Prepare to feel conflicted. A father who says he found a man trying to molest his 4-year-old may be facing a whole other kind of trial. Cops in Shiner, Texas, say the little girl's dad put a stop to the assault then beat the man to death.
So far what cops will do with the dad remains up in the air. I'm not surprised; there's no easy answer here for them. Say you were put on a jury to face a case like that. Would you be able to make a decision that would let you go to bed that night with a clear conscience? I don't think I would.
I want to say that the fatal beating the Lavaca County sheriff says happened in a family house (no names have been released to protect the sexual assault victim's identity) on Sunday afternoon was the right thing and cheer from the rooftops.
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I'm a parent, for cripes sakes. I never want to see a child being hurt in any fashion. Just last night I sat in my house with my heart beating fast against my chest because I'd heard a rumor that a local teen had to be airlifted out of an accident scene (good news: it was one of those exaggerations that spreads on Facebook -- she's fine). In that sense, if the allegation of abuse is true, then I would have been shaking with anger and horror both. If I were that father, I would have wanted to kill that man.
But wanted to does not equal would have.
Consider this: when you take justice into your own hands, what happens? You get in trouble. You, the person who, up until that very moment, was in the right.
You may say it's "worth it" because the other person got what you thought was "coming," but you are forever marred by having sunk to the criminal level. You are what you profess to despise.
I can imagine that if this dad beat this man, he thought he was doing it for the right reasons. I hope that the police and prosecutors treat this whole case with that in mind. But there is no way to walk away from this one feeling anything but conflicted, is there?
What's your read? Do you think the accusations against this dad make him a criminal or a hero?
Image via Tex Texin/Flickr
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Comments 1120
No, manslaughter isn't a better word because, again, it doesn't address the actual facts of the case. Killing can be justified and legal. Manslaughter is a crime, and if the information contained in the initial reports is true then no crime was committed by killing the child rapist. It is NOT the job of the police to protect anyone. It is their job to collect evidence and make arrests. It IS every parents job to protect their family. Are you saying this man should have dothing NOTHING to stop the rapist because it's the job of the police to protect his family? That is seriously messed up.
peanutsmommy1 - yes you are, I'm just surprised that is your opinion when you know that. And since when is protecting your family solely the job of the police??
And the bottom line is that a 4 year old baby girl was sexually assaulted. Nothing matters more than that.
When is the last time any of you can think of that the police actually prevented a violent crime from happening? IOW, when is the last time anyone here knows of that the police actually protected anyone? PERSONAL/FAMILIAL PROTECTION IS YOUR JOB, NOT THE POLICE'S. If you wait around for them to show up you're raped and/dead. peanutsmommy, would you really just grab your phone and call 911 if you saw peanut being sexually assaulted?
Actually someone can easily kill someone else during a fight without even meaning too, they can fall on something, get hit just the right way, etc. That being said, I'm going with hero. I can't say I wouldn't do the exact same thing if I caught someone trying to hurt my baby girl. As for charges, there is no jury that would covict him, it would be the same as the comments section here, half would say guilty, half would say hero, hung jury every time and the cops know that.
I also read another article where the SHERRIFF said that the father was acting in the defense of another. And that he did not arrest him, but had to present the evidence to the DA and grand jury for their decision. He did not seem to think the father did anything wrong.