Monthly Archives: October 2005

We’ve all heard the stories about bizarre sentences imposed by judges that makes us say “What the fuck?” I remember a story when I was in high school about a guy who was convicted of punching another guy in the mouth, knocking out the guy’s tooth… the judge ordered the guy to have one tooth pulled from his mouth without the aid of novocaine… an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth…
That story made the papers because some people thought it was “cruel and unusual.”

Whether you agree or not, I find it disturbing that lone judges have the ability to exact whatever punishment their imaginations can come up with. Today, CNN has a story about a 17-year-old girl in Texas whose sentence, imposed by district judge Lauri Blake, included a clause that she was not allowed to have sex as long as she is living with her parents and attending school. The girl was convicted on a drug charge and the “no sex” clause is a condition of her probation. Apparently, it is only one of several “unorthodox” rulings by this judge since she was elected 10 months ago… Continue reading →