Disrespecting Jessica

[Torog]

Disrespecting Jessica

By Bill O'Reilly for BillOReilly.com
Thursday, Feb 22, 2007


The national media won't tell you, but in Miami right now, a man named John Couey is on trial for brutally killing a 9-year-old girl named Jessica Lunsford. Couey, a convicted sex offender, kidnapped Jessica out of her modest Florida home, brought her to a trailer, sexually abused her, and then buried her alive. When authorities found her body, she was clutching a stuffed dolphin.

Because of that heinous act, the state of Florida passed "Jessica's Law," which mandates that a first-time conviction for felony sexual battery on a child will result in a 25 years-to-life prison sentence. No plea bargain, no parole, no nutty judge dispensing light punishment. You do it onceâ??you're gone.

In the past three years, 41 out of 50 states have passed a version of Jessica's Law, but there is still powerful opposition to it. Many trial lawyers object because they want the ability to plea bargain. Some judges dissent because their egos are bruised. They are taken out of the equation after a child predator is convicted. And many in the left-wing media object to Jessica's Law on the grounds that it is cruel and unusual punishment; these people want rehabilitation for violent sexual offenders who brutalize children.

Let's deal with the rehab situation first. In our system of justice, the punishment must fit the crime. If you rape or sexually brutalize a child, that child will never fully recover. For the rest of that person's life, the crime will be played out in a variety of ways. Thus, the punishment must be the forfeiture of freedom for much of the abuser's life. That's punishment fitting the crime.

The defense lawyers simply should be ashamed. Crimes against children are the worst crimes. There's no way lawyers should be bartering the suffering of kids. Again, society has no obligation to rehab or to be lenient with sexual predators, especially when they brutalize children.

In the case of Jessica Lunsford, John Couey told police he did it. He wrote me a letter stating that he had help in brutalizing the child. Yet his three "roommates" were never charged by a cowardly district attorney named Brad King. And a judge threw out Couey's confession because of a Miranda violation.

I have no doubt the despicable Couey will be convicted in the Miami courtroom. But you won't hear much about it from the New York Times or the Washington Post or the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. That's because these papers continue to look away from the horror of child sexual abuse. It doesn't fit into their "restorative justice" philosophy, where the criminal as well as the victim must be "healed."

Finally, cowardly politicians in states like Vermont, Massachusetts, and Colorado, among others, have succeeded in blocking Jessica's Law. In the Colorado legislature, all six Democrats in the House Judiciary Committee voted against allowing Jessica's Law to come to the floor for a full vote. The same six Democrats voted against forcing sexual offenders to register online so that people would know who is addressing them on the Internet. The names of the Democrats in Colorado who voted against protecting children are Terrance Carroll, Mike Cerbo, Andy Kerr, Rosemary Marshall, Claire Levy, and Morgan Carroll. These individuals are misguided and their actions will lead to more children being brutalized.

Americans of all political persuasions must rise up and demand that their representatives protect the children. No plea bargaining on this one. You vote against Jessica's Law, you're hurting the kids.

[napolitana869]

Crimes against children are just sick. I consider myself to be very liberal, but even I dont believe that theres any hope for people like this.

[Breukelen advocaat]

These criminals deserve capital punishment.

Bill O'Reilly does not support the death penalty. He is also against abortion, so if a rape victim survives, and is pregnant as a result of the crime, she must have the bastard child of the assailant. O'Reilly's religious beliefs do nothing to help the innocent victims. The man's thinking is sick.

[Hardcore Newbie]

I'm very liberal as well, but don't tell me you can heal a child molester. I seriously think that these people should be tortured for the rest of their lives, just like the lives of the children they've shattered.

[Torog]

These criminals deserve capital punishment.

Bill O'Reilly does not support the death penalty. He is also against abortion, so if a rape victim survives, and is pregnant as a result of the crime, she must have the bastard child of the assailant. O'Reilly's religious beliefs do nothing to help the innocent victims. The man's thinking is sick.

Howdy BA,

Catholics don't believe in the death penalty or abortion,nothing surprising there. As for a rape victim bearing the child of her rapist,she should,if possible,because the child is innocent and if she doesn't want to raise the child,she should allow adoption of the child,not murder the child,for the sins and crimes of it's father. O'Reilly's thinking ain't sick,he understands that the rapist should be be forever kept from harming another child,ever again..why do you think that protecting children from such scum,is sick thinking ? Why do you rush to murder an innocent child,for the sins and crimes of it's father ?

Yer just looking for any excuse to bash O'Reilly and by doing so,you attempt to deviate away from the topic of the thread..i find that kind of thinking and tactic,to be sick.

Have a good one ...

[delusionsofNORMALity]

though i tend to believe that much of this "it's for the children" bullshit is nothing more than a smokescreen, this is one case where i will run with the pack. anyone capable of sexually assaulting a child lacks some very basic element in their moral background and is more than likely incapable of being rehabilitated. life in prison or, in the case of rapists/murderers, execution seems to be the only fitting punishment for such crimes. though for some it could be considered a mental illness, since there is no reliable treatment imprisonment is still the only way to protect society from such predators.

i do, however, take small exception to the attack on the judicial system. there are rule of procedure and evidence built into the system to protect the public for abuse and to berate legal professionals for following those rules is a step closer to turning this country into just another totalitarian regime.

even kooks like o'reilly get it right from time to time.

[Breukelen advocaat]

Howdy BA,

Catholics don't believe in the death penalty or abortion,nothing surprising there. As for a rape victim bearing the child of her rapist,she should,if possible,because the child is innocent and if she doesn't want to raise the child,she should allow adoption of the child,not murder the child,for the sins and crimes of it's father. O'Reilly's thinking ain't sick,he understands that the rapist should be be forever kept from harming another child,ever again..why do you think that protecting children from such scum,is sick thinking ? Why do you rush to murder an innocent child,for the sins and crimes of it's father ?

Yer just looking for any excuse to bash O'Reilly and by doing so,you attempt to deviate away from the topic of the thread..i find that kind of thinking and tactic,to be sick.

Have a good one ...

I guess it's too much to expect O'Reilly, the priests, pope, etc., to understand that forcing a woman to go through nine months of pregnancy, after being brutally raped, probably beaten, etc., and bearing the child of this mentally diseased subhuman, is just completely wrong. If they don't understand that, they're missing some major elements of humanity.

Kill the rapist, for sure. The parasitic fetus that was forced into an unwilling host, by violence, has no "rights". Don't give me this crap about "protecting children" - this is a clear case of religious insanity that is as bad as anything in the Koran, Bible, or other theistic texts.

I don't look for "any excuse to bash" O'Reilly. He provides them every single day. The rape VICTIMS deserve protection from mental midgets like him.

P.S. I do not agree that a fetus is a "child", innocent or otherwise - and this thing should not be legally protected from being scooped out of a rape victim's body and flushed down the toilet, into the sewers, where it belongs.

[Torog]

I guess it's too much to expect O'Reilly, the priests, pope, etc., to understand that forcing a woman to go through nine months of pregnancy, after being brutally raped, probably beaten, etc., and bearing the child of this mentally diseased subhuman, is just completely wrong. If they don't understand that, they're missing some major elements of humanity.

Kill the rapist, for sure. The parasitic fetus that was forced into an unwilling host, by violence, has no "rights". Don't give me this crap about "protecting children" - this is a clear case of religious insanity that is as bad as anything in the Koran, Bible, or other theistic texts.

I don't look for "any excuse to bash" O'Reilly. He provides them every single day. The rape VICTIMS deserve protection from mental midgets like him.

P.S. I do not agree that a fetus is a "child", innocent or otherwise - and this thing should not be legally protected from being scooped out of a rape victim's body and flushed down the toilet, into the sewers, where it belongs.

Howdy BA,

I found yer reply to be so horrific and inhuman,that I felt the need to reply at once.

Any woman or girl,who becomes pregnant as a result of rape,should be made to understand that the child is innocent,and not to abort the child just because they feel that the child is not innocent-PUNISH THE RAPIST,INSTEAD !

I'm going to post a picture of a 'fetus' at 22 weeks of age-look at the child closely and tell me that it's a "thing that should be scooped out and flushed down the toilet"..if you still insist that the child in the picture,is a "thing"-then count yerself amongst the DAMNED ! :mad: As we speak,studies are being done to show that children in the womb,do experience pain..if you still insist that the child is a "thing",that feels no pain,when I'm vindicated,then i find that it is you who is without a scrap of humanity.

[delusionsofNORMALity]

as usual, i underestimated the hatred some people have for right wing pundits and someone did take exception to the title post. o'reilly makes so few good points, can't we let him have just one mark in the win column?

[Zimzum]

While I believe a child rapist should be sentenced to state sanctioned castration with jail time in general population. As for Jessica's law.. I don't agree with it all to fully support it.

I'm an ex felon. And if I gotta find a new job it can be tough. Jessica's law extends the punishment beyond the sentence. Someone like me just having the felony on my record is enough to lose employment opportunities.. Even though I've had no run ins with the law since. I'm not the drug addicted, violent, scary mofo I used to be. But it still haunts me. I know I didn't rape a kid or hurt a kid. But I did try to stab two mall security officers. I've done my time, probation, community service but I'm still treated as a felon to most people.

In my case, what if my record kept me from getting a job that could support my bills? What would keep me from continuing to basically be a thug in order to just get by? Child rapist are sick but for those that can rehab and make a positive change in there life I think it maybe worth it to punish them yes, but not to restrict them so much that they can't even attempt to better themselves.

This is a classic example of religious right at work. You make a law with a legitimate sad story behind it. You tell people to support it our your a sick evil fuck and are no better then these people. "You vote against Jessica's Law, you're hurting the kids." Is like Bush saying "Your with us or against us" leaving no room for a neutral position. They do this with almost every taboo subject like abortion(yet for some reason they support the death penalty). Show you some pictures of an aborted fetus and call you a killer for supporting it. Abortion isn't a pretty thing but its a fact of life. Kinda like the "mechanically separated chicken" ingredient in beef jerky.

[Breukelen advocaat]

Howdy BA,

I found yer reply to be so horrific and inhuman,that I felt the need to reply at once.

Any woman or girl,who becomes pregnant as a result of rape,should be made to understand that the child is innocent,and not to abort the child just because they feel that the child is not innocent-PUNISH THE RAPIST,INSTEAD !

I'm going to post a picture of a 'fetus' at 22 weeks of age-look at the child closely and tell me that it's a "thing that should be scooped out and flushed down the toilet"..if you still insist that the child in the picture,is a "thing"-then count yerself amongst the DAMNED ! :mad: As we speak,studies are being done to show that children in the womb,do experience pain..if you still insist that the child is a "thing",that feels no pain,when I'm vindicated,then i find that it is you who is without a scrap of humanity.

If that was the fetus that would become Hitler, Mao, Stalin, or any number of vicious criminals it should be best flushed even if a rape hadn't occured.

This weird fetish that Xians have with fetus' boggles the mind. Twenty Two weeks is two-thirds of a normal nine month pregnancy. I would think that it would have been aborted at that point by the victim. If not she should still have the option of doing it - right up to the end.

A woman or girl that becomes pregnant due to a rape, according to you, "should be made to understand that the child is innocent......". So, let me get this straight: You think that if she aborts the fetus she is a murderer, and therefore as bad, or worse, than the criminal(s) who raped her.

Do you believe that she should be put in jail, or given the death penalty? I'd guess that O'Reilly would support jail-time. If you support the death penalty for murder, and want abortion to be outlawed, what method of execution do you favor for women that have illegal abortions, and the rogue doctors that perform them? Would lethal injection be OK, or would you prefer frying them in Old Sparky?

[notransfer]

crazy shit goin down here...

i agree with ba...i think tor, youre being a touch too conservative

raped victims have no sort of divine obligation to protect the life of some unborn child they didnt want or was forced into them in the first place...

child sexual abusers should go to jail for a long time with no plea bargain and be forced to identify themselves when/if they are free at some point in the long future

[notransfer]

however i highly respect anyone who follows the route you suggest tor...
to give birth to the child and let them have a life...give him/her up for adoption or even...in what i imagine would be a rare case, Raise him/her

but i feel abortion for rape victims is one of, if not the only most logical forms of abortion

[Myth1184]

These criminals deserve capital punishment.

Bill O'Reilly does not support the death penalty. He is also against abortion, so if a rape victim survives, and is pregnant as a result of the crime, she must have the bastard child of the assailant. O'Reilly's religious beliefs do nothing to help the innocent victims. The man's thinking is sick.

Can you say....ADOPTION?

And dont give them the death penalty, its too easy. Instead put them in General Population in Maximum Security Prison.

[Breukelen advocaat]

Can you say....ADOPTION?

And dont give them the death penalty, its too easy. Instead put them in General Population in Maximum Security Prison.

Would YOU adopt it? What do you tell it about it's father? Suppose it inherits the violent tendencies? It's up to the mother if she wants to carry it to term, I guess, but most victims would go for a rape-scrape and get rid of the thing ASAP.

I wouldn't waste our tax money keeping the rapist in jail, but unfortunately the crime is not a capital offense, so that's the best we can do at this point.

[Fengzi]

While I believe a child rapist should be sentenced to state sanctioned castration with jail time in general population. As for Jessica's law.. I don't agree with it all to fully support it.

I'm an ex felon. And if I gotta find a new job it can be tough. Jessica's law extends the punishment beyond the sentence. Someone like me just having the felony on my record is enough to lose employment opportunities.. Even though I've had no run ins with the law since. I'm not the drug addicted, violent, scary mofo I used to be. But it still haunts me. I know I didn't rape a kid or hurt a kid. But I did try to stab two mall security officers. I've done my time, probation, community service but I'm still treated as a felon to most people.

In my case, what if my record kept me from getting a job that could support my bills? What would keep me from continuing to basically be a thug in order to just get by? Child rapist are sick but for those that can rehab and make a positive change in there life I think it maybe worth it to punish them yes, but not to restrict them so much that they can't even attempt to better themselves.

.

I understand your point Zim, but there are some acts which are simply heinous and not deserving of mercy. A violent crime against a helpless child falls into this catagory. Extending the punsihment beyond the sentence in these cases just means the sentence wasn't long enough. Seriously. These aren't dumb kids, or someone down on their luck, simply making a mistake and learning from it. These people are evil predators and the cases of repeat offenders greatly outweigh the cases of successful rehabilitation.

As far as I'm concerned, anyone convicted of child molestation should be locked and a 6x6x6' cell, no windows, no company, no nothing, until they die. And if that is cruel and unusual, to fucking bad. They should have thought about that before raping a 5yo.

[Hardcore Newbie]

I understand your point Zim, but there are some acts which are simply heinous and not deserving of mercy. A violent crime against a helpless child falls into this catagory. Extending the punsihment beyond the sentence in these cases just means the sentence wasn't long enough. Seriously. These aren't dumb kids, or someone down on their luck, simply making a mistake and learning from it. These people are evil predators and the cases of repeat offenders greatly outweigh the cases of successful rehabilitation.

As far as I'm concerned, anyone convicted of child molestation should be locked and a 6x6x6' cell, no windows, no company, no nothing, until they die. And if that is cruel and unusual, to fucking bad. They should have thought about that before raping a 5yo.I'm just not sure if I'd want them to have padded walls or not.

[Fengzi]

I'm just not sure if I'd want them to have padded walls or not.

No pads! Cold, hard cement is still better than they deserve.

[Breukelen advocaat]

No pads! Cold, hard cement is still better than they deserve.

Save the padded cells for people like O'Reilly and Ron Paul.

[higher4hockey]

if i was in charge, rapists would be 'hung on the courthouse lawn' and abortion for raped women would be availabe in a drive thru window.