Smyrnos
Anderson
Superior Court Judge Tom Anderson — up for re-election after his first term — has come under fire for allegedly “light” sentences in some highly publicized court cases.
And challenger George Smyrnos, who has been a deputy DA in several counties, is putting on a full-court press against him.
Smyrnos is being endorsed by the local Republican Central Committee, helping to make a supposedly nonpartisan race politically charged. Anderson is being endorsed by a slew of Judicial officers and many community members.
For political insiders, Anderson’s camp includes campaign managing veterans such as Joey Jordan — who worked for Anderson in 2007, when he beat attorney Ray Shine. On the other side, hard-right supporter Barry Pruett — who danced into local politics with the election of Tom McClintock —has vocally supported Smyrnos. (Pruett’s spouse works for McClintock).
Anderson v. Smyrnos is shaping up to be another ugly nonpartisan political contest in our community — redolent of the clerk-recorder race between Greg Diaz and Pruett two years ago.
The judicial race already is polarizing our small, rural community — and it will get worse before it’s over.
Retired Judge Al Dover — whom both sides respect — is trying to weigh in with some reasonable discussions. But it’s been countered by internal courthouse drama (pitting judges against some DAs and law enforcement groups, among other issues), as well as some inflammatory columns in The Union (that Dover addressed).
Most of the discussions are emotional, ignoring the sentencing guidelines that all judges face, including Anderson.
Though “tough on crime” sentencing sounds like a cure-all — and often is a populist view — our changing court system requires voters to “dig deeper.”
PUBLIC SAFETY REALIGNMENT
Here’s one example: On the surface sending a sex offender straight to prison sounds like a “no brainer.” Trouble is, that under “public safety realignment” — a new California law — there is reduced supervision of specified sex offenders once they’re released back into the community.
“Realignment permits offenders convicted of certain sex offenses to be released without state parole,” as California Crime Watch explains. “These offenses include sexual battery, lewd and lascivious conduct with a child 14 or older, and production of child pornography. As a consequence such offenders would not be subject to GPS monitoring, which is a condition of state parole under Jessica’s Law.”
This creates a dilemma for judges. In some cases, sentencing a sex offender to long-term supervised probation — including no contact with previous sexual victims — might be a more prudent course.
In short, “the battle to keep our kids safe is becoming more difficult with a new law that lets criminals — including high-risk sex offenders — serve less time behind bars,” as KGO-TV explains.
I predict Anderson will prevail in the race. But it will once again tear our community apart — needlessly if voters would dig a little deeper into the nuances of our judicial system.
Filed under: Uncategorized
David Alkire has summarized the true issues quite succinctly on the YubaNet site. Here’s the link:
http://yubanet.com/regional/Op-Ed-David-Alkire-A-Judicial-Race-is-Nonpartisan.php#.T6Ki6-2rW20
Thank you for that link, Alfred Kildow. David Alkire’s summary is very well stated. I hope this becomes more than a referendum on judicial fitness and a solid rebuke to partisan campaign tactics.
George Smyrnos has also been endorsed by a number of law enforcement groups:
- Grass Valley Police Officers’ Association,
- Nevada County Deputy Sheriff’s’ Association,
- Crime Victims Action Alliance,
- Nevada County District Attorney (Ret.) Michael Ferguson (Ret.), and – California Narcotics Officers’ Association.
It will be a close race. As many community members have said at events, voters want a clear choice in selecting the person most qualified to enforce the rule of law and keep our community safe.
Thanks. Please make sure you are signing your real name: Best when your email and name match.
Of course. I signed my name as “Rob Dean” and my email address is assigned to “Robert Dean.” Either way, glad to see you covering this very important race!
Rod Dean, would you please explain what benefit society will realize from the Smyrnos stiff punishment model? Bear in mind that the prison population in the USA is nearing five times the level it was in 1980 and the USA has over 7 times the percent prison population of Europe while scoring near the bottom of the developed world for education. Do you believe more incarceration will make us better off? How do you propose we pay for increasing the present 2.3 million population in USA prisons? What do feel would be an acceptable number? Is it possible that more punishment will not achieve what George Smyrnos promises?
Greg,
Those are great questions that are probably best addressed by the California State Assembly. A judge’s role is not to question the wisdom of the law, but the fairly apply it in every case.
Rod,
This is a public quote by George Smyrnos published in The Union. “It appears to me that Judge Anderson, in his decisions from the bench, is not really taking a neutral position,” Smyrnos said. “His focus is more on the criminal defendant and less on the community’s concerns … The community does have a right to hold a judge accountable to the standards of the community.”
I don’t believe that his philosophy towards stiff sentencing is related to neutrality and the state legislature. He has taken a position about how the existing law should be applied differently from Tom Anderson. You say ” it is imperative to support those candidates who have demonstrated a willingness to apply the law in a way that considers the safety of the community in every case.” I am challenging the efficacy of George Smyrnos’s stiff punishment position on this and I wish you would explain yourself in light of my above questions.
I think one angle being ignored is the fact that George Smyrnos has significant support from liberals like Molly Fisk and the Family Court Reformers as well as advocates for Domestic Violence victims and lots of victims of all political persuasions.. This can not be portrayed as a D v R race at all. There is a wide cross section of our County standing shoulder to shoulder to bring change to our courts culture. Look at our bail schedule (which is drawn up by the Judges) compared to Counties of like median incomes and see how out of whack it is here. Look at the stats of our courts against the rest of the State Superior Courts. While Tom Anderson is a nice guy he is a poor administrator and Judge. Time for change.
Ellen, I don’t know where on earth you got the idea that I was supporting George Smyrnos, I’ve always been behind Tom Anderson and have no intention of changing my mind. You might want to check with me before you go bandying my name about in public places. There’s also the near-defamation of character statement that I’m a liberal. Progressives like me hate to be classified that way.
Thanks for clearing that up Molly. Ellen’s comment certainly had me scratching my head!
Your email address does NOT match your name. Trolls are not welcome here, so beware!
Readers: The email addresses do not match (first and middle initials were the culprit), but I have talked to Rob Dean. He says George Smyrnos is his father-in-law; Rob lives in Virginia. Transparency is always a good thing.
http://www.frithlawfirm.com/AboutUs/RobDean/tabid/162/Default.aspx
Thanks for your comments Rob.
Of course. I am glad you called.
As we discussed, I am very proud to support George Smyrnos for Nevada County Superior Court Judge, both as an attorney and as his son-in-law. You will note that I have endorsed his candidacy on his campaign website (http://www.smyrnosforjudge.com).
Having worked as a prosecutor, I speak from a position of experience when I say that it is important to support judicial candidates who are committed to enforcing the rule of law, especially in criminal cases. A commitment to justice extends beyond the doors of the courtroom. This is not a political issue. Rather, it is imperative to support those candidates who have demonstrated a willingness to apply the law in a way that considers the safety of the community in every case.
George Smyrnos is a career prosecutor and lifelong public servant. He is not only an outstanding father and grandfather, but he is a kind, decent man who would be a great judge.
http://auburnjournal.com/detail/207092.html
A 56-year-old Auburn man was sentenced yesterday to an 18-year prison term for sexual assaults on a victim when she was between the ages of 11 and 16.
With a guilty plea from the defendant, Judge Gaddis had a range in sentencing of between 10 and 20 years. He sentenced the defendant to 18 years. Very similar to the Byrnes’ case. Common sense.
The “faux cry” of partisanship is common tactic of Joey Jordan’s clients when they are trying to distract attention away from a terrible record.
Pot, meet kettle.
Does anyone know how many cases Judge Anderson has been involved with? Making a judgement based upon one or two cases does not seem to be a prudent way to “evaluate” a judge, or his record in our community.
I understood that the sentence that was handed down, was done so with the consent of the DA and the victim, does anyone know if this was the case?
http://yubanet.com/regional/Longterm-Child-Molester-Granted-12-Years-Probation.php
I remember in a class I took some time ago I learned that educating children to report child abuse can actually lower the incidence of reporting. It isn’t hard to imagine the torment a child would feel considering that the consequences of reporting a parent would mean sending that parent to prison, destroying the family, and possibly bringing about homelessness. In such cases the innocent child would be more a victim of the justice system than the parent’s crime.
This crime of molestation is epidemic and society needs to address it in an effective manner instead of further destroying lives under the guise of justice. Judge Anderson, in The Union, made a statement apparently to that effect. “You probably deserve state prison,” Anderson told Byrnes. “This is a very generous sentence. But this sentence is not for you, this is for those around you.”
Society must wake up to that punishment ultimately is not a prevention and doesn’t make us safer, and find better ways to prevent crime. We literally can’t afford any more prisons.
“An eye for eye will make the whole world blind”, Gandhi.
Locking up child molestors and sex offenders and taking them off the streets for as long as possible does make our community safer.
It’s a proven fact that these folks repeat and repeat and repeat again. Sorry, no spin allowed on this one.
No one’s spinning anything, Steve. If the ENTIRE family wanted a lengthy probation, which requires constant monitoring and reporting in this case, then who are we to second-guess that decision?
Do you have some details to share on this case to help convince us otherwise? Other than the unsupported supposition that locking up every child molester and throwing away the key is ALWAYS the best solution?
Steve,
The “proven fact” is that people convicted of crimes previously offend at higher rates than those who are not convicted. It is also a “proven fact” that the older a population gets, the lower the rate of crimes committed. This phenomenon applies to convicts released from prison as surely as it does to old guys like me who have never been to prison. Rates of crime of all kinds go down the older you get.
Meaning, society is more at risk from a group of 17-25 year old releasees than it is from a group of 55-65 year old releasees. This also means that incarceration as a technique for preventing crimes works better with young guys than old guys.
Finally, it is a proven fact that prisons for geriatrics are really really expensive. In a world of ever-longer sentences, this means that a justified anger at a terrible case this year, leads to major costs ten, twenty, and thirty years down the road. I’m glad when probation officers, prison officers, DAs, PDs, and judges think twice about committing the state to multi-million dollar expenditures to punish criminals. From this perspective, Mr. Smyrnos toughness sounds pretty silly.
Tony
I recognize your sincerity, Steve, but you need to get educated. The FBI estimates that only a small percentage of the one in three girls and one in five boys molested goes reported. The reason is that the victims are afraid to speak out. Open yours eyes, of course they would be for what you want to do to their family. An approach that is sympathetic to the victim’s need for an intact family would certainly empower greater reporting and lower the incidence of child molestation. Isn’t that the bottom line?
You should get your facts straight before calling out for more punishment. I personally know several women who were abused as children and my observation is that what sticks with them today, and wrecks their lives, is a feeling of always being a helpless victim.
There is good reason why you don’t let the victims and family members of child abuse, sexual abuse and domestic violence decide what the legal punishment should be of those convicted of such crimes.
The Stockholm Syndrome is real. In this case the little girl was abused, used, groomed and brainwashed by the abuser over many years. My experience as a Deputy Sheriff showed me the reality of this.
I went to these types of calls and I saw first hand why you don’t let the victims decide the punishment. Far too often some of the family members of the victims are also part of the problem and deny and cover up for the husband, family member, uncle or close family friend that was the abuser.
Simple… this is why this guy should have been locked away for as many years as possible:
“Kenneth Byrnes molested a child for over seven years. The abuse started when the victim was 5 years old and “too young to say no.” It started with the defendant pulling his penis out of his pants and encouraging the victim to play with it. The abuse progressed to oral copulation and masturbation. Later, he taught the victim how to orally copulate him. The abuse stopped when the victim was 12 years old”.
I have to say that I agree with Steve on this one to the extent that some prison time is necessary. The above comments address only victims’ rights and education – both laudable and necessary considerations. The other necessary consideration involved is that of society. Civil cases are brought by individuals, because the injury is generally personal to them. Criminal cases are brought by the State, because the crime is both personal to the victim and effects society in general. The needs of the victim must be considered while also balancing safety to society and holding the perpetrator of crimes accountable for their actions.
Today someone explained it to me this way. If a child is molested, the molestation will likely be the most traumatic and anguishing event in their entire lives. By giving only probation to the admitted perpetrator with no prison time, we (I say “we” because we elect the judges to perform these duties for us) are sending a message to a specific victim that the molestation really was not a big deal and that their anguish may not be justified. I do not think that this is the right message to send to victims, as it exacerbates the failure to report these heinous crimes. So, incarceration for a period of time is part of victims’ rights in that incarceration confirms to the victim that the trauma that the victim experienced, and the subsequent anguish they feel, is real and justified.
I can’t see any other reason for sending someone to a California prison than retribution. If that’s the reason, then fine. But let’s not pretend that the California prison system is beneficial to society in any other way.
http://www.calwatchdog.com/2011/05/30/how-california-prisons-got-so-bad/
I do understand all of this, Steve. But since I don’t have first-hand knowledge of this particular case, I am looking at the totality of Anderson’s years as a judge. My information is based upon news reports, anecdotal evidence, and endorsements from others who are a lot closer to the court system than I am.
Replacing a judge due to incompetence, ineptitude, and/or malfeasance requires a pretty high hurdle, IMHO. I haven’t seen evidence of this yet, but by all means go ahead with such evidence if you have it.
Michael, I have not posted about whom to vote for. I have not endorsed either candidate, nor have I said whom I will vote for.
I have posted about this specific case and the sentence that I believe was a slap on the hand for the reasons I have provided above.
I have not posted or claimed that Judge Anderson is incompetent or inept and I have made no claim that Judge Anderson has shown malfeasance in his elected office. I have posted about child molesters, this specific case and the sentence awarded.
It’s really simple… seven years of child molestation and sexual abuse and zero prision time?
“Kenneth Byrnes molested a child for over seven years. The abuse started when the victim was 5 years old and “too young to say no.” It started with the defendant pulling his penis out of his pants and encouraging the victim to play with it. The abuse progressed to oral copulation and masturbation. Later, he taught the victim how to orally copulate him. The abuse stopped when the victim was 12 years old”.
I believe Kenneth Byrnes should have been sent to prison for a while. If others feel he should not spent some time in prison for his crimes they are welcome to hold that opinion.
But how would you feel if it was your young daughter or grand daughter Kenneth Byrnes abused over seven years, starting from the age of 5? Can you honestly say it would be fine with you if he didn’t do any prison time?
All I’m saying is Kenneth Byrnes is scum and he should have spent some time in prison.
It’s real simple… Kenneth Byrnes should have been sent to prison for the max. time possible!
“Kenneth Byrnes molested a child for over seven years. The abuse started when the victim was 5 years old and “too young to say no.” It started with the defendant pulling his penis out of his pants and encouraging the victim to play with it. The abuse progressed to oral copulation and masturbation. Later, he taught the victim how to orally copulate him. The abuse stopped when the victim was 12 years old”.
Kenneth Byrnes should be locked up, he should not be walking the streets of our community, or any other community.
If anyone has any doubts, please read the above a few more times and think,
There is no way to “spin” the slap on the hand Kenneth Byrnes received for what he did.
We should all be outraged!
Political campaigning usually relies on appeals to emotion of the most recent hot topic, counting on the short term memory of the voting majority. Any Individual, deserves an honest evaluation, available only through a comprehensive study of their entire professional “Body of Work”.
Judging General George Washington’s fitness as leader of the Continental Army because of debatable decisions made in one of his early defeats, and replacing him, would have been short sighted, as his body of work is what came to define this great man.
There is good reason why you don’t let the victims and family members of child abuse, sexual abuse and domestic violence decide what the legal punishment should be of those convicted of such crimes.
The Stockholm Syndrome is real. In this case the little girl was abused, used, groomed and brainwashed by the abuser over many years. My experience as a Deputy Sheriff showed me the reality of this.
I went to these types of calls and I saw first hand why you don’t let the victims decide the punishment. Far too often some of the family members of the victims are also part of the problem and deny and cover up for the husband, family member, uncle or close family friend that was the abuser.
Simple… this is why this guy should have been locked away for as many years as possible:
“Kenneth Byrnes molested a child for over seven years. The abuse started when the victim was 5 years old and “too young to say no.” It started with the defendant pulling his penis out of his pants and encouraging the victim to play with it. The abuse progressed to oral copulation and masturbation. Later, he taught the victim how to orally copulate him. The abuse stopped when the victim was 12 years old”.
There’s another fact that isn’t being addressed here. People AREN’T trying to replace Judge Anderson simply because of one case. He allowed a DV perpetrator to thumb his nose at the court while disobeying court orders and never held him accountable. This was a family law case and I know because I was the paralegal on the case. The husband has now filed causes in many courts in connection with his framily law case, which he would never have done if he’d been given responsibility that he couldn’t wiggle out of or simply ignore. Many have suffered because of him, and he’s not done yet.
I am a registered Democrat who completely supports George Smyrnos because I feel he won’t have trouble making tough decisions, and I know first hand that Anderson does.
Thanks Linda for your thoughts, I just don’t know much about either of these people, and (I hate to say it) have not kept up with these issues as I should have.
Now’s a good time to get back on track…
Michael, I have not posted about whom to vote for. I have not endorsed either candidate, nor have I said whom I will vote for.
I have posted about this specific case and the sentence that I believe was a slap on the hand for the reasons I have provided above.
I have not posted or claimed that Judge Anderson is incompetent or inept and I have made no claim that Judge Anderson has shown malfeasance in his elected office. I have posted about child molesters, this specific case and the sentence awarded.
It’s really simple… seven years of child molestation and sexual abuse and zero prision time?
“Kenneth Byrnes molested a child for over seven years. The abuse started when the victim was 5 years old and “too young to say no.” It started with the defendant pulling his penis out of his pants and encouraging the victim to play with it. The abuse progressed to oral copulation and masturbation. Later, he taught the victim how to orally copulate him. The abuse stopped when the victim was 12 years old”.
I believe Kenneth Byrnes should have been sent to prison for a while. If others feel he should not spent some time in prison for his crimes they are welcome to hold that opinion.
But how would you feel if it was your young daughter or grand daughter Kenneth Byrnes abused over seven years, starting from the age of 5? Can you honestly say it would be fine with you if he didn’t do any prison time?
All I’m saying is Kenneth Byrnes is scum and he should have spent some time in prison.
Thanks Steve, that is helpful.
You have no argument from me that Kenneth Byrnes performed heinous acts, for a long period of time. And that stopping child abuse has to be the #1 goal of anything done by society.
Steve, you are really going off of the rails. Byrnes is a human being who made a big mistake. He is also a father. You should think about who is reading your self absorbed pronouncements and the pain it might cause them when you talk like that. There was a crime but there is no need for you to twist the knife.
We don’t get to choose our parents but yet they still become our most important memory even if they have made big mistakes and we all have to come to terms with that. Show some respect for the family members, please.
I am convinced that your attitude contributes to the problem. I wouldn’t call myself a Christian but if you have any inkling or respect for Jesus’s teachings you should have a look at what he said about this as he has said plenty.
Let’s check the Bible, this is from top level Bible and Christian scholars :
“An eye for an eye … This command is found in Exodus 21:24; Leviticus 24:20, and Deuteronomy 19:21. In these places it was given as a rule to regulate the decisions of judges. They were to take eye for eye, and tooth for tooth, and to inflict burning for burning. As a judicial rule it is not unjust. Christ finds no fault with the rule as applied to magistrates, and does not take upon himself to repeal it. But instead of confining it to magistrates”.
Let’s not check the Bible, particularly the Old Testament, words put to parchment hundrends of years after the supposed events, by humans as fallible as live today.
Rape and child molestation are two malignantly aberrant behaviors incomprehensible to me other than to be catergorized as a severe sickness, which unfortunately defies a cure or remedy other than through the justice or institutional mental health departments, often with enforced custody. During this prolonged discussion I have not read anything to the effect suggesting Judge Anderson erroneosly applied a sentence to Byrnes that was not permitted by the new legistation/regulations. The criticism is singularly focused on the lack of harshness of a permitted sentence. (I have to wonder if there’d be any outrage for incarcerated, young males, for minor pot crimes who become victims of multiple rapes and abuse because of this “Tough on Crime” sloganeering).
Citing the Stockholm Syndrome to suggest the family’s reluctance to seek a stiffer punishment by no means, even remotely, prooves it played any role in their decision. It may, as some psycologists say, enter into other people’s minds in similiar situations, but like Economic experts analyzing the same data, entirely different conclusions may and often will be forthcoming from other qualified experts.
With all due respect to the trauma inflicted on the young girl and her family by Byrnes–which I would not wish to happen to my worst enemy–and I experinced plenty as a youngster, including a narrow escape from a man trying to drag me down into NYC’s subways, every day, hienous crimes affecting a far greater number of people are being perpetrated, without investigations, charges or prison terms. There is enough outrage because of inherent “priorities” and selective enforcement or non-enforcement of laws to stretch this thread until it reaches the USSR’s Lubyanka, whose basement cells once were filled with corpses–a bullet iin the head–of innocent victims fallen to another dysfuntional, though structurally different, justice system.
But it seems clear, the real message here, is to begin the campaign for the up-coming election and make the Byrnes case the focal point and single issue for the Tea people and Right wing against Judge Anderson, similar to the misleading, and clearly racist fear mongering use of the Willie Horton campaign years ago. If past is prelude, we’ll see what becomes the main thrust of the attack against Judge Anderson.
I am a mother and grandmother, and I don’t think you understand how completely sick it was for the family to request leniency for this molester. He preyed on this little girl for years, and now the family is begging that he isn’t punished? He took away her childhood, gave her a warped view of relationships, made her feel different from her friends, probably gave her ongoing nightmares, and now her family is destroying her trust and self-esteem by begging for leniency for him? Who is watching out for her? Definitely not her family, so Anderson decides that if her family isn’t going to watch out for her, he shouldn’t either? This makes me feel ill.
And you’re also missing the point that this is not the only reason that Anderson is being challenged as judge. I personally am aware of a number of instances in which he deferred his responsibilities to others and then didn’t even ensure that they performed as they should. Which, by the way, they didn’t.
Steve, do me a favor and let’s not be waving the bible around as that document has very little validity in the child abuse area, especially with our Catholic Brethren.
Brad, the only reason I posted about the Bible as a direct response to Greg going after me vs. the issue, Greg said about me:
“if you have any inkling or respect for Jesus’s teachings you should have a look at what he said about this as he has said plenty”.
So I responded to Greg’s personal, off topic attack on me by doing what Greg askedme t odo… that being a check of what the Bible says.
Greg was the one that played the “Jesus” and good “Christian” card on me in his May 4, 2012 at 5:54 pm personal attack, thus my post about what the Bible says.
I’m an Atheist Brad and I agree with you that… “that document has very little validity”.
It wasn’t an off topic attack, Steve. Somebody needs to point out that you shouldn’t be calling a mentally ill parent of children in our community “scum”. You are turning this deep and serious social problem into a witch hunt.
This is an interesting link from Mental Health America that might be of interest to some:
http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/go/position-statements/55
Mrs. Eckerman,
I don’t pretend to know the wrenching mental anguish the family had to endure, and their coming to a decision which most surely was difficult, does not justify labeling the entire family sick because of your disagreement with that decision and distaste for the judge in question. As I said before, extreme trauma when young comes in a variety of wrappings, and afflicts many. This I understand all to well.
And no, I haven’t missed the point that you have other issues with Judge Anderson, but whatever they are besides the “thumbing” incident, as I indicated, the overwhelming thrust of the criticism has centered on the Byrnes case, with the added electioneering from Virgina. I certainly expect different points of view and people voting accordingly, but I stand by what I have said, as I detect the early stages of the politicalization of this case as a tool for success. It’s not uncommon in the political arena.
I’m sure many will continue to boil with anger, but even years in prison for Byrnes wouldn’t change the landscape of this societal sickness.
I am not labeling them sick because of my distate for the decision, or for the judge, for whom I would have nothing but respect if he were doing his job. I am labeling them sick for putting the molester’s rights before the victim’s rights. The victim is a child – aren’t they supposed to protect her? Aren’t they supposed to teach her that what happened to her is wrong and no fault of hers? Aren’t they supposed to say that she’s important to them and that what happened to her is unacceptable?l Her childhood was stolen by the molester and they beg for his life to be easier? What about hers?
I wasn’t with the family during their ordeal so I can’t answer those questions. I’ve said the act was horrible, I just will not excoriate the family as I wasn’t included in any of the conversations, including what the victimized young girl had to say.
This is my last post on the issue because we’ve gone astray. I’ve made my point on why this thread has legs.
Have a nice day.
Let’s pretend for a second that Judge Anderson ignored the wishes of this family and jailed the perp for 12 years. He also was the sole provider of this family. What happens next? The family must apply for welfare in this downturn. Food stamps maybe. Medical care that includes a huge amount of psychological components for the vic and her family. The young girl, by coming to the authorities now feels responsible for the perp’s incarceration but for casting herself and her whole family into the abyss of poverty and the humiliation and shame concurrent with it. It’s usually about this time that the victim drops out of school and often feels she must rely on the one thing she’s sure somebody values: her body. It is about this time that people like Mr. Pruett and Mr. Juvinall notice her by damning her and her family as “dependent”, “lazy welfare recipients” and “deviant drop-outs who need to grab themselves up by the boot straps you pieces of garbage” talk. In the mean time we are paying thousands to jail the perp all of this costing “society” a great deal of money in on every end of this. Not to mention damning the survivor to eternal guilt for decimating the only family she loves and knows. Maybe Judge Anderson has seen this horrific phenomena a time or two. I would be willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.