People tend to ask the rhetorical question “Where is the justice?” to bring attention to gross inequalities of all kinds. It was the main issue within the Civil Rights movement. Also, it was the main motivation behind any/every protest for Trayvon Martin. Still, injustice isn’t always about “black and white”. Some injustices prevail among situations where race isn’t even a consideration. In the end, justice is not for anyone if it can’t be for everyone.
This is the face of American justice against sexual predators.
So, when I read about the Cherice Morales case that just occurred, I was floored. In 2008, Morales had a “relationship” with her teacher Stacy Rambold [1]. However, this “relationship” (which we can call statutory rape) didn’t end well. Due to Rambold being caught and people shunning her at school, Morales committed suicide [2]. Eventually, Rambold went on trial for his part in the situation.
That is, until this situation found its conclusion in court. And that is when things became a mockery of said “justice”.
To say that Rambold got off light would be an understatement. He only received a whopping 30 out of his 31 days in jail (with one day being served) [3]. When the judged issued the reasoning, he was quite clear in his judgment (and misconception). Judge Baugh said that Morales was “in much control of the situation” as Rambold was and even noted that Rambold has “suffered enough” [4]. Benefitting from a female “considered older than her chronological age”, the former Montana teacher only received a fraction of the potential sentence he face.
No, we don’t accept your apology. You should have known better, sir.
And this, America, is your justice system at work.
Suddenly, the Washington Post decides to let a write voice an opinion that was sure to either cause shaken heads or piss people off. Betsy Karasik made it known that she didn’t agree with the criminlization of a teacher having sex with a student [5]. While she did agree with them losing their jobs, she didn’t like the negative attention that the situation brought. Plus, she feels that “more realistic approach would be to treat violations in a way that removes and rehabilitates the offender without traumatizing the victim” [6]. In short, Karasik wanted to have the situation handled so that the situation doesn’t become a spectacle.
You tried, Betsy. You really tried.
And you know what? I understand where she is coming from. But it still doesn’t work.
One of the problems is that both Karasik, and the judge, simplified the situation. IF they would have been considerate towards the fact that an OVERGROWN man had a sordid relationship with a female that was barely a teenager, then they wouldn’t have said what they said. Yes, she had a mutual relationship with her teacher. That is granted. However, Rambold should have had enough consideration towards the consequences of this situation. The judge expected us to treat Morales as a willing participant that understood the ramifications of her decision. Karasik tried to equate her friends experiences in the 70’s to those of today’s teenagers. Consequently, the simplification of this issue brought about conclusions that missed the mark.
Rambold should have known this had the potential to end HORRIBLY. Period.
Morales wasn’t mature enough for this type of situation. Oh, and this isn’t the damn 70’s, either.
Another issue I had with the responses is that both the judge and Karasik wanted to ignore that the female was underage. I don’t care how “mature” she was physically; she was obviously immature in the mind. If she didn’t commit suicide, there is a chance that this situation would have played out negatively in her future relationships. Honestly, how trusting is any female going to be to another male if they notice that so many can be easily duped or predatory in nature? We can easily say that a grown man dealing with an underage female is always going to lead to trouble.
And let us not forget that this issue deals with “responsibility”. This is NOT some sort of circumstance where people want to look like they are “protecting the children”. No, this is not about problem solving. This is about PROBLEM PREVENTION. The laws are in place to PREVENT these things from happening in the first place. We should already know that the laws are made to prevent situations from becoming potential disasters like THIS ONE DID.
This situation should not be swept under the rug. Rambold has as much business dealing with Morales as Morales had dealing with Rambold. However, Rambold is the adult in the situation. These situations are criminalized due to their potential for ruining lives. If you can’t respect that, then your entire perspective is wack.
This is our justice system at work, America. So, again: where is the justice?
‘Nuff Said and ‘Nuff Respect!!!
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