have been charged as an adult and spend 1/2 of his life in prison. The family's wealth prevented justice from being served. The judge should be removed from the bench as well. She is not running for reelection next year, likely because the family have made her retirement fund big enough that she can retire. This is clearly a case of someone's innocence being bought and paid for.

 

The kid will not learn a thing and will commit a alcohol related crime again within six months. Hopefully there will be no innocents killed the next time around.

 

This honestly enrages me to a point that I wish harm upon the 16 year old to save others that he will likely kill. You can look at him and see it in his eyes, "I am better than you and I can do whatever what I want".

[Jonnin]

Maybe.   So what would you have done with this kid?   He is 16, and made an extremely stupid, teenagerish mistake that led to a huge tragedy.    Lock him up in jail for a decade?  To what end?  He isnt a hard thug that needs to be off the street, so you are talking pure punishment.   There is no punishment that is not laughable in the face of 4 lost lives --- unless you want to execute him.   He would learn nothing of being a better person in jail --- more likely, he would learn from pros how to get into even worse trouble and become jaded or hard.   Not sure what the best thing to do here is, but jail time does not seem to be it.  Maybe like a million hours of community service would be a start.

 

What stinks is the rich = reduced sentence issue.   Happens all the time, its a serious flaw with our system.  The lady is not blind (and never has been, really).   If I were rich enough, I would get a good lawyer too, though --- the time comes to play your hand sometimes.    You would do the same if you had the cash.

[R_Bert]

Why should the parents be serving time?

 

The kid should have been charged as an adult and spend 1/2 of his life in prison. The family's wealth prevented justice from being served. The judge should be removed from the bench as well. She is not running for reelection next year, likely because the family have made her retirement fund big enough that she can retire. This is clearly a case of someone's innocence being bought and paid for.

 

The kid will not learn a thing and will commit a alcohol related crime again within six months. Hopefully there will be no innocents killed the next time around.

 

This honestly enrages me to a point that I wish harm upon the 16 year old to save others that he will likely kill. You can look at him and see it in his eyes, "I am better than you and I can do whatever what I want".

 

because in court record, they accepted blame - and he escaped a murder or manslaughter rap as a result  - http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/12/11/texas-teen-kills-four-in-drunken-crash-but-gets-probation-after-parents-wealth-blamed/

Edited December 12, 2013 by R_Bert

[BrasilNuts]

So let me ge this straight...

If you're rich and privileged it's not your fault.

If you're poor and underprivileged it's not your fault.

[R_Bert]

BTW, Dolomite, I do strongly agree that the young parent-raised/enabled monster should be the one actually accountable.

 

But as it is playing out, the only person paying for the crime is the victims, especially the man who lost his family.

Edited December 12, 2013 by R_Bert

[BryanP]

If you're rich and privileged it's not your fault.

 

 

Privilege.  Root words Privi and Lege.  Modern translation: Private Law.  Those with wealth and power answer to a different law than the lower classes.

[BrasilNuts]

Privilege.  Root words Privi and Lege.  Modern translation: Private Law.  Those with wealth and power answer to a different law than the lower classes.

Yeah, that's why I added the second part.

[Monkeyman2500]

May his next victim be a large tree.

[peejman]

Maybe.   So what would you have done with this kid?   He is 16, and made an extremely stupid, teenagerish mistake that led to a huge tragedy.    Lock him up in jail for a decade?  To what end?  He isnt a hard thug that needs to be off the street, so you are talking pure punishment.   There is no punishment that is not laughable in the face of 4 lost lives --- unless you want to execute him.   He would learn nothing of being a better person in jail --- more likely, he would learn from pros how to get into even worse trouble and become jaded or hard.   Not sure what the best thing to do here is, but jail time does not seem to be it.  Maybe like a million hours of community service would be a start.

 

What stinks is the rich = reduced sentence issue.   Happens all the time, its a serious flaw with our system.  The lady is not blind (and never has been, really).   If I were rich enough, I would get a good lawyer too, though --- the time comes to play your hand sometimes.    You would do the same if you had the cash.

 

 

I agree that there's lots of things wrong here.  First of all, a mistrial should be declared, the judge should be removed, and a new trial should be held.  And I agree about sentencing the kid... he did something incredibly stupid and appears totally oblivious to the world around him, but I see little value in stuffing him in jail for 10 years.  How about 20,000 hrs of volunteer community service that must be completed within 10 years.  That's 40 hrs/wk, 50 wks/yr, for 10 years.  And a 10 yr revocation of his DL.

[Guest TankerHC]

What was the sentence of that kid several years ago that was drunk driving and went off the road killing like 9 of his friends, he was the sole survivor. I know he had lost his privilege to drive for life, don't think he went to jail though. (Actually cant recall)

 

 

This kid learned one thing. "you can get away with anything"

 

Laws violated

 

Underage drinking

Speeding

Drug use (Valium)

DUI/DWI

Failured to obey traffic signals signs

 

Plus killed four people

 

Gets to go home at the end of the day. 

[whitewolf001]

Was just discussing this on facebook with my friends wife, I think there will be some vigilante justice. I may be a law abiding citizen but if I lost everything that way, I'd probably do something I shouldn't but at that point I'm fairly certain the only thing I'd know is rage.

Edited December 12, 2013 by whitewolf001

[RobertNashville]

Was just discussing this on facebook with my friends wife, I think there will be some vigilante justice. I may be a law abiding citizen but if I lost everything that way, I'd probably do something I shouldn't but at that point I'm fairly certain the only thing I'd know is rage.

You took the words right out of my mouth. If I was one that suffered the loss this derelict inflicted I don't know that I could stop myself from exacting my own justice given the failure of the system to do its job.

 

Sometimes, punishment and revenge is called for...I'm sorry that this kid is already worthless at 16...I'm sorry that he probably had lousy, overindulgent parents who also should be held accountable for raising him to be the derelict he is...but "sorry" doesn't mean he and his parents shouldn't be punished for what they have done.

[tnguy]

NT - misread the story.

Edited December 12, 2013 by tnguy

[TMF]

Who cares about his rehabilitation? He killed four people in a premeditated attack. He should be doing life in prison. The lack of punishment will only embolden this POS to do this again since there aren't consequences to his actions. That is evident by the crap he pulled prior to killing four human beings and wasnt punished for.

This judge was clearly paid off. There is no other excuse for why he got away with this punishment free.

[peejman]

After reading and thinking on it a little more.... hog lot for all of 'em. 

[DaveS]

I didn't want to get involved in this thread as my views don't match those of others. But here goes....

He committed a crime and people died. He needed to be tried and sentenced as an adult, and spend his life in prison. Since when did how much money your parents have make a wrong right? This is the biggest crock of BS I've ever heard (well next to a certain someone from Florida) in a while!!! But when you are under 18, yo momma and daddy are responsible for your actions, and I'd be burning their azz financially if my next of kin got killed by that little moron!

 

Dave

[Stegall Law Firm]

Let's remember none of us were there during the trial to hear all the testimony, and I for one am not going to take this sensationalist story that tries to pass as real journalism in Huff Post as the final word. HP is clearly trying to fan the flames of race and class in this article.

If it were up to me I'd put the parents in jail. They deserve it more than the son. I'm sure there was a long pattern of this type of behavior by the kid, and mom & dad did nothing. That was clearly the attorney's strategy- throw mom and dad under the bus in order to save the kid client. The victims' blood is on their hands just as much, and all we can hope is that they have to wake up every day with the realization that they completely failed in their most important task in life, and that they are ruined financially for it.

As for the defendant, while I think he deserved some jail time I still think he should get another chance at life. This was not premeditated, it was horribly negligent. He's still a boy really. But he shouldn't be allowed to go to a posh rehab facility. That was a shitty call by the judge. He can get treatment or whatever he needs in a youth detention center. Really I'm more mad at the adults here--the parents and the judge--than the kid. Edited December 13, 2013 by Stegall Law Firm

[TMF]

Injuring/killing someone while driving drunk is premeditated. The risks are well known and therefore the intention of the driver is to cause injury/death to others as soon as he gets behind the wheel. Adults should face the death penalty for killing folks while driving drunk. A 16 year old might not be an adult, but they sure as hell ain't a child. He should be serving 20+ plus years. F**k his second chance. The 4 dead innocents don't get a second chance.

[Guest TankerHC]

Where does it say the parents are financially ruined?

[TripleDigitRide]

My cousin is a machine programmer for the company that's owned by this child's father. He said that there are already at least 5 or 6 multi-million dollar lawsuits in the works. They are suing the child, the parents, and the father's company. Apparently the child was driving a company truck at the time of the accident.

[DaveTN]

Injuring/killing someone while driving drunk is premeditated. The risks are well known and therefore the intention of the driver is to cause injury/death to others as soon as he gets behind the wheel.

This.

If I am reading the story right he was convicted. So the parent’s money didn’t buy him a “dream team” legal defense team. This case is so outrageous it appears to me a Judge had to be bought.

[DaveS]

My cousin is a machine programmer for the company that's owned by this child's father. He said that there are already at least 5 or 6 multi-million dollar lawsuits in the works. They are suing the child, the parents, and the father's company. Apparently the child was driving a company truck at the time of the accident.

Oh, that's going to change their little lush lifestyle! That kid needs to be taught a lesson though!

 

Dave

[jgradyc]

My cousin is a machine programmer for the company that's owned by this child's father. He said that there are already at least 5 or 6 multi-million dollar lawsuits in the works. They are suing the child, the parents, and the father's company. Apparently the child was driving a company truck at the time of the accident.

 

This was my first thought... civil lawsuit. I would not necessarily want to see a 16-year-old pay with his life for this, but if ever there was a case for a multi-million dollar lawsuit, this would be it.

[analog_kidd]

I don't get this country. We can have zero-tolerance for a 5 year old boy who makes a gun shape from his peanut butter sandwich, who clearly does not understand what he has "done", but this kid breaks all the rules about drinking, driving, and ends up actually killing someone, and we have to have compassion. If zero-tolerance is such a good idea in some areas, why not the ones that really count?