The Georgia State Supreme Court now has the ball in its court: to find a way to release this young man from a mandatory 10-year prison sentence for having had consensual oral sex with a fellow teenager (He was 17; she, 15) or to let him rot behind bars when not only his lawyers say this is cruel and unusual punishment but so does almost everybody else – including members of the prosecutorial side.
The former legislator who sponsored the bill that became an anti-child molestation law in 1995, told the court: "The General Assembly never intended for the Child Protection Act's harsh felony sentences designed to punish adults who prey on children to be used to punish consensual sexual acts between teenagers close in age."
No one has come up with a face-saving way to rectify this situation – even to free Wilson, now 21, on bond while “the wheels of justice” move ever so slowly and judges prepare to take off the month of August for vacation and politicians run for cover.
See my posting on this subject from earlier this month.
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2 comments:
What a mark to have on one's record and one's reputation. It really gives the wrong impression.
Good to hear from you again!
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