A Less Clear Case

It’s pretty clear to me that this Ott fellow didn’t do anything that merits 20 years to life. Maybe ‘things went a little bit far,’ as he says, but I wouldn’t convict him if I were on his jury. If anything I would say that you’d have to go a lot further in these circumstances before I would send you down for any kind of felony. Thirty days, maybe. “Next time, call the sheriff and let his deputies be the ones to beat him up.”
on

5 comments:

  1. E Hines11:53 PM

    Maybe a fine for disorderly conduct, suspended if he keeps his nose clean for 30 days.

    And a handshake down at the Rozet bar and a drink or two on the house that night.

    I've thought about what I might do if that happened to my daughter, or now my granddaughter (and, still my daughter). Ott and his buddy were gentle.

    Some things are well settled without needing to involve government officials.

    Eric Hines

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  2. Dad2911:56 AM

    The KEY phrase there is "....if convicted."

    Smart play? Demand a jury trial.

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  3. Grim3:00 PM

    Seriously. Did he technically violate the law against kidnapping? Maybe, by a stretch in which 22 year old men who’ve just now sexually assaulted teenagers a d refused to leave are potential victims of kidnapping.

    Would a jury in cowboy country convict him? I wouldn’t bet on it.

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  4. Tom7:42 PM

    Putting someone in the trunk without their consent and driving out to the woods to dump them is pretty kidnap-ish. And just plain dumb.

    Even so, 20 years is a CRAZY sentence for that. I'd think disorderly conduct, a short spell in jail to give him time to consider smarter ways to do things, and a beer when he gets out.

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  5. Grim11:07 PM

    You know when I was young, a girl my age had a boyfriend I didn’t think much of who decided to run his mouth at an old man who owned a local store. That guy beat him with dimension lumber, put him in the hospital but good in spite of a 50 year age difference. The old man had a county commissioner as a son, which may have helped him out of facing charges; but the boy was a bad influence, and we weren’t worse off without him.

    It’s less clear cut than the Mexican case just discussed. Definitely there’s some grey area.

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