Since the Chicago Tribune first broke the story earlier this month (they had an update this week), I've linked a couple of times to stories about Shaquanda Cotton, a 14 year old from Paris, TX sent to TYC for shoving a hall monitor, but with the Lege in full swing I haven't focused on the case. It's a doozy, though, and is garnering as much attention to TYC in other parts of the country as the much-ballyhooed sex abuse scandals.The Tribune writers raised the racial stakes in Shaquanda's case by pairing her story with a white girl convicted of arson several months earlier for burning down her family's house. That girl received probation from the same judge, while Shaquanda found herself incarcerated for what seems like a lesser offense by any standard. The judge has publicly defended both rulings. Shawn Williams at Dallas South Blog offers some clarifying thoughts on the case from a hometown perspective.
One wonders if the sentence would be the same if Shaquanda were a white girl named Jessica? Hundreds of protesters in Paris yesterday wondered the same thing. Her case is the subject of a global prayer vigil this Saturday.
The Lone Star Times accuses Shaquanda's supporters of unjustly playing the race card, but since when did shoving a hall monitor become something you go to prison for? ESPECIALLY given what we know about what happens to kids at TYC. Black, white, or green, have we lost our minds? That's not conservative, just unforgiving and mean-spirited. Are we really so punitive a society that we can justify throwing 14-year olds in prison for bratty juvenile behavior that didn't harm anyone? One wonders, are there no lesser punishments our conservative friends might find appropriate?
Vince questions why the Texas media (outside Paris, at least), hasn't caught on. I think it's the same reason no one in the MSM covered the Senate Finance Committee's decision to build new prisons - all the reporters who would normally be on it are busy eating Nate Blakeslee's dust on the Pyote story and the subsequent legislative fallout. The story has gotten TYC Special Master Jay Kimbrough's attention, though, who says it will be an early case reviewed by a special task force for possible release.
Cotton's family has even set Shaquanda up a blog, which only has one post so far, but stay tuned. (Before someone gripes that she shouldn't be on the web, TYC kids, like adults in TDCJ, don't have internet access, so for every inmate blog you see, someone on the outside is helping them put up their posts, which are invariably sent back and forth, with much delay, relatively speaking, via snail mail.)
Check out the links above for more. The story adds fuel to an already white-hot fire at the Texas Youth Commission. Maybe that's why the MSM hasn't bitten on the story in Texas. Given everything that's happening, it's almost too much to process.
UPDATE: See this story from the Washington Post, an interesting comment string on the subject at TalkLeft, and a followup post at the Lone Star Times responding to this Grits item.
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67 comments:
Too bad the mother's not the one locked up. Seems to me she's the one who needs a little reality therapy. How else do we expect a child to act when a parent is apparently so full of rage and hate?
Miss Cotton has not been the first child incarcerated under ridiculous circumstances. Her "acting out" behaviors while in TYC are competely understandable. Even if her phases were being denied due to "breaking the rules", anyone who cannot see why she is striking out is a moron. Cutting herself, being hopeless and angry- what do you expect from her? When adults (within TYC) are in charge of a child's life & expect them to behave like an adult and just "get over" the injustice they have suffered and "move on", they are setting the child up to fail. Can ANYONE put themselves in the child's shoes to have a little empathy?? Isn't that part of the "Resocialization" program?? EMPATHY FOR OTHERS??
Ok, let's try and walk a day in Miss Cotton's shoes:
First, let's go to court where a Judge tells you (the child) you are SO BAD that you have to leave your community- they don't want you. You are an 11 year old child medicated for an attention disorder who pushed someone. Then, they take you away from your home, your family, your friends, your pet and all the things familiar to you. Now, move to a new place where you know no one, nothing is familiar to you, you are surrounded by iron bars and cement, it's loud, noisy and pretty scary. People are all around you 24 hours- 7 days a week, you don't know who you can't trust and who you can (if any), you have limited contact with anyone you love or know, you have absolutely no privacy, you are told when you can eat, sleep, shower and exercise, you are constantly picked on, made fun of, harrassed and bullied by the peers around you. Someone takes your things, there's a fight going on over there with staff restraining someone, you see something that scares you but know if you write a complaint due to fear, not understanding or frustration- YOU are the problem.
Spend a day in her shoes and maybe you could understand why her behavior may not be "perfect" in TYC. No child could be. She and all the others who want to get out just do the best they can to cope. Could you?
TYC cannot control MORON judges from committing children who should never see the doors. The only way TYC can refuse admittance is if it is illegal or the paperwork is incorrect. Is it TYC's fault Miss Cotton's was committed or should the finger pointing be refocused back to the Judge? Granted, if there has not been, there SHOULD HAVE BEEN someone within TYC looking at this from day one and screaming VERY LOUDLY about the use of TYC for a one-time offender who should have never been sent there. Maybe if the legal dept. hadn't been so busy "redacting" information out of investigation reports, they could have given Miss Cotton their legal expert time in reviewing her information.
Let's stop spending so much time finding someone to blame and start fixing these problems at TYC and TDCJ.
It is not too late to help this young woman and others whose only crime is being poor. In Texas, all too often justice is only available to a rich and well educated few.
"Too bad the mother's not the one locked up". Seriously?
TJDO- would that fix the issue for you? Punishing the mother to get her to shut up sounds like a punishment or recourse TYC would do to get things covered up. My Gosh, the woman is human and outraged because her child has been wrongfully taken from her and incarcerated. She may not be using words or doing things you agree with, but can you not understand her underlying reasons?
She was offered 2Yrs probation for a 2nd degree felony she could have gotten 20 yrs for and momma refused it. Blame her mother.
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20070328/D8O4S6AO0.html
"Prosecutors say they offered Shaquandra a plea agreement that would have reduced the felony charge to a misdemeanor and given her two years' probation. But Creola Cotton rejected the plea on behalf of her daughter, prosecutors said."
Its like this: 14-year-old girl shoves school district personnel. 14-year-old girl injures school district personnel in some way. 14-year-old girl is charged with the felony crime of assault on a public servant, as per the law. 14-year-old girl is offered probation on a lesser, misdemeanor charge. 14-year-old girl and her mom tell judge basically to eff off, because they think she’s innocent/aren’t willing to accept responsibility for her actions. 14-year-old girl goes to jury trial, where she’s found guilty. Judge hits girl with indeterminate sentence as the law spells out for juvies. There’s nothing racist about this in any way.
If you think the punishment doesn’t fit the crime, write your representatives and get them to change the law. Period. End of Story.
jim b- are you saying the Judge did not have the discretion to defer the jury trial sentence to probation for the first time offender in his court room? He can ONLY choose incarceration and no other options? I'm not talking about what Creola Cotton may or may not have rejected prior to the jury trial. You are saying that due to the laws on the books today-the Judge had ABSOLUTELY no discretion in making a decision that better fit?
anonymous after jim b, you need to look at the facts. Go back to lonestartimes and read the comments. Facts there. She had a prior.
Anonymous after me, I am saying that if I was the judge, and the mother and daughter told me to basically F off with an attitude, that there was no way that they would accept probation or work with a probation officer in any way (which they apparently did), I would be tempted to throw the book at her, too.
Like it or not, the law defines what she did and was found guilty of by a jury of her peers as a felony. You also have to remember that the sentence is variable, not a fixed 7-year sentence, so she can get out early if she meets requirements.
In response:
All of this extra info is just grand except for one fact that still remains and still does not fit. If this girl DESERVES to go to PRISON for pushing someone (regardless of whatever prior is out there), then every child in every household had better watch out. Who cares if they gave the Judge "attitude" by refusing to take his offer?? They had a right to a jury trial just as we all do. We (including that Judge) are supposed to protect society and also do what is in the best interest in the possible rehabilitation of that CHILD. Punishments MUST make sense. PRISON FOR PUSHING? How about counseling? How about anger management? How about community service at a nursing home or service center??? PRISON??? I appreciate your information, but unless it has been left out that she stabbed, broke bones, or in some other way seriously hurt the older woman in the altercation- NOT JUST PUSHED HER, I'm not seeing how the punishment fits the crime.
Anonymous. Please. Whether Miss Cotton deserved to go to Juvie or not, the LAW says that pushing is assault, and further, it says that assaulting a public servant is a felony, and finally, it apparently defines public school personnel as public servants.
My point? The judge was bound by the law and the facts of the case. Her chance at no jail time came when she was offered a plea deal for 2 years of probation for a lesser charge. When you throw that deal out, you take your chances with a trial, and the according punishments prescribed by law. If you throw it out with a really bad attitude, that goes against you in the case you're found guilty.
If you think the law that binds the judge is unfair, then write your congressman, camp out on your repreaentative's doorstep, etc., but don't make this a racist thing...
Every kid shoves people! Every 3, 4, 5, even 6 year old I've ever known hits and shoves people around - their siblings, their peers, yep, even their parents.
Wait...what's that? She was 14 YEARS OLD? And pushing a school official??
You know, there are a lot of factors that contribute to juvenile delinquency - socio-economic issues, family criminal involvement, environment, etc. But you know what else? Parents that suck. Parents that don't pay attention. Parents that are too busy defending their children as 'poor victims' to bother to parent worth a damn.
You know...parents that storm into the principals office and get teachers fired for daring to judge their kid, and by 'judge' I mean give them a bad grade. Parents that pull strings w/ their friends in high places to get their kids out of DWIs. Parents that indulge every whim and story their kid feeds them. (now that I think about it, wish I'd had parents like that when I was a kid...)
None of that has anything to do with race or money - there are horrible parents driving Lexus SUVs and there are horrible parents taking the bus.
Jim B-
I never stated once that I felt it was racism. I stated it was a punishment that does not fit the crime. You continue to throw back that if I don't like it to go camp out somewhere. You never have stated if you think it was morally right and justice served to the victim and society. Stop putting the law book and legal ese in front of you and using that as the excuse. Judges DO HAVE DISCRETION. Do YOU think the punishment fit the crime?
Disposition in juvie cases is governed by very different laws than those that deal with adults. I am not privy to ALL the facts in this case, but do know that the lege has continually taken discretion away from judges and prosecutors in cases like this. An adult could have gone to a jury for punishment; a child does not have that right. If the court feels that the family situation is not conducive to successfully completing probation and there is a prior history, the judge has very few options.
I know prosecutors are a favorite whipping boy, as are judges. However, take a look at the direction laws are going. For two sessions, bills have been introduced to bring options back to DWI cases - with MADDs approval. THey are consistently shot down, and options for tailoring results to the person rather than the crime are removed.
I work in both the juvie and adult systems; once the case is filed if a plea agreement is not reached and approved, there are very few choices available...
I saw a lot of words but no answer to the question asked.
"Do YOU think the punishment fit the crime? "
Yes. Clear enough?
"Yes. Clear enough?"
I'm sure that's true, right up until the moment that it's your kid.
I would like to know if you are an elected official. You don't have to say your name, just yes or no. Because if you are and you feel sending her to prison was the best punishment for her PUSHING someone rather than anger management, family counseling, community serivce to the elderly, etc., then I need to do whatever I need to do to make sure individuals like you don't make the prison systems swell to the breaking points with people who had other ways to pay for what they did. Let me guess, you're going to suggest I camp out again somewhere. Please do. I will.
First, please be aware that there are several people who are "anonymous" wandering through this thread. I am an attorney who often is frustrated by the state of juvenile law in Texas. If the case is not resolved by agreement, and a jury finds the child to have committed a felony, there are few, if any options open to the Court. Right or wrong, fit the crime or not, the law dictates what the Court is to do.
As a society, we seem to be taking discretion away from courts, prosecutors, and even jurors because we have seen some individuals abuse it. This is the result - a system that is so rigid (by law) that justice may not be able to be served. Trust me, the changes in law made by this and previous legislatures leave the field ripe for more situations like this.
Give back the discretion and remove the people who abuse it.
Okay people, gather round, gather round. Let's all make a big circle and put our team hands in the middle. At the count of three, let's all give the big team cheer and do our limp legged jump of, "We Give Up!, YEAAAAAAA!!!"
Jesus. Is there any hope left anywhere??????
Mybe she didn't take the plea because she didn't do it.
I am a public defender who handles a lot of juvenile cases. Some times kid's are asked to take responsibility for things they didn't do. That's worse than the outrageous sentence.
You guys still think she should be sent back to this?
Go here: http://www.integrascan.com/ type in first name Creola, last name Cotton, state TX and see what pops up.
I'm glad to see someone finally discussing this issue intellectually. I think it's a shame that this girl is in TYC. But the shame is the fact that the law offered the judge no other options. The family may have declined the plea bargain and declined to accept the terms of probation because they felt the child was innocent (which I don't really understand b/c witnesses have accounted that they saw her do it and by Shaquanda's own admission, she pushed the teacher's aid) and a plea would have meant an admission of guilt, which would ruin their appeal chances. However, when she said they would not comply with probation, the judge had no other options. That isn't the fault of the judge. It's the legislature of the state of Texas (and ultimately the citizens of Texas) who have failed to push for laws that would have kept this girl out of juvy. He couldn't send her home or alternative school or community service b/c she's a juvenile and some adult has to agree to be responsible for her during that period... her mother would not.
"You guys still think she should be sent back to this?"
I can't tell anything from the data that comes up from that search. What is it supposed to show?
I see 2 sides here.
The people who feel that prison time should have not been an option for this case.
and
The people who defend the law that pushing someone is punishable by up to 7 years in prison.
It seems to me that the people who are doing the defending are falling back on a book rule.
heres the bottom line:
You can't just go around pushing people. You also cant just go around caging people up wrongly.
clear the smoke out of your eyes and free this little girl, youre just spiteful people. I would be mad and not cooperate too if this were my justice.
so basicly, the mother should have been presented with another option besides probation or prison. use your brains and stop falling back on meaningless 'laws.
But now that i realize that this is all about telling a judge off, this isnt anything new. Judges think theyre above common people and its common knowledge not to speak freely to a judge because they will put you in prison. of course our government is very very corrupt.
you gotta remember, judges are just old lawyers with power. nevertheless, i wrote the governer.
One more thing,
Not only was she trying to follow the rules by seeing the nurse before school started, to get her medication. She was pushed first, by the adult in her way (who didnt understand she was supposed to be there)
Then she refused probation and time at TYC because she maintains her innocence of the charge of assault (pushing someone (as a teenager)). And now she cant leave TYC because she has to admit guilt, which shes not doing. plus, she had an extra pair of socks in her cell which isnt allowed. its just too ugly, but it forces the government to stand up and say, "you know what, i dont think the punishment fits the crime in this situation." Texas had better clean this up and i mean fast.
They're watching even in the United Kingdom.
Black Teen Who Pushed Aide To Be Freed
Guardian Unlimited, UK - 12 minutes ago
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6521664,00.html
She should be on parole when she gets out. In all likely-hood, we will see same thing when she violates conditions of release, and is revoked and sent back.
Is it not funny though, that when people play a racecard, especially black people, society runs scared? These sre the same types of people who keep minorities minorities - preventing any progress in their plight
To 7:25 pm:
YEAH!!! Parole! You said it! And I hope that school lady that pushed her first gets put on parole too when she gets let out of prison too! YEAH!!! She'll probably violate all her stuff too! I bet they catch her jay-walking within the first day!
Oh, wait- nothing happened to her.
Hey jackhole, you forget to wish that maybe the girl will fail to finish school, maybe get into drugs, get pregnant, get on welfare and ohhh, ohhhh maybe she will even die in a drive by shooting after becoming a gang-banger!!! Why limit yourself to setting such low goals of failure for her? Moron.
I'm curious. Does anyone here know that her brother is on death row?
http://www.dequeen.com/topstories/comments.php?id=P2150_0_6_0
What a bunch of fine, upstanding citizens.
Not everybody's an altar boy, TJDO - it's still insane to charge a second degree felony for shoving a hall monitor. Bash the kid or her family all you want, makes no difference - if it was your kid you'd be wailing.
And I think that wasnt a brother but the mother's ex-boyfriend, from the link. No doubt, through no fault of her own, SC's upbringing wasn't ideal. Which explains why she's angry and pushed an authority figure.
So here's my question: If you're so worried she's going back to a terrible environment, what services do all you professionals think somebody in her circumstance needs to function in the community? Or do y'all really think angry kids in dysfunctional families are better off at TYC, even given everything that's happened, than they would be at home?
That is most definitely her brother, sorry to burst your bubble. Her mother testified on his behalf, talked about the abuse that his father put him and his family through. Anyone bother to check the mother's character? Hmm? You might want to before you say again that this child will be better off with her than in TYC. Society would have been much better off with her in TYC. No matter, the race card crowd had their way. Just watch the news, my friends, just watch the news and see what happens.
To 1:05 pm.
My brother is an alcoholic, my father is a conspiracy theorist and my mother is a certified nut-job. I guess I should walk, NO RUN to the nearest prison and protect society against me AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!!! WHEW! What the hell was I THINKING when I changed my life and made sure I didn't wind up like them? WOW! Thanks for clearing up my delusion that I could be a separate person from them and actually be a productive member of society despite their actions. Whew. Thanks so much for judging others and getting me back on the right path!
Anon at 11:57 am -- I wasn't able to open the link to Shaquanda's supposed brother or cousin. I'd appreciate it if you could re-post.
I'm almost positive that Shaquanda is an only child.
To anonymous who said, "So here's my question: If you're so worried she's going back to a terrible environment:"
Wasn't bashing the kid, so quit trying to start sh*t.
No, it wasn't her brother, read it again (here's the link). It says Creola Cotton was the girlfriend of the father of the guy on death row, but the man had a different mother, so he was no relation to Shaquanda. From what I can tell from that article neither Shaquanda nor her relatives were implicated in the affair unless you have additional information. It looks like Creola testified at the sentencing portion of his trial, which doesn't necessarily, IMO, speak to her discredit.
To TDJO- I wasn't the one who posted- but in response to your reply, it was very subjective and did not indicate you were not bashing her. Please clarify what you did mean.
C'mon guys, keep up! Yes, he is her brother. Read the obit here for this little angel's father. Notice the brothers. In particular, the one on death row.
We can only "keep up" with the information provided, and there appear to be contradictory sources. The first article posted said "Creola Cotton [was] girlfriend of Mike Thomas, Sr.", and mentioned "a barn without plumbing and electricity used for a house by Thomas’ mother, Hazel Thomas and father, Mike Thomas Sr., in Red River County.
So if Hazel and Mike Thomas are the killer's parents and Creola is Mike's girlfriend, Shaquanda could be either the murderer's half sister or else the daughter of another man (given the differing last name).
Whatever the case, I'll grant none of it indicates a Ward and June Cleaver-esque home environment. But if every Texas kid with a crappy home life is going to be incarcerated at TYC, we need to build a lot more cells. As anonymous at 1:42 points out, that history doesn't inevitably damn her. Apparently, though, a "shove" should.
To tjdo:
I would venture to say that the mere act of posting on this site is EVERYONE's opportunity to "start sh*t". You can either take it personally or just respond to what was said with what you feel is better or more accurate information. I have been bantering back and forth with several people as well. In particular the person who keeps throwing in an innocent fish species (red herrings :). We all have the right to say how we feel and also to agree to disagree.
After reading your blog full of details about things, I'm beginning to wonder. Why not read the obit where it clearly says that these two have the same father. Yes, Creola was the girlfriend of the married dude that fathered the murderer and the shover.
With your contacts and background, it is perplexing that you haven't read the details of the home life of the girl. She has no chance as long as she is placed back into that situation. At least in TYC, her record has been clean in Paris for a year. Why is it that juvy records are sealed?
But hey, what's it to me? I don't go to that school and am not a defenseless old woman.
"with your background" ... huh. Perhaps you didn't read the line in the post that clearly said, "with the Lege in full swing I haven't focused on the case." I'm learning about this as we go.
And yes, I read the obit, and I read the first story (I presume) you posted. They say different things, but whatever the facts it's an irrelevant point - if her mother was Kay Bailey Hutchison or Andrea Yates she shouldn't have been sent to prison for a "shove."
As to your final asinine comment - this was prosecuted as a second degree felony, the same offense as forcible rape. If the "defenseless old woman" were sexually violated - sure, prison. She was knocked off balance - not prison. I'll bet that's what you'd think if it was your kid.
To 3:40 pm-
Grits has an open blog. Unlike many, he does not require you to sign in, reveal yourself nor does he have the opportunity to "preview" what you say prior to posting and then have the choice to either let it show or censure it. He could if he wanted to, but he chooses to have an open blog. IN DOING THIS, he allows EVERYONE to post links, provide information and share opinions of the situation going on. He is only one person and if you will look at all the other topics listed on his blog site, this isn't the only darling of his attention. Attacking him for not knowing everything would be akin to us attacking you for not knowing everything as well. Do you? I would like to know what everyone can provide- it only makes us all more informed, but attacking the guy that is making it possible to do so- simply, I don't agree with you.
So, you'd send the child back to Andrea Yates. Well, okay then. Interesting.
Somehow I thought that beneath the rhetoric, you were for the child. Obviously, I was wrong. My apologies for commenting. Have a nice day.
"you'd send the child back to Andrea Yates"
No, I'm saying the criminal justice system punishes the crimes of the defendant, not the sins of the parent. That's it. If the problem is an unfit home, that's for CPS, not TYC.
To 7:09 pm- Wow. That was way off in how Grits meant things. You sound as if you are tucking your tail or taking your ball and going home because of missing what he meant. I encourage you to continue to say what you feel. He is providing you that opportunity and I'm glad he clarified for you what he meant. If you have opinions- ESPECIALLY SOLUTIONS in how to change or fix some of this TYC situation, then type on!
Shaquandra doesn't stand a chance to be a productive citizen unless she gets out of the environment her mother subjects her to. And yes, I'm judging so get over it already.
Now for anon 302, don't get mad.
You said, "SC's upbringing wasn't ideal. Which explains why she's angry and pushed an authority figure."
Wow, we gonna wait until she kills someone?
So, life's dealt her a bad hand. Does she feel she's harassed? Life is unfair? Authorities are cruel? Adults hate people like her? This excuses her behavior? Is it mitigation? Maybe, but the court didn't see it that way. So now we beat up the court over it? Let's not even compare her to the white female juvenile arsonist. One has nothing to do with the other.
The girl needs rehab to deal with her issues that I feel her mother enables. If someone doesn't get her away from her mother, the process will continue to repeat itself until she REALLY goes to prison. That's my opinion.
Then 9:49 pm, why don't YOU, as the concerned citizen that YOU appear to be, call CPS with your report of negligent supervision, endangerment or whatever other "abuse" classification you can think of on the mother? You appear to have so much inside information on what the mother does to the girl and in her home! You appear adamant that the girl is hopeless in that wretched environment- for God sakes, you even KNOW she's going to kill someone the way she's going! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU WAITING ON MAN! PICK UP THE PHONE! CALL NOW! IF YOU DON'T, THAT MURDER IS ON YOUR HANDS!
(the sound of crickets).....A bit of a stretch, don't you think?
Actually 10:44, that murder will be on the hands of those, like you, that put their agendas above the safety of the community AND the welfare of that teenager.
Apparently, it is okay to release convicted criminals if you can rachet up racial tensions or add another notch to your belt in your never ending attempt to eliminate the Texas prison system.
Home to Andrea Yates. Damn.
11:29 pm, this is 10:04-
Please tell me what my agenda is.
Take your Prozac 10:44 before we have to call the law on you. You sure you're not her mother?
tjdo- Was that the best you could come up with?
1140:
I offered a solution. What have you done but ejaculate nonesense? I predict you'll continue to do the same. If it's the last word you want, then have at it.
I'm with yout tjdo.
I wish you boys the best in your circle jerk with each other ( tjdo and 11:58).
As these have all been anonymous posts- you don't know what solutions I have offered or have not. I would venture to say I have offered many more and certainly more constructive than you have.
As I am tired and bored with your lack of intelligent banter- please get a good night sleep and offer more tomorrow. Nighty night.
TJDO and all - nothing "excuses her behavior." The point is the punishment doesn't fit the crime. That can't be excused, either, IMO, when the result is to put her into the TYC morass for a minor offense.
You say should we wait till she kills somebody, which falsely portrays this sentence as the only option - the girl who set fire to her family's home came a LOT closer to killing someone. Yet I've not heard one person on any blog complain that SHE should go to TYC, only that Shaquanda should stay there. Where's the outrage on that one, I wonder, the digging into her parents' background, etc? Why not a letter writing campaign demanding HER imprisonment? If I saw that, personally I might find some of this harsh talk about Shaquanda's shove more credible. Good night, folks.
Yo, Grits, nice racial angle there but it don't fly. The girl that set fire to (not burned down) her OWN house was given the same options. Her parents CHOSE probation and CHOSE to be responsible for watching her. Creola Cotton REFUSED to do either.
Ah, but it's racist. Give us a break. Now it is apparent that the only thing you care about is running down the Texas justice system at any and every opportunity.
To 7:53 am,
You have confirmed the saying,
"It is best a man keep his mouth shut when others think he is a fool, rather than to open it and prove them all right".
You just want to fight, complain, bitch, redirect, and place the values of hatred you have on others, etc.- everything but make suggestions to improve what is out there in a moral, fair and unbiased way. You are the one that is racist- YOU are the one who keeps bringing it up. That is YOUR hat to wear. DO YOU HAVE ANY SUGGESTIONS TO FIX THE SYSTEM AT HAND THAT OFFERS FAIR AND REAL RESULTS FOR ANY RACE OUT THERE???
This has become boring - I've accused no one of racism, 7:53, you're the one who's using that term.
By your statement, Shaquanda went to TYC not because of the severity of the offense (her first) but because she had a crappy home life. TYC is an orphanage, by this view, somehwere we send kids with nowhere to go. That's an immoral use of incarceration, IMO. I think there are a lot better ways to support troubled kids than that.
Thanks to everybody on this string who has had something positive to contribute.
Hi all,
here is another website to check out for info as well on the TYC mess.
I see by some postings- you've already been here Grits :)
http://blogs.chron.com/texaspolitics/archives/politics_in_general/criminal_justice/tyc/
Did I just read that right off that blog?? There was a female inmate IMPREGNATED by a staff at the Marlin unit where the Superintendent told the legislature no sexual abuse took place there??
Wonder what happened with that guy??
http://blogs.chron.com/texaspolitics/archives/politics_in_general/criminal_justice/tyc/
I couldn't get that other link to work, try this one
http://blogs.chron.com/
texaspolitics/archives/
politics_in_general/
criminal_justice/tyc/
It keeps cutting if off. Last try.
Im Glad She's out of jail..because i kno people who h=then hit principals and just got suspended she pushed a hall monitor and got 7 yrs. thats crazy.
Updates on Shaquanda Cotton?s Case. New this week (July 9, 2007) interview with Cotton?s Mother Creola Cotton, Brenda Cherry and more. Plus updates on Ginarlow Wilson case (GA). www.DryerBuzz.com or find archive at www.BlogTalkRadio.com/DryerBuzz
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