Blogfest 2005 - Aug 25, 2005 - Printable Version
- The Faulking Truth...in (Black) and (White)
by Mark Faulk In an Associated Press article today, Americans were shocked when a judge set bail for a twelve year-old charged with simple possession of a handgun at $250,000. Well, they weren't THAT shocked. In fact, in an AOL poll, 75% of respondents said that the judge was "sending the right message", while only 25% felt that the bail was too high.
In order to help our readers understand the dynamics involved with the case, the Faulking Truth has added our own descriptions of those involved in parentheses. We think it says it all.
Unusually High Bail for (Black) Boy Stirs Controversy: Fed Up with Underage Misbehavior, (White) Judge Sets (Black) Boy's Bail at $250,000
By DENISE LAVOIE, AP
BOSTON (Aug. 25) - (White) Judge Paul D. Lewis has seen it all during his 23 years in juvenile court: (black) kids involved in shootings, (black) kids involved in killings, (black) kids involved in rapes at gunpoint.
So when a 12-year-old (black) boy came into his court charged with possession of a firearm, Lewis (who is white) had seen enough.
The (white) judge set the (black) boy's bail at $250,000 - 50 times higher than the $5,000 sought by prosecutors. His decision shocked prosecutors and defense attorneys alike.
But Lewis (who is not black) said he is simply trying to protect the public. "We can't have kids (who are black) out in the community with guns and firing guns," Lewis (whitey) said in an interview with The Associated Press Wednesday.
"Innocent (white) people get killed - intended (black) targets get killed and unintended (white) targets get killed - in either case it's wrong, it's inappropriate, and we have to do something about it as a community."
Lewis (who is really white) said he is surprised by all the attention his bail decision is receiving. He has set high bail and even held (black) juveniles without bail in other cases, he said.
But the age of the (black) boy and the circumstances of the case have some lawyers questioning the decision. No one was hurt in the shooting and the (black) boy was arrested on a juvenile firearms possession charge. Children's advocates also point out that juvenile crime in the nation and in Massachusetts has steadily declined over the last decade.
"I respect the (white) judge's level of frustration and understand his frustration, but a bail of this magnitude is certainly not a common occurrence," said Barbara Kaban, deputy director of the Children's Law Center of Massachusetts, a nonprofit legal advocacy and resource center providing representation to low-income (black) children.
"This is a (black) child with no prior record," said Kaban.
Boston police said the incident happened at about Monday when officers heard a loud noise at an intersection and saw the 12-year-old (black) boy running away.
The (black) boy's lawyer, Mariann Samaha, said she plans to appeal the bail decision.
The (black) boy faces a maximum sentence of commitment to the Department of Youth Services until the age of 18.
David Procopio, a district attorney spokesman, said prosecutors asked for a $5,000 bail because it was "fair" and would be enough to ensure the boy's return to court for later proceedings.
"Twelve years old is very much on the low end of the spectrum in terms of a youth charged with a gun offense," Procopio said. "We certainly share the (white) judge's frustration with the problem of (black) children and (black) teenagers in Boston carrying and using guns. We thought our bail request was fair, though."
David Frank, a former prosecutor in the gang unit of the district attorney's office, said the $250,000 bail is by far the highest he remembers in a juvenile case.
"I know that (white) Judge Lewis in particular views firearms offenses as being extremely serious. It's not uncommon for him to set bails that are reflective of that," Frank said.
Lewis (who is lily white) said he believes an increase in gun possession cases in his court over the last decade is directly related to an increase in drugs and gang activity.
"These kinds of things won't get resolved until we as a society are willing to discuss them," he said. "I think it's important for people to understand what (white) judges are confronted with in these cases, and the amount of violence that is in our community and being caused by (black) juveniles."
(Editor's note: This is an entry from The Faulking Truth blog, ingeniously entitled "Blogfest 2005". If you'd like to spend more of your valuable time blogging, go to www.faulkingtruth.com/blog/ )
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Blogfest 2005 Archives:
Keep on Blogging in The Free World (Mark Faulk, Sep 21, 2004)
"It's the Issues, Stupid" (Mark Faulk, Sep 21, 2004)
The Trust Factor......mmmmmm, donuts (Mark Faulk, Sep 30, 2004)
The Vice-Presidential Debate Primer (Mark Faulk, Oct 5, 2004)
Is Bush a girly-man? (Mark Faulk, Oct 7, 2004)
Kids! Time to come in and get dressed for war (Mark Faulk, Nov 1, 2004)
"I Think We're all Bozos on this Bus" and "Dude, Where's My Bong?" (Mark Faulk, Nov 5, 2004)
"We're mad as hell and we're not going to take it anymore!" and "The Ministry of Truth Strikes Again" (Mark Faulk, Nov 9, 2004)
Vacation....Had to get away (Mark Faulk, Nov 11, 2004)
A 'Tribute' to Steve Martin (Mark Faulk, Nov 14, 2004)
How Long Can You Tread Water? (Mark Faulk, Nov 17, 2004)
"Give the People What They Want" (Mark Faulk, Nov 22, 2004)
Home on the Range..... (Mark Faulk, Nov 27, 2004)
Coping With Loss: How to Deal With the 2004 Election (Mark Faulk, Dec 7, 2004)
Peace Kills (Mark Faulk, Dec 21, 2004)
A Tale of Two Psychos (Mark Faulk, Dec 27, 2004)
Hurtling Headlong Through the Blogosphere (Mark Faulk, Jan 4, 2005)
The Faulking Truth Gone Wild (Mark Faulk, Jan 6, 2005)
Palestinians Elect Abba by Wide Margin (Mark Faulk, Jan 9, 2005)
"Look everybody, we've found WMDRPAs!" and "Supporting the Inauguration Day Boycott.....Sort of" (Mark Faulk, Jan 12, 2005)
Confessions of.....a Christian (Mark Faulk, Jan 18, 2005)
Seven Degrees of George W. Bush (Mark Faulk, Jan 20, 2005)
Dear IRS...... (Mark Faulk, Jan 25, 2005)
What Democracy Means to Me (Johnny Carson, Feb 5, 2005)
"I love you...no, really, I do...." and "Have a Crappy... I Mean... Happy Valentine's Day" (Mark Faulk and Kelsey Renee Faulk, Feb 14, 2005)
"THE END OF BLOCKBUSTER!" (Mark Faulk, Feb 19, 2005)
The Poor get Poorer..... (Mark Faulk, Mar 8, 2005)
Refinancing your home the 'hard' way..... (Mark Faulk, Mar 19, 2005)
A Fall From Grace - How Bush is Alienating Mainstream America (Mark Faulk, Mar 26, 2005)
I'm not schizophrenic....and neither am I (Mark Faulk, Mar 31, 2005)
Pope Dies of old Age (Mark Faulk, Apr 4, 2005)
America to Dateline: Tell the Truth Now! (Mark Faulk, Apr 7, 2005)
How I Spent my Weekend (Russell Tharp, Apr 18, 2005)
How Many Lesbians Does it Take to Screw in a Lightbulb? (Mark Faulk, Apr 27, 2005)
Four Dead in Ohio (Mark Faulk, May 4, 2005)
Some Mother's Son (Mark Faulk, May 8, 2005)
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The Man on the Crane (Mark Faulk, May 28, 2005)
NOW Do You Feel Secure on the Internet? (Mark Faulk, Jun 1, 2005)
Taking the Faulking Truth to the Airwaves (Mark Faulk, Jun 17, 2005)
Wall Street: Destroying the Evidence (Mark Faulk, Jun 21, 2005)
And now....Page two (Mark Faulk, Jul 1, 2005)
Help Wanted- President Seeks New Brain (Mark Faulk, Jul 11, 2005)
Bush Picks "French Fry Judge" for Supreme Court (Mark Faulk, Jul 19, 2005)
Praying for a Miracle (Mark Faulk, Jul 23, 2005)
Send in the Clowns (Mark Faulk, Jul 28, 2005)
"What's Wrong With This Picture?" or "Gas Prices Set Record High.....Win A Free Hummer!" (Mark Faulk, Aug 15, 2005)
Pat Robertson's Case for the Assassination of President Bush.....I mean, Hugo Chavez (Mark Faulk, Aug 23, 2005)
The Faulking Truth...in (Black) and (White) (Mark Faulk, Aug 25, 2005)
They're Trying to Wash Us Away.... (Mark Faulk, Aug 31, 2005)
"Not Acceptable" (Mark Faulk, Sep 2, 2005)
And I'm looking forward to sitting on the porch (Laughter.) (Mark Faulk, Sep 6, 2005)
Who Says FEMA Can't Relate to Blacks, Yo? (Mark Faulk, Sep 15, 2005)
Faulking Truth to Senator Shelby: PUT THE DAMN FIRE OUT! (Mark Faulk, Sep 21, 2005)
George Talks to God..... (Mark Faulk, Oct 8, 2005)
For the Greater Good..... (Mark Faulk, Oct 27, 2005)
Coalition....What Coalition? (Mark Faulk, Nov 21, 2005)
Confessions of a White Gentile (Mark Faulk, Dec 4, 2005)
The World Just Got A Little Less Funny (Mark Faulk, Dec 10, 2005)
MySpace is the Devil (Mark Faulk, Dec 18, 2005)
Desecrating Christmas (Mark Faulk, Dec 29, 2005)
Srecna Nova Godina....od tim Faulking Truth (Mark Faulk, Jan 1, 2006)
On Kurt Vonnegut..... (Mark Faulk, Jan 8, 2006)
Taking it to the Streets (Mark Faulk, Jan 14, 2006)
Desecrating History (Mike Bohling, Feb 4, 2006)
Congress Uses "C Word" (Mark Faulk, Mar 13, 2006)
Conspiracy....or Conspiracy Nuts? (Mark Faulk, Mar 18, 2006)
Roddy Boyd: Choosing up Sides (Mark Faulk, Mar 28, 2006)
Emotional Casualties of War (Mark Faulk, Apr 28, 2006)
It is a very mixed blessing to be brought back from the dead. (Mark Faulk, May 10, 2006)
MySpace is the Devil (Redux) (Mark Faulk, May 23, 2006)
Confessions of Part Time Hit Man (Mark Faulk, Jun 5, 2006)
“The Anatomy of a Rumor” or “I’ll Take the Kool-aid” (Mark Faulk, Jun 17, 2006)
"ALL INVESTORS ARE EQUAL, BUT SOME ARE MORE EQUAL THAN OTHERS" – SEC eliminates integrity in the stock market (Mark Faulk, Jul 6, 2006)
Everybody's a dreamer and everybody's a star (Mark Faulk, Jul 24, 2006)
It Wasn't the Planes that Killed King Kong.... (Mark Faulk, Aug 4, 2006)
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Blame it on the Full Moon (Mark Faulk, Oct 8, 2006)
How Low Can They Go? (Mark Faulk, Nov 2, 2006)
Truth in the Booth...Live on CFRN on Nov. 17th (Mark Faulk, Nov 16, 2006)
Life WIth Father (Mark Faulk, Dec 15, 2006)
Thinking Voyager 2 Type Things (Mark Faulk, Jan 16, 2007)
so simple in the moonlight.... (Mark Faulk, Feb 20, 2007)
Promises, Promises….Take a Letter!!! (Mark Faulk, March Mar 19, 2007)
CMKX The Train of Truth (Mark Faulk, April 10, 2007 )
Gonzo Radio....or.....when all else fails, blog it!!!! (Mark Faulk, June 16, 2007)
Observations on the Way Home (Mark Faulk, August 5, 2007)
The Idiot’s Guide to the Electoral Process (Mark Faulk, Feb 8, 2008)
MAPS for Millionaires or “Daddy, buy me an arena” (Mark Faulk, Feb 29, 2008)
Dear Hillary: When the race is over, it's over.... (Mark Faulk, Mar 10, 2008)
“We come for your children” – The Truth About the Gay Agenda (Mark Faulk, May 2, 2008)
Savior Hillary (Mark Faulk, May 20, 2008)
This is me in fragments...enter at your own risk (Mark Faulk, Jun 30, 2008)
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John McSame’s Campaign to Nowhere (Mark Faulk, Sep 12, 2008)
Change has come to America (Mark Faulk, Nov 5, 2008)
Hemp, a Self Sustaining Answer to a Troubled Nation (Kevin M. West, Mar 19, 2009)
The Other Casualties of War (Mark Faulk, May 25, 2009)
Michael Vick Returns to Dogfighting (Katie Lauren, Aug 20, 2009)
I'm on a Plane (Mark Faulk, Sept. 30, 2009)
And so this is Christmas.... (Mark Faulk, Dec 15, 2009)
Whan Picasso Painted the Sixteenth Chapel (Mark Faulk, May 29, 2010)
The Devolution of Man (Robin Buckallew, Jul 31, 2010)
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