Do realize I wasn't there to hear all the details but I simply and utterly can't get my head around some things that now seem so acceptable in our society.

When I read the below article - cruel or not - I honest felt that a persons crumby childhood is no excuse and the sentence very light - especially considering how this little child must have felt being abducted by a man with a knife!

(Quote)
" James Stevenson, THE CANADIAN PRESS

DRUMHELLER, Alta. - A man who abducted a six-year-old boy at knife point last fall and drove around southern Alberta for hours without laying a finger on him has been sentenced to 15 months in jail. ...

Without publicly discussing the young man's circumstances, the judge suggested that in some ways Smith, too, was a victim.

Look at his background and what he's been through - it's incredible he made it this far without a criminal record."
Clozza, who has been on the bench nearly 30 years, said the case was one of the most difficult he's faced in trying to determine an appropriate sentence". (Unquote)

Full article found here:
http://www.mytelus.com/ncp_news/article.en...ticleID=2946913

I do wonder if the Judge would have been so understanding if it had been his little son or grandson that went through this ordeal. Sigh.

This post has been edited by Mara: Jun 27 2008, 10:53 PM

I am looking at this case from a different angle,Mara.I don't think a heavier sentance would have achieved much, given his Psychiatric disorder.The boy was unlucky, to have been the Victim here,but I also feel the boy was fortunate, this Smith didn't have all his faculties.If Smith was of normal intelligence,then I am sure Smith would have planned out every detail, and this abduction could have ended tragically.Fortunately for the boy,Smith clearly didn't plan this abduction out in every detail.To me that's the reason he kept driving around for so long.Did not plan ahead,and panic set in.Lucky for the boy.
Don't think time in Jail achieves much,in this case.Pcychiatric care full time would be a better option.IMO.I agree Smith will reoffend, if not monitored 24.7.To say Smith is a Victim, also is rubbish.If Psychiatric Test Reports say he is likely to reoffend,then he should be removed from society,till they are sure, he poses no further risk to anybody.Indeed a difficult case to judge,Mara,and thanks for sharing.

Yes, I agree that 'jail' wouldn't be appropriate in this particular case ... as you mentioned, Psychiatric hospital sentence would perhaps be helpful for him but more importantly, safer for society and other children. The next one may not be so lucky.