Archive for the ‘Arizona’ Category

Where is the rescue industry when you need it?

Wednesday, September 8th, 2010

Because if anyone needed to be rescued, it was Marcia Powell.  Powell,  48, died May 20, 2009, after being kept in a human cage in Goodyear’s Perryville Prison in Arizona.

Witnesses say she was repeatedly denied water by corrections officers, though the c.o.’s deny this. The weather the day she collapsed from the heat (May 19 — she died in the early morning hours of May 20) arched just above a 107 degree high.

According to a 3,000 page report released by the ADC, she pleaded to be taken back inside, but was ignored. Similarly, she was not allowed to use the restroom. When she was found unconscious, her body was covered with excrement from soiling herself.

Powell, who was serving a 27-month sentence for prostitution, actually expired after being transported to West Valley Hospital, where acting ADC Director Charles Ryan made the decision to have her life support suspended.

I read the article, but didn’t notice any catchy quotes by any spokespeople from organizations concerned about the welfare of victims of sex trafficking.  I guess they were too busy with their campaign to crucify Craig’s List to be bothered by someone who was merely cooked to death in a cage in the hot Arizona sun for the “crime” of selling sex.

And where is the uproar over the fact that those responsible for it are not going to be charged?  What Attorney General is complaining about that?  Why isn’t CNN ambushing the Maricopa County Attorney, demanding that justice be served?

Posted in Arizona, Prostitution, Women's Rights | Comments Off

Sexting: There ought to be a law.

Friday, April 9th, 2010

Sexting is the new crack.   It’s the latest epidemic that is “destroying our youth”.  If you Google it, you will be swamped with statistics that tell you one in five teens has done it.  And in virtually all states, those one in five teens could be prosecuted as criminals (probably felons).

When it comes to news about sexting laws, North Carolina, Arizona, Florida, and Virgina pop up at the top of the search results just for this weeks sexting news items.  And rare is the voice that cautions against over-reacting.

The latest trend is the rush to pass new legislation that creates a special crime of sexting just so prosecutors aren’t forced (yes, forced!) to prosecute mere children as predatory child sexual abusers.  Not content to just leave it to parents and schools to instruct children as to the dangers of sending nude photos to other kids, state legislators feel compelled to make the activity a matter for state control.  And the only tool (blunt instrument, actually) the state has to do that is to treat it as a crime.

There is no doubt that in today’s world, playing doctor would be considered a warning sign that someone is on the path to sexual  deviancy.  The first response to any sex-related activity by kids that elicits press coverage is to pass a new law.  Laws are modern civilization’s answer to the wishing well.

Pass a law= problem solved.

The kids who are sending these pictures obviously don’t share the fear and hysteria of  adults and the serious criminal ramifications don’t occur to them.   Any why would it?  How can sending a picture of yourself to someone else make you a criminal?  It defies logic, but just as the seriousness doesn’t occur to kids, the panicky over-reaction doesn’t occur to adults.

The bottom line is that kids are injured far less by the act of sexting  than they are from society’s paranoid over-reaction to simple nudity.

Posted in Arizona, Child Pornography, Florida, North Carolina, Sexting, United States, Virginia | Comments Off

Arizona jumps on the stupid law bandwagon

Tuesday, April 6th, 2010

Two of the more recent trends in state law has been the crusade to eliminate or drastically extend the statute of limitations for child sex abuse victims to file suit against alleged perpetrators and the push to make johns responsible for guessing how old prostitutes are.

Arizona is moving forward with a bill that does both.  I’ve already written about similar legislation to change the statute of limitations in Connecticut.   Connecticut, which permitted lawsuits by child abuse victims until they were 48, moved to eliminate the statute of limitations altogether, while Arizona is pushing it out from age 20 to age 53.  While it’s undisputed fact that a person’s memory distorts recollections with time, there are still adherents to the largely discredited “recovered memory” syndrome.  In any case, such a bill is not really so much about justice as it is about capitalizing on sex hysteria to garner votes.

The other part of the bill increases penalties for those who buy sex from a prostitute who is underage, even if they had no idea how old the prostitute was.  This essentially forces someone to guess at the prostitute’s age and then face stiff penalties if they guess wrong.   It substitutes the concept that someone can be punished for knowingly committing a crime with the idea that it’s acceptable to punish them for doing something they will only know is a crime after the fact.  Of course, as is common when the behavior involves sex, the underage girl is completely immunized from any share of the responsibility even if she misrepresented herself as being older than she is.  This is right in line with child porn laws that require a viewer to know whether someone in a pornographic image is a minor.  The idea is, of course, preposterous since it’s impossible to guess someone’s age simply by looking at them. While it’s true that prostitution is illegal regardless of the age of the woman, there is no justice in penalizing someone more harshly when there is no way for them to know that the stiffer penalty applies.

There is really no limit to what lawmakers can get away with if they invoke the mantra that it’s to “protect children”, especially when it involves sex.  And, while penalties for child sex abuse are already severe, there is always room to pass a new law when votes are at stake.

Posted in Arizona, Child Molestation, Connecticut, Prostitution, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »