All to often I have seen cases in which the offender (male and female) attempts to blame the victim. In the case below we see another example of this being done:
Phylecia Humphries was found guilty Friday of sexually assaulting her former foster son and was sentenced to 10 years probation and 90 days in the Brown County Jail. She was also assessed a $10,000 fine.
Humphries, 26, faced a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for the second degree felony.
District Attorney Micheal Murray asked the same jurors who convicted Humphries Friday morning - after less than an hour’s deliberation - to consider a range of 15 to 20 years in prison. After deliberating for about five hours, jurors sentenced her to probation. District Judge Steve Ellis assessed the 90-day jail sentence after Murray requested that Humphries spend 180 days in jail.
“We’re proud of the jury,” defense attorney Kirby Roberts, who had asked jurors in his closing statement to sentence his client to probation, said after the trial ended. “They did what we asked of them. They made the appropriate decision.”
I always wonder what goes through people's minds when they come up with a sentence like this. From a possible 20 years down to probation. For sexually abusing a 13 year old.
Murray said he thanks jurors for their hard work, but said he is concerned that “we’re sending a mixed message that when it’s a female-on-male crime, it’s not as serious as a male-on-female crime.”
Murray made a similar point in his closing argument in the trial’s sentencing phase. If a foster father impregnated his 13-year-old foster daughter, Murray told jurors, there would be no discussion about the possibility of probation.
Mr. Murray is right in regards to this case and other similar cases. But such light sentences are not exclusive to only female offenders.
Humphries’ foster son was 13 when he and Humphries began a sexual relationship in 2005, and Humphries became pregnant by the boy, testimony showed. She gave birth to the boy’s child, a girl, in June 2006.
A second former foster teen testified that he had also had sex with Humphries. Humphries said in earlier testimony that never happened.
After jurors returned the guilty verdict, Humphries took the witness stand as the punishment phase began. She asked jurors to place her on probation, and said, crying, “I am sorry about everything that’s ever happened. Everything I do, I try to be a good person. I know we all make mistakes.
Murray asked Humphries if she takes responsibility for having sex with her 13-year-old foster son. “I was partially to blame,” Humphries said.
This is/was not a mistake. Sexually abusing a child (or children) in your care is not a mistake. You did not accidentally sexually abuse them numerous times. And how can an adult and parent figure not be fully to blame for sexually abusing a 13 year old?
The defense argued that Humphries had given in to the 13-year-old boy while she was depressed and emotionally fragile. After the first encounter, the defense argued, the boy blackmailed her into four more encounters.
This case, like many others, is about the offender looking out for their own needs and not the needs of their children. The offender is interested in is getting what they want, ignoring the victims well being entirely. The common thread is the focus on their own needs, wants and desires. - Read the entire article here
Saturday, December 20, 2008
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