Domestic violence no longer a punishable offense in Topeka

[Chris Wallace]

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/nationnow/2011/10/domestic-violence-topeka-kansas.html

 

[THE MR. TERRIFIC]

That's Crazy!

 

[Wolfwood]

“We live in Kansas, where we are used to taking a lot of punches on the chin,” said Kari Ann Rinker, state coordinator for Kansas NOW

I nearly spit out my coffee when I read that line.

 

[Duke]

This is just plain ludicrous!

 

[WildcatNC]

I think Topeka just became the pimp slap capitol of America.

 

[Secret Fawful]

Not cool, Zeus. Not cool.

 

[Darthphere]

I don't understand the move really. Wouldn't they just be charged with assault now which by their own crazy ridiculous laws is more serious than their domestic violence charge?

 

[terry78]

In other news, a massive surge of newly married couples moved to Kansas in a record amount of time.

 

[Teelie]

Kanas, always progressive in the ways of regression. If there's a way to overturn decades of success, Kansas will find it. Next up they'll probably find a way to return to segregation. They're already part way to it as it is.

 

[bored]

Hey all, guy who has lived most of his life in Topeka, and has spent a considerable amount of time protesting this bizarre measure here.

First thing: The District Attorney agreed to start prosecuting DV cases again the day after the City Council made their vote (I attended that meeting, btw).

Second: This all started because of stupidity regarding budgetary issues.

Third: I know Kari Ann Rinker, and she lives with her foot in her mouth.

 

[Erzengel]

This makes me so angry I want to strike someone in my residence.

 

[Ultra Lantern]

This is so wrong.

 

[Boom]

I don't understand this. How is domestic violence not a punishable offense? It's one of the most deplorable forms of assault.

How does any politician, let alone any sane human being, justify this?

 

[Victarion]

Someone order fifty dominatrixes to the guy who got this passed.

 

[bored]

Let me give everyone a very basic rundown of how this all happened:

Vic Miller, outgoing member of the Shawnee County Commission, cut the District Attorney's budget.

DA, in response, said he would no longer prosecute misdemeanors (which domestic battery is, for some reason, classified as here).

Public raises cane over the fact that DA won't prosecute said domestic battery cases. This goes on for several weeks, wherein several offenders are released from prison because there is nobody to prosecute them (city attorneys simply don't, as they were never in the habit of it, because previously DA had always done so). At least one offender is released, then arrested again for committing another act of domestic violence.

City Council, instead of ordering city attorneys to prosecute DV in municipal court, decides they want to force District Attorney's office to prosecute them again. To do so, they vote to repeal city ordinance recognizing domestic violence as a crime on that level. People are justifiably outraged. I walk out of city hall cursing and loudly telling my friend that we need to hold recall elections.

The next day, DA decides to prosecute domestic battery again, because now nobody else officially can. City and DA's office are now working on an agreement where the city's attorneys will prosecute other misdemeanors, so long as DA takes domestic violence cases.
---This last part was because the City Council are insisting that district/county courts are better suited to try cases of domestic battery than municipal courts.

At some point, City Councilman Chad Manspeaker goes on Twitter and says that people who disagreed with City Council's actions constitute the "uninformed electorate". I eagerly wait his lopsided loss in his bid for reelection (which is, unfortunately, not soon).

 

[Teelie]

I don't understand this. How is domestic violence not a punishable offense? It's one of the most deplorable forms of assault.

How does any politician, let alone any sane human being, justify this?

This is how it used to be. Under the law in most countries (and in some it still is) it was legal for domestic violence to occur because it was considered a private matter between husband and wife. The law was not legally permitted to interfere even in cases of rape. I think they drew the line at murdering your spouse but pretty much anything else was free game.

If you live in Kansas, I truly am sorry but that state has some backwards priorities and the people running it are there because other people with equally absurd priorities elected them.

 

[bored]

True, though I'll just point out that this was the asinine decision of one city. The sad thing is some of the city council members who supported this were only elected this year in a sort of "throw the bums out" election cycle.

Aside from general bass-ackwards priorities, yeah, we know, and we're all used to it. Those of us that are not insane.

 

[Godzilla2000]

Remind me never to visit Topeka anytime soon.

 

[Metamorpho1977]

Now the ****es are going to start moving in.
****es running around, doing their little behind-shake for the men folk...

 

[bored]

Remind me never to visit Topeka anytime soon.

Not sure what would compel you to in the first place. Usually we just have our phasers set to "bland".

 

[terry78]

Us folks here in flyover country are so backward and dated, a-hyuk!

 

[Franklin Richards]

Can we at least bring back the Rule of Thumb? That will minimize the damage.

 

[Lantern Venom]

Now the ****es are going to start moving in.
****es running around, doing their little behind-shake for the men folk...

Housekeeping. You want mint for pillow?

But, seriously, Topeka, I hope you are ready for a legion of cases involving angry dads who had no choice but to protect their daughters with violence.

 

[bored]

Once again, DV cases are being prosecuted again. That lasted for all of a day. A day too long, but a day nonetheless.

 

[Chris Wallace]

I'm trying to figure out how it even became an option. We need to cut costs. What to do, what to do? Oh, I know-let's stop jailing wifebeaters!