Sick. Absolutely sick. Thank God, for once, finally in 8 years, hate crimes go in both directions.
Some beautiful points by Gregg Jarrett:
http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2017...nd-that-means-double-trouble-for-accused.html
Gregg Jarrett: Chicago torture video represents two distinct kinds of hate crimes - and that means double trouble for the accused
Four black people, two men and two women, stand accused of beating and torturing a white teenager who is mentally handicapped.
The suspects so enjoyed their heinous acts,
they videotaped themselves kicking, punching and cutting their victim with a knife. He was forced to drink out of a filthy toilet. Their torment lasted for almost two days. All the while, they laughed. The footage was displayed on Facebook.
The perpetrators are heard on the tape yelling obscenities about white people and Donald Trump. The victim is ordered to say, “I love black people.” How does any of that make sense?
Perhaps it is born of ignorance. But
I suspect these individuals are somehow missing the essential faculties that elevate humans above all other species: compassion and the ability to distinguish right from wrong. The capacity to reason and feel.
After some deliberation, Chicago authorities have decided to charge Jordan Hill, Tesfaye Cooper, Brittany Covington and Tanishia Covington with hate crimes and a multitude of other offenses including kidnapping, battery with a deadly weapon and unlawful restraint, all of which are aggravated crimes...
Because Illinois seeks to protect people from attacks based on both race and disability, this case presents two distinct kinds of hate crimes. Which means double trouble for the accused.
But assuming the defendants are convicted, the real question is how the trial judge will punish. Judges in Chicago are notorious for meting out meager sentences. Thus, the rampant crime in “the windy city” that has made it the murder capital of America.
A judge who cares about law and order should rule that the sentences run consecutively, not concurrently. Throw away the key. The remote chance at rehabilitation should take a back seat to deterrence and retribution.
As sad and unnerving as the video is, the remark made by a Chicago police commander should illicit chills. He seemed to characterize the attack as driven by immaturity. “They’re young adults, he said. “And they make stupid decisions.”
As for the racist taunts, he held out the possibility that they were nothing more than “stupid ranting and raving.”
No, sir… these were not the acts of callow misspent youth. This was torture driven by racial animus.