Reported hazing incident involving Damascus High School JV Football team

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From the football websites, it looks like he is a 9th grader. And 6’ 229 lbs.

Probably a 15yr old 9th grader at a 3rd grade reading level. Half these people who commit these stupid acts that even an 8yr old knows is wrong are actual real like half wits.

However charging a 15yr old as an adult for a crime that will effectively ruin their entire lives. This wont be a burglary charge. This is a sex crime and will severely limit their job opportunities. You charge these boys as adults and guess what will happen?? That ugly adult prison system we have will rip those boys to shreads and they will be in and out of that system for life. You people just don't how incredibly destructive these charges are on all of society. We are spectacularly dum in this country and always so confused why we have such high crime. Hmmm put a young man in a brutal prison for a few years and release him to society. Yea, that works well.

Or you put a giant, violent, man sized rapist in juvenile with a bunch of 13 year old shoplifters and vandals. That young man is a risk to all of the kids in detention.

Agreed that a man-sized rapist fits better in the adult prison system than a detention center with shoplifters and vandals. I think the only people arguing otherwise are those with teenagers who they haven't raised properly, are capable of such things (if they haven't done them already) and they know it.

[Anonymous]

I think MCPS was hoping for the students to be prosecuted in the juvenile system. MCPS loves to hide their dirty laundry behind laws that prevent details from coming out to the public. The superintendent actually got pissy in the news conference last week when a news reporter asked a question based off knowledge gained from the "leaked" police report. Leaked or not, the police report is normally considered a pretty credible source for information as to what happened.

Now at least the record of won't be sealed since the boys are being tried as adults. If MCPS was smart, they would have a community meeting to give information to parents. If nothing else, MCPS should have a community meeting with the parents who have had (past and present) children on the JV football team. They could welcome in the police to talk if MCPS is actually afraid of disclosing something the police doesn't want out till the case is closed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

The juvenile Justice system is meant for crimes like shoplifting, or vandalism, not major crimes like 1st degree rape. This is a horrific crime, and deserves to be treated as such by the justice system. Think of the VICTIMS and their pain and suffering.

No, the juvenile justice system is meant for crimes committed by juveniles.

[Anonymous]

How does the size of the person relate to what the punishment should be?
Are we supposed to hate tall people, if so, then the short people are awful for thinking that

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

The juvenile Justice system is meant for crimes like shoplifting, or vandalism, not major crimes like 1st degree rape. This is a horrific crime, and deserves to be treated as such by the justice system. Think of the VICTIMS and their pain and suffering.

No, the juvenile justice system is meant for crimes committed by juveniles.

Under certain circumstances. However, the severity of the crime is a factor in determining whether to move the case to criminal court. For those who fail to grasp the severity of the crime, these individuals are all charged with MULTIPLE counts of 1st degree rape. Please wrap your head around how serious these charges are.

Here are factors which the state of Maryland weighs when determining whether to transfer a case to criminal court:

Factors to determine discretionary jurisdiction
Factors to consider when waiving from juvenile court to criminal court and vice versa
Standard is preponderance of evidence
1) Age of juvenile
2) Mental & physical condition of juvenile
3) Amenability of juvenile to juvenile treatment
4) Nature of offense & participation
5) Public safety

https://www.courts.state.md.us/sites/default/files/import/family/pdfs/familylawinformation-juvenilelegaldigest.pdf

[Anonymous]

Nobody is doubting the severity of the crime. The question is whether it's appropriate to charge 15-year-olds as adults. Some people seem to think that the size of the juvenile is a relevant factor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nobody is doubting the severity of the crime. The question is whether it's appropriate to charge 15-year-olds as adults. Some people seem to think that the size of the juvenile is a relevant factor.

+1
And they are not ashamed to say so

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How does the size of the person relate to what the punishment should be?
Are we supposed to hate tall people, if so, then the short people are awful for thinking that

He is a rapist. And he is huge with a huge strength advantage compared to all the other teen boys he would be placed with.

Would you be comfortable with your 13 year old son being housed with a 230 lb gang rapist who is larger and stronger than most adult men?

He committed a heinous adult crime. He belongs with adults, not with children.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think MCPS was hoping for the students to be prosecuted in the juvenile system. MCPS loves to hide their dirty laundry behind laws that prevent details from coming out to the public. The superintendent actually got pissy in the news conference last week when a news reporter asked a question based off knowledge gained from the "leaked" police report. Leaked or not, the police report is normally considered a pretty credible source for information as to what happened.

Now at least the record of won't be sealed since the boys are being tried as adults. If MCPS was smart, they would have a community meeting to give information to parents. If nothing else, MCPS should have a community meeting with the parents who have had (past and present) children on the JV football team. They could welcome in the police to talk if MCPS is actually afraid of disclosing something the police doesn't want out till the case is closed.

I am not sure what type of info you hope MCPS will share. Even with the charges being public, there are things that can't be shared based on applicable privacy laws such as FERPA. For example, confirmation that certain suspects were expelled from other schools, and the reason for the expulsion, likely cannot be disclosed by MCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody is doubting the severity of the crime. The question is whether it's appropriate to charge 15-year-olds as adults. Some people seem to think that the size of the juvenile is a relevant factor.

+1
And they are not ashamed to say so

Some people also seem to think that juvenile detention centers are for "minor" crimes like shoplifting and vandalism.

Prosecuting children as adults is what weak, "tough on crime" prosecutors do. It appeals to the American thirst for vengeance, but is bad for recidivism, and only serves to destroy the futures of young lives. It's a punitive act taken before the youth is even found guilty. It will likely remove the opportunity of an education and mental health services from the youth ensuring that there is little hope of rehabilitation or a decent future. We just don't believe in redemption in this country.

Fortunately, there is a movement throughout the country to stop the experiment of prosecuting children as adults. The experiment has not worked. We have juvenile courts for a reason. It should be used for all juveniles, and be designed to handle all juveniles.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody is doubting the severity of the crime. The question is whether it's appropriate to charge 15-year-olds as adults. Some people seem to think that the size of the juvenile is a relevant factor.

+1
And they are not ashamed to say so

Some people also seem to think that juvenile detention centers are for "minor" crimes like shoplifting and vandalism.

Prosecuting children as adults is what weak, "tough on crime" prosecutors do. It appeals to the American thirst for vengeance, but is bad for recidivism, and only serves to destroy the futures of young lives. It's a punitive act taken before the youth is even found guilty. It will likely remove the opportunity of an education and mental health services from the youth ensuring that there is little hope of rehabilitation or a decent future. We just don't believe in redemption in this country.

Fortunately, there is a movement throughout the country to stop the experiment of prosecuting children as adults. The experiment has not worked. We have juvenile courts for a reason. It should be used for all juveniles, and be designed to handle all juveniles.

Totally agree. And the size of the child should not matter. We know that thought process would disproportionately affect male children of color.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody is doubting the severity of the crime. The question is whether it's appropriate to charge 15-year-olds as adults. Some people seem to think that the size of the juvenile is a relevant factor.

+1
And they are not ashamed to say so

Some people also seem to think that juvenile detention centers are for "minor" crimes like shoplifting and vandalism.

Prosecuting children as adults is what weak, "tough on crime" prosecutors do. It appeals to the American thirst for vengeance, but is bad for recidivism, and only serves to destroy the futures of young lives. It's a punitive act taken before the youth is even found guilty. It will likely remove the opportunity of an education and mental health services from the youth ensuring that there is little hope of rehabilitation or a decent future. We just don't believe in redemption in this country.

Fortunately, there is a movement throughout the country to stop the experiment of prosecuting children as adults. The experiment has not worked. We have juvenile courts for a reason. It should be used for all juveniles, and be designed to handle all juveniles.

They violently raped multiple boys.

They do not belong in the juvenile court system.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody is doubting the severity of the crime. The question is whether it's appropriate to charge 15-year-olds as adults. Some people seem to think that the size of the juvenile is a relevant factor.

+1
And they are not ashamed to say so

Some people also seem to think that juvenile detention centers are for "minor" crimes like shoplifting and vandalism.

Prosecuting children as adults is what weak, "tough on crime" prosecutors do. It appeals to the American thirst for vengeance, but is bad for recidivism, and only serves to destroy the futures of young lives. It's a punitive act taken before the youth is even found guilty. It will likely remove the opportunity of an education and mental health services from the youth ensuring that there is little hope of rehabilitation or a decent future. We just don't believe in redemption in this country.

Fortunately, there is a movement throughout the country to stop the experiment of prosecuting children as adults. The experiment has not worked. We have juvenile courts for a reason. It should be used for all juveniles, and be designed to handle all juveniles.

“Some people seem to think”? The court document a PP linked above clearly states that the nature of the crime is a factor determining whether they should be moved to criminal court.

You can argue all you like about how our justice system “should” be used, but it’s clearly being used in this case according to the rules and how it was intended. And some of us (the ones without gang rapist teenagers, presumably) are fine with that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody is doubting the severity of the crime. The question is whether it's appropriate to charge 15-year-olds as adults. Some people seem to think that the size of the juvenile is a relevant factor.

+1
And they are not ashamed to say so

Some people also seem to think that juvenile detention centers are for "minor" crimes like shoplifting and vandalism.

Prosecuting children as adults is what weak, "tough on crime" prosecutors do. It appeals to the American thirst for vengeance, but is bad for recidivism, and only serves to destroy the futures of young lives. It's a punitive act taken before the youth is even found guilty. It will likely remove the opportunity of an education and mental health services from the youth ensuring that there is little hope of rehabilitation or a decent future. We just don't believe in redemption in this country.

Fortunately, there is a movement throughout the country to stop the experiment of prosecuting children as adults. The experiment has not worked. We have juvenile courts for a reason. It should be used for all juveniles, and be designed to handle all juveniles.

But these violent rapists into detention with other kids, and they will destroy the lives of many more people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nobody is doubting the severity of the crime. The question is whether it's appropriate to charge 15-year-olds as adults. Some people seem to think that the size of the juvenile is a relevant factor.

+1
And they are not ashamed to say so

Some people also seem to think that juvenile detention centers are for "minor" crimes like shoplifting and vandalism.

Prosecuting children as adults is what weak, "tough on crime" prosecutors do. It appeals to the American thirst for vengeance, but is bad for recidivism, and only serves to destroy the futures of young lives. It's a punitive act taken before the youth is even found guilty. It will likely remove the opportunity of an education and mental health services from the youth ensuring that there is little hope of rehabilitation or a decent future. We just don't believe in redemption in this country.

Fortunately, there is a movement throughout the country to stop the experiment of prosecuting children as adults. The experiment has not worked. We have juvenile courts for a reason. It should be used for all juveniles, and be designed to handle all juveniles.

Totally agree. And the size of the child should not matter. We know that thought process would disproportionately affect male children of color.

Would you house these young men with your own children?

Didn't think so.