Judge Conner

I've been meaning to write about this for a couple of days, but technical difficulties have made it impossible. It's kind of funny that the controversy solved itself while I was away.

I don't think it was correct to sentence a sex offender to probation, but I'm not a judge. The fact of the matter is that the a republican prosecutor signed off on the deal, and yet Ron O'Brien has escaped public scrutiny for it. I want to know what Bill O'Reilly thinks about O'Brien's actions in this case.

Of course, the whole thing is dead now that the GOP smear machine has realized that many of their own judges has done the same thing, and since they pretty much hold a stranglehold on judgeships in Ohio, they won't go there.

This is probably an excellent opportunity to have a discussion on policy though. What to we do with sex offenders? It's a tough question. Everybody is in favor of tougher sentencing, including me, but how do we do this? Mandatory minimums are never the answer in my opinion, as they are to rigid in any application of the law. However, certain types of sex offender have some of the highest instances of recidivism.

I think we have enough history of these offenders to know that what we are doing now isn't working. Many of the ones who manage to run the gauntlet of prison to be released still have the same problem they went in with.

A new solution must be found and I have had some conversations with a few people lately about it, and I don't necessarily have an answer. Locking them up for life is certainly an option, but that must be not mandated, it should be judged by a group of experts. If fact, perhaps a governor appointed body of experts on the matter should determine the sentencing and treatment of these individuals.