Vermont Judge Imposes 3-10 year sentence for sex offender [Archive]

fuzzis

01-26-2006, 01:05 PM

Vermont judge imposes 3-10 year sentence for sex offender (http://www.boston.com/news/local/vermont/articles/2006/01/26/vermont_judge_imposes_3_10_year_sentence_for_sex_o ffender/)

By Wilson Ring, Associated Press Writer | January 26, 2006

BURLINGTON, Vt. --Judge Edward Cashman, under fire for sentencing a man to 60 days in prison for sexually abusing a child, imposed a jail term Thursday of three to 10 years.
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The judge said he could now impose the longer sentence because the state has agreed to provide treatment to Mark Hulett while he is behind bars. Originally the state had said such treatment would not come until Hulett was released.

In the two weeks since the original sentence Cashman has been vilified by television commentators, bloggers and even the governor who say he was too light on the crime...

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I cannot for the life of me fathom why a sex offender who is going to be released back into society would not receive treatment the moment he walked through the prison doors. Where is the outrage about that, given all we know about pedophiles? I certainly don't agree with the judge's initial decision, but it seems to me that there is a bit of a disconnect here with what the real issue is.

fuzzis

IGID

01-26-2006, 01:50 PM

I say castration is the answer. That way they won't have the urge when they get out. And before all yall on the left jump on me, just for 1 second think that was your child being molested.

fuzzis

01-26-2006, 01:56 PM

I say castration is the answer. That way they won't have the urge when they get out. And before all yall on the left jump on me, just for 1 second think that was your child being molested.

Actually...as I understand castration, it doesn't take away the urge. It takes away the ability. Anyone know for sure on that one?

Perhaps the same difference at any rate, but it doesn't really address the underlying problem.

fuzzis

IGID

01-26-2006, 02:27 PM

Fuzzis, I'm not sure if the vets do it anymore, but they used to castrate dogs in order to calm them down. If it's good enough for dogs, it's good enough for a child molester. Besides, just the knowledge that they will be castrated would be a deterate. If that won't work, I say the death penalty. I'll supply the bullet and the will to carry it out.

fuzzis

01-26-2006, 02:28 PM

Just did a little bit of searching, and from what I read, castration works both on the drive and the ability, so you're right about that IGID. Perhaps disturbing, though, was from what I was able to glean, anywhere from 10-30% of individuals who underwent surgical castration were still able to have an erection and sustain sexual intercourse (I wasn't able to determine if the rate was similar for chemical castration). Recidivism rates are certainly much lower...from 40-50% without castration to 2-7% with castration.

As far as I can tell, in the United States, the preferred method is chemical castration, which involves making sure the offender takes a Depo shot (used as a form of birth control for women, and casually referred to as "female castration" because of what it frequently does to a woman's sex drive) every 1-3 months. It would seem that if chemical castration were to be a widely adopted method, we would need (as we already desparately do) a much better system for monitoring and tracking sex offenders.

I would worry that implementing castration might lead to a false sense of security, and I can certainly see the inherent constitutional objections to such a course of action.

:smt102

fuzzis

fuzzis

01-26-2006, 02:42 PM

Some additional facts about this particular case...

The molestor in this case is developmentally disabled with the emotional maturity and reasoning ability of a 12 year old.

The judge's original sentence of 30 days would have been converted to a life sentence had the molestor *not* availed himself to treatment.

fuzzis

IGID

01-26-2006, 02:55 PM

Thats some good facts to know, but who gives a crap about that piece of %$@&? What about the little girl he repeatedly molested?

fuzzis

01-26-2006, 03:04 PM

Thats some good facts to know, but who gives a crap about that piece of %$@&? What about the little girl he repeatedly molested?

Another fact is that in a 4 year period, he molested the girl 3-4 times, so "repeatedly" with its connotations doesn't quite fit. That is not to minimize at all what happened to the little girl. It should not have happened; she has been traumatized, and once is one time too many.

Anyone who has worked with the developmentally disabled knows that there are issues with sexuality and boundaries.

I do believe that in such a case as this...moreso perhaps than in other cases, treatment is in order. While not a lawyer, I think that there are sentencing guidelines for those with reduced or diminished capacities?

fuzzis

IGID

01-26-2006, 03:09 PM

4 times is not repeatedly? I hope your child, if you have any yet, never gets molested by someone with diminished capacities. I think you will have a change of heart.

fuzzis

01-26-2006, 03:21 PM

Assumptions are a terrible thing to make, IGID.

I was sexually abused by the boy down the street from the time I was 5 until the time I was 8. He happened to have an IQ of 71 and I highly doubt that he knew what he was doing was wrong. I no longer blame him; I blame (and cannot forgive) those adults in our lives who should have kept me safe and failed miserably at their charge, looked the other way when they knew something was wrong.

fuzzis

IGID

01-26-2006, 04:28 PM

fuzzis

01-26-2006, 05:04 PM

I'm sorry to hear that, but I find it hard to believe these people that do these acts don't know right from wrong, especially the 12 yr old. The parents are as much to blame as the molesters. I hope he got the treatment that some people think he should have gotten instead of jail or training school that they deserve.

Given the dearth of sex education for people with developmental disabilities and the discomfort the able have with the mere of idea of people with developmental disabilities being sexual, it is not surprising to me to believe it within the realm of possibility that they really don't know what they're doing is wrong. When they have no information, when they have no opportunities for appropriate sexual expression, it is little wonder that their sexual activities are often inappropriate.

As for my abuser, nothing happened to him that I know of. My mother drug him home to his father one afternoon, and the next morning, he and his family were gone. Maybe his father beat the hell out of him somewhere in there for all the trouble he caused them. It was decided by my family and our local sheriff that as long as the Romans didn't come back, perhaps it was best to leave well enough alone...that "everyone" had suffered enough.

fuzzis

reality

01-26-2006, 05:09 PM

...our local sheriff that as long as the Romans didn't come back, perhaps it was best to leave well enough alone...that "everyone" had suffered enough. fuzzis

I'm sorry, but that's just wrong. He should have been charged and served some time for that. I sincerely hope that Sheriff no longer holds his position of authority.

fuzzis

01-26-2006, 05:15 PM

I'm sorry, but that's just wrong. He should have been charged and served some time for that. I sincerely hope that Sheriff no longer holds his position of authority.

It was 1984, and it was an incredibly small town where things like that don't happen to kids like ours, and I'm sure had the Romans hung around, *something* would have been done. I doubt it would have been jail time, though.

That particular sheriff had a heart-attack and died 9? 10? years ago, but the Deputy who my mother went to talk to first, as she had gone to high school with him and he lived next door, is now in charge. He calls me a couple of times a week to let me know how my grandmother is doing (I'm the one who's schedule would allow me to get there the fastest if something were wrong)...stops by, checks on her, makes sure she hasn't passed away in her sleep.

fuzzis

reality

01-26-2006, 05:20 PM

It was 1984, and it was an incredibly small town where things like that don't happen to kids like ours, and I'm sure had the Romans hung around, *something* would have been done. I doubt it would have been jail time, though.

That particular sheriff had a heart-attack and died 9? 10? years ago, but the Deputy who my mother went to talk to first, as she had gone to high school with him and he lived next door, is now in charge. He calls me a couple of times a week to let me know how my grandmother is doing (I'm the one who's schedule would allow me to get there the fastest if something were wrong)...stops by, checks on her, makes sure she hasn't passed away in her sleep.

fuzzis

Well, for what it's worth I'm really sorry to hear you went through that Fuzzis.

fuzzis

01-26-2006, 05:27 PM

Well, for what it's worth I'm really sorry to hear you went through that Fuzzis.

Thank you, but it's really not that unusual. You never know who is sitting next to you or what their experiences are. The statistic is that 1 in 3 girls and 1 in 6 boys will be sexually assaulted (which covers a broad range of things) by the time they are 18. It's a sad reality of our lives...and a punishment based system doesn't seem to be solving the problem or making our children any more safe. Punishment certainly needs to be a component of any plan to stop these behaviors, but you can only beat a dead horse for so long before you have to get off of it and realize it's not going anywhere. If it doesn't work, then we need to try something different.

fuzzis

reality

01-26-2006, 05:50 PM

Thank you, but it's really not that unusual. You never know who is sitting next to you or what their experiences are. The statistic is that 1 in 3 girls and 1 in 6 boys will be sexually assaulted (which covers a broad range of things) by the time they are 18. It's a sad reality of our lives...and a punishment based system doesn't seem to be solving the problem or making our children any more safe. Punishment certainly needs to be a component of any plan to stop these behaviors, but you can only beat a dead horse for so long before you have to get off of it and realize it's not going anywhere. If it doesn't work, then we need to try something different.

fuzzis

You're welcome, and I agree.

The only thing that will or can truly change a person of which you speak is God.

Conveyor Belt

01-26-2006, 07:11 PM

I'm not sure offenders are ever cured. I have a hard time believing people change forever. If you were capable once, you are, IMO, capable in the future. I think the system of notification is a good start. Does it make life as a sex offender difficult? You bet. I think it should be harder than that.

I periodically go back and check the listings. Without knowing the specifics of the case, I can see one or two in the Petal area that I really think are probably okay. One guy was 20 when he was convicted of having sex with a minor above age 14. That one I can understand. It's the touching of child for lustful purposes and the sexual battery ones that I wish they would quarantine. I don't want to live with these people around. I wish they didn't exist.

I swear, if someone messes with my kid, I'm going on vacation for a few weeks and you'll never see that person again. I think a trip to Aruba may be in order. Those guys found a great way to get rid of a body...

fuzzis

01-26-2006, 08:52 PM

Fuzzis, first, I'm sorry that something horrible happened to you when you were so young. And you are right, that you never know what experiences others may have endured. That teaches us a lesson to keep temper our opinions in front of others until we know them better. As parents, we have such a responsibility to know all that we can about those our children encounter - even if on the surface they seem like nice, caring, responsible individuals. You never know what skeletons may be hidden and as parents, we must know more than what's on the surface.

And, Fuzzis, I applaude you for telling us something so private and for overcoming what must have been a difficult ordeal. Very courageous!

QM...I don't know that it is courageous. It just is. It's a part of what makes me the person I am. It's not something that comes up in every day conversation, but it's not something of which I'm ashamed. I know that I am, unfortunately, not alone, and you never know what your openness will bring, what it prompts in others.

fuzzis