Two stories for you
The first is a sad story about a three year old girl who was killed by a joyrider. The “killer” was caught but the sentence is appalling
Driver Mohammed Hussain, 26, admitted careless driving, having no licence or insurance, failing to stop and failing to report an accident…In addition to the driving offences, Hussain admitted handling stolen goods when he appeared at Burnley Magistrates’ Court on Friday. It emerged he was out of prison on parole after being convicted of wounding in 2001…
What do you think from that that the sentence was? Years right? Well this is what he got:
He was sentenced to four weeks for the handling charge and 12 weeks each for the fail to stop and fail to report charges, to run concurrently. He was also banned from driving for five years.
Apparently they couldn’t charge him for death by dangerous driving because they couldn’t prove that his driving was dangerous and “Careless driving is an offence which does not carry a jail sentence”
Shocking! He’s killed a human being and the only offence he apparently committed was not stopping and reporting the incident – exquease me? Baking soda?
From the sublime to the ridiculous we head to Dudley in the West Midlands where a man has been charged with Actual Bodily harm for Cutting his girlfriend’s Ponytail off
Man, 21, admits ponytail attack
A Dudley man who was cleared of assault after chopping off his former girlfriend’s ponytail has pleaded guilty to causing actual bodily harm.
Apparently the reasoning behind this is that your hair is considered to be part of the body and therefore by cutting it off he was causing actual bodily harm!
I’m lost for words – the UK justice system has gone to the dogs
Let us consult wikipedia on Actual Bodily Harm
Actual Bodily Harm (often abbreviated to ABH) is a type of criminal assault defined under English law. It encompasses those assaults which result in injuries, typically requiring a degree of medical treatment of the victim. The offence is defined in s47 Offences Against The Person Act 1861 and it is a hybrid offence, i.e. it can be tried in either the Magistrates’ Court or Crown Court. There is a maximum sentence of 5 years imprisonment (or 7 years if it is racially motivated).
So get this, the driver who kills a small girl while driving a car which is not his, with no license or insurance gets 16 weeks (it’s not clear if he got 12 weeks for each offence of failing to stop and the other of failing to report the incident but it doesn’t make much of a difference) while a disgruntled boyfriend could potentially get 5 years for cutting his girlfriends hair off – anyone see a problem here?
Magistrates courts – whatever next!
The sentence for the careless driver guy makes me think of some sentences handed off to drunk drivers here that have either maimed or killed others. You wonder what the hell the judges think when they hand these out especially when the offender is a repeat offender and when they get a slight slap on the wrist with suspended driver’s licence. Then they get caught again driving without a license. Meh.
As for the hair thing… I think there is a notion of complete domination and triumph when there is cutting of hair against the victim’s will. Think back to the nazi camps where the shaving of hair was done. Sure they kept the hair to stuff pillows and matresses but this gesture was not only a financial one. There is a sense of domination and breaking of spirit in that gesture. Plus hair for women is very important, it is part of what the woman looks like, how she wants to look for the exterior world, her assets if you will. It is quite different when you go to the hairdresser’s to get your hair done and when your boyfriend in a fit of rage gets out and puts the scissors to your hair. And you can bet that her hair must be pretty shitty looking right now and that it will take some time to grow back. So till it grows back and looks normal again, she is walking around with a branded head in a way. In this case, I see great sensitivity on the judge’s part.