Huckleberries Online

DH: ‘Kyra’s Law’ Needed For Abuse

Posted by DFO

March 18, 2009 1:14 p.m. • 7 comments

Charlie Smith and Christina Haynes subjected Kyra Wine n who was 3 years old at the time n to unspeakable torture over a two-week period. Torture, not abuse. At least that’s what the evidence suggests since even a team of doctors cannot determine what exactly these two wretches did to this little girl. The abuse, it appears, was a prelude to the torture that transpired in the final days of Kyra’s suffering at the hands of the two who discovered, via the Internet, that they were soul mates. Kyra’s feet were amputated as a result of the torture. Doctors believe the horrific wound on her scalp will heal eventually, but forever prevent the growth of hair. Other scars, like those on her buttocks, will also remain forever. For all this, young Charlie Smith will serve 10 years in prison/Dan Hammes, St. Maries Gazette Record. More here.

Question: Do you agree with Publisher Dan Hammes/St. Maries Gazette Record that special enhancement should be made in cases like Kyra Wine where egregious abuse occurs?

Seven comments on this post so far. Add yours!

Frum Helen Back on March 18 at 1:26 p.m.
You betcha!!!!!
jthompson on March 18 at 2:35 p.m.
Hammes is right and his description of this acrid turn of events is gripping. 25 minimum should be a gift for this sicko. It’s unbelievable that someone could be that cruel to a defenseless child.
Sisyphus on March 18 at 2:41 p.m.
Yeesh, than a box of rocks. Hammes writes a poorly thought out piece using an ugly emotional incident to rally for a misguided cause. He argues for a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years for lewd and lascivious conduct, a crime for which Smith was not and could not have been charged. In so doing he constructs two fallacious straw men and knocks them over, liberals and the courts.

Really Dan, I certainly don’t see how Smith is a victim. And when we show respect in and for the Court it is for our system, not the defendant. When we act with dignity its because we acknowledge that the obligations therein are not taken lightly and the duties are solemn and severe even to the undignified. Certainly the egregious nature of the crime upon an innocent was an aggravating circumstance the Court considered when giving Smith the max.

Now he could argue that the abuse statute should authorize a longer sentence, but he didn’t. He argued for a very long minimum sentence on an unrelated crime. And it seems ever so slightly egotistical, if not a little slimy, on his part to rush to be the first to champion his misguided cause as ‘Kyra’s law’. I reckon if you own the paper you can spill as much ink as you want.
jthompson on March 19 at 8:25 a.m.
Sisyphus, clearly you are an attorney, or at least someone with a much deeper understanding of the letter of the law, so by all means, you should display your arrogance in all its glory.
Dan’s attack on liberals clearly rubbed you wrong, but you missed the point, which is, this kind of evil behavior deserves a much stiffer penalty than 10 years in jail.
With regard to courtroom etiquette, I think Dan’s point was this scumbag doesn’t deserve to be called “Sir” and perhaps it seems odd to someone who isn’t in court every day for a criminal of this nature to be extended this kind of courtesy.

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About this blog

D.F. Oliveria is a columnist and blogger for The Spokesman-Review. Huckleberries Online was judged the best 2008 Idaho newspaper blog by the Idaho Press Club. And the best 2007 news blog in the Pacific Northwest by the Society for Professional Journalist. Print Huckleberries is a past winner of the Herb Caen Memorial Column contest by the National Association of Newspaper Columnists. The Readership Institute of Northwestern University cited this blog as a good example of online community journalism.