Mark Hulett, 34, of Williston admitted to sexually assaulting a young girl for four years, but was ordered by Judge Edward Cashman to serve only 60 days in prison.
The Burlington Free Press and WCAX-TV reported that prosecutors wanted an eight-year sentence and the state Corrections Department wanted three years. But the judge also was told that Hulett would not get any counseling for the crime until he was released because he was deemed unlikely to offend again.
Vermont state Republicans held a press conference to introduce minimum sentencing guidelines today.
Republicans held a news conference Friday to introduce a bill that would require judges to impose a minimum sentence of 25 years in prison for aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault and second and subsequent offenses for lewd and lascivious conduct with a child younger than 12.
“Republicans are committed to providing a legislative correction to make sure this never happens again,” said House GOP leader David Sunderland.
Instead of working to change the legal system through the political process when he disagreed with the law, Judge Cashman instituted his own judgment by meting out this particular “punishment.”
Worldnet Daily quotes the judge at length:
The judge said that when he began 25 years ago, he handed down tough sentences but now believes “it accomplishes nothing of value.”
“It doesn’t make anything better; it costs us a lot of money; we create a lot of expectation, and we feed on anger,” Cashman explained to the people in the court, WCAX reported.
and
“The one message I want to get through is that anger doesn’t solve anything. It just corrodes your soul,” Cashman told a packed Burlington courtroom made up mostly of people related to the victim.
The judge is apparently more concerned with the rehabilitation of the offender than the safety and mental well-being of the victim, and the safety of the community at large.
According to the Center for Sex Offender Management, part of the US Justice Department, the 25-year recidivism rate for child molesters is 52% and for rapists is 39%. I don’t know how Mark Hulett would be categorized in this study (news reports label him a child rapist as opposed to molester), but either way you look at it, he needs to be off the streets, NOT getting treatment.
The Jake Files 
Perhaps Hulett will get proper treatment from fellow inmates during hus 60 day incarceration?
Comment by Charles Lanning — January 9, 2006 @ 4:15 pm |
Now Charles, that kind of attitude “accomplishes nothing of value,” as Judge Cashman teaches us. There is nothing to be gained by anger. I think Yoda had something to say about that as well.
On the other hand, there have been some therapeutic benefits of prison. Jeffrey Dahmer, for one, found a fitting end in prison.
Comment by Amazing Jake — January 10, 2006 @ 9:02 am |