By now, I am sure many of you have seen the video clip where an angry father rushed in and threw his son's eleven year old wrestling opponent out of the ring. To me, what is remarkable about this incident is the police response to it.
On the evening of February 13, a Greco-Roman wrestling match was taking place in an Aurora (Illinois) gym. There were several matches going on at the same time. In one of those, Nick Nasenberry, 11, pinned his opponent to the floor. Suddenly the father of the other boy rushed in and threw Nick some six feet through the air. Then he rushed at Dan Nasenberry, Nick's father, who was video taping the incident. The assailant was restrained by security personnel before he could reach Nick's father.
Ray Hoffman, the eleven year old's assailant, later told a television reporter that he regrets his behavior and feels embarrassed. Hoffman happens to be a part-time wrestling coach. At the same time he rushed into the ring, the referee was already blowing his whistle, indicating that the match was over. Wrestling coaches noted that Nick pinned Hoffman's son with a legal move. Hoffman's punishment? He will no longer be allowed to coach wrestling.
When the Nasenberry family appeared on this morning's NBC Today show, Mrs. Nasenberry was asked whether or not any criminal charges were pending against Hoffman. She said that the police had informed them that Hoffman had no malicious intent when he assaulted Nick. The police added that without such intent, no charges couold be filed against Hoffman, as no crime had been committed.
Whoa! If Aurora, a Chicago suburb, is in the United States of America, that city has some idiot cops and/or some loony law UNforcement. The law does not require specific proof of intent in every case. Intent is proven by the action of the perpetrator. For example, you don't have to prove that a burglar intended to steal when he broke into a home. The breaking and entering proves intent.
Furthermore, intent is not always an issue. If I accidentally kill someone when my gun discharges as I am cleaning it, I can be charged with manslaughter or negligent homicide. even though I had no intention of killing anyone. Why? Because it is incumbent of me to exercise the care necessary to avoid doing harm to others.
Hoffman should be charged with assault, as well as with child endangerment. Nick received an injury to his shoulder, but he could have been hurt much more seriously. The fact that Hoffman may not have intended to hurt the boy is immaterial. It is a gross miscarriage of justice if Hoffman's only punishment is his being banned from coaching wrestling. Aurora should be emabarrassed by its idiot cops and/or its seemingly loony law UNforcement.
No comments:
Post a Comment