Double-down juries
Rebecca Hogue's plight rests on Oklahoma's failure to protect
law, which states that a parent who suspects child abuse by another, and fails to report it, is complicit. In the worst case, this can lead to a charge of murder in the first-degree.
I can see how the law is supposed to protect children at risk. But its implementation, at least in this case, as reported by Robin Levinson-King, seems to be erring on the side of…medieval. The police determined that they did not have enough evidence for a
. But the prosecutor was having none of it.failure to protect
first-degree murder charge
The district attorney's office chose to bypass police charges by asking a jury to ask a jury to decide if charges should be brought, which is allowed in some American jurisdictions, rather than bringing police charges. Ultimately, the jury decided charges were warranted.
Robin Levinson-King, BBC News
In this case, as Ms Levinson-King reports, the DA took the additional prudential step of asking a jury to ask a jury to decide whether charges should be brought against Ms Hogue. Talk about belt-and-braces.
But I was under the impression that juries weren't allowed to confer with anyone outside the jury room, let alone with another jury. Obviously, the Oklahoman buckteeth do thangs diff'nt to them there other folks. Yee-haw!
In case the BBC editor wakes from their slumber, I need not resort to the Wayback Machine.
invisible editingmaking me look foolish.
Rebecca Hogue has been found guilty of first-degree murder, and sentenced to sixteen months in prison, minus time already served. The jury of yee-haws recommended life, but at least among them and the DA, the judge stood out as not being a complete arsehole.
Sentencing Hogue, Judge Michael Tupper told her she did "not deserve to die in prison". "You are not a monster," the judge continued. "You have value and you have worth."
He must be from outta state.