D’oh! Nuts!
Donut Champion Dunked Into A Jail Cell
Pictured: Artist’s interpretation of suspect being detained at the local jail…or not.
A North Carolina man was arrested for stealing and breaking into a Dunkin’ Donuts. According to police he is being charged with felonies including breaking and entering and larceny (meaning the theft of someone’s property). It wasn’t specified if any donuts were taken during the theft.
In 2014, the same man won a donut eating contest while being wanted on suspicion of multiple break-ins. After competing in the donut event, Bradley Hardison (the suspect) prompted closer watch by investigators which led to him being convicted. Ironically, he won the contest at the police department’s “National Night Out Against Crime” event.
Hardison was held on a $7,000 bond for his latest charges of breaking and entering and larceny.
————————– Questions:
1)What punishments could Hardison face for the breaking and entering charge in Nevada?
2) What punishments could he face for the larceny charge in Nevada?
Is a $50 Traffic Ticket Worth
Losing your Independence Over?
Angry because of a ticket resulting from a minor traffic infraction, a Maryland man, Eugene Matusevich, began relentlessly harassing the officer who wrote the ticket through texts, social media and more. These texts ranged from jokes about donut runs to sensitive personal details. How did he obtain this information?
A friend of his.
Zak Nicholas Thompson, who worked at a financial services company, had access to the officer’s name, phone number, home address, Social Security number, his financial information (including salary information)…even the make and model of the officer’s personal vehicle. He took that information and gave it to Matusevich.
The officer quickly became deluged with texts and phone calls soliciting offers from companies, including a drug rehabilitation center. Insulting messages about the officer were also posted to his family’s Facebook accounts along with demeaning messages about the neighborhood he lived in, and even the type of car he drove.
At one point, he received 17 texts in less than an hour from Matusevich.
Thompson’s lawyer explained his client’s intent wasn’t to aide Matusevich in a full blown harassment campaign of a law enforcement officer. The lawyer implied that Thompson thought the information would only be used for an angry message or two by his friend.
————————– Questions:
1) The lawyer stated that this was not the case, but do you think that Thompson knew what he was doing when he provided his friend the police officer’s personal details and contact information?
2) Why do you think Thompson either realized or didn’t realize that by giving this information to his friend that he would be held responsible, even though he never contacted the officer?
Be sure to provide full explanations for each of your answers. For more details, you can read the article this piece was sourced from here:
After Teenage Mistakes, Pardons Give Second Chance to Ex-Offenders
Making a mistake is part of life and as a teenager you’re bound to make several but, making a mistake that defines your whole life when your 17 is the harsh reality for some. Contrary to popular belief, juvenile criminal records aren’t always sealed and can follow people throughout their lives.
What kinds of consequences might young offenders face? Foremost, a young offender with a criminal record may not be able to work in certain industries (jobs that involve working with children or positions that handle money will certainly be restricted). Even then, employers faced with choosing to hire between a candidate with a criminal record and one without one are more likely to hire the applicant without a criminal history. Difficulty securing work can lead to other life long problems. Without steady work, a person’s opportunity to make money is severely limited. This might lead to a life of poverty and the struggles that come with it.
Depending on the circumstances, a juvenile record that remains unsealed may be resolved through a pardon. The process for securing pardons for criminal histories of a minor differs from state to state, however that process is rarely short let alone easy. If a pardon is issued an individual may have an opportunity to secure a second chance at a productive and successful life for themselves, however pardons are rare and shouldn’t be considered a guaranteed solution.
New York is changing the lives of young offenders by granting pardons in some cases. The lesson isn’t to expect a pardon or a second chance, but rather to understand the struggle for the many individuals facing lives of constant struggle as a result of poor decisions they made as teenagers. Consider the consequences of your actions.
QUESTIONS:
1. What did you think happened to your ‘juvenile record’ before reading this news piece? In other words, before reading this piece, what did you think would happen once you turned 18 if you had been in legal trouble before becoming an adult?
2. Answer depending on how you feel: Why is it fair or unfair for the process of getting a juvenile record ‘sealed’ or hidden to be so difficult for some people? If you’re still not clear on the idea of a juvenile record, think about it like a ‘permanent record’ that follows you through life as you apply for schools, jobs, a place to live and really just about anything you want that would need some kind of application.
3. What is the process to get a juvenile record sealed in the state you live in? Specifically: How long can it take and what is the least amount of money it would cost to do it?
Teen Vandals Sentenced to
Read Books & Write Papers
It’s rare that a punishment can be inspiring but, a judge in Virginia has given a sentence to young vandals that orders them to read books and write papers. As a provider of educational resources, we find this to be a unique sentence – one that we support. We also hope more judges will find creative ways to change and educate young offenders.
Five 16 and 17 year old boys in Virginia had been found guilty of spray painting racist, sexist, and anti-Semitic symbols on a historic building in their community. At the behest of the prosecutor on the boys’ case, the sentencing judge gave the teens – none of whom had prior records – a list of 35 books and 14 movies with themes of race, gender and religious issues.
The boys were required to provide written reports on what they read or watched on a monthly basis, and their parents had to visit a holocaust museum with them so ‘the whole family would learn together’.
The prosecutor explained ””They have to write either a book report once a month of they can substitute three of of the books for a movie review, so I also gave them a list of approved movies that they can watch. And hopefully, what they get out of this year is a greater appreciation for gender, race, religion, bigotry. And then when they go out in to the world, they are teachers.“
QUESTIONS
——
1) Why does it seem fair or unfair (depending how you feel) that young people like these students can be given non-traditional punishments (having to do book reports instead of going to jail) ?
2) The judge in this case decided how to punish the students even though there wasn’t a law or rule explaining to the judge how unique their punishment could be. What benefitsare there to our community when judges can make up their own punishments?
3) The judge in this case decided how to punish the students even though there wasn’t a law or rule explaining to the judge how unique their punishment could be. What risks are there to our community when judges can make up their own punishments?
Thank you for letting us experience court for the first time. It was the best experience ever, thank you for everything. You really made me think about being a judge. Thank you
-Mina L [ Twitchell Elementary - Grade 5]
Project Real
2020-12-16T22:04:09+00:00
Thank you for letting us experience court for the first time. It was the best experience ever, thank you for everything. You really made me think about being a judge. Thank you -Mina L [ Twitchell Elementary - Grade 5]
Thank you for letting us watch the civil case! It was cool because it was a real case and not one played out. I had a lot of fun watching the other kids act out a session. Thank you for your time.
- Kaylie [Hewetson Elementary - Grade 5]
Project Real
2020-12-11T20:39:35+00:00
Thank you for letting us watch the civil case! It was cool because it was a real case and not one played out. I had a lot of fun watching the other kids act out a session. Thank you for your time. - Kaylie [Hewetson Elementary - Grade 5]
My favorite part of the fieldtrip to the courthouse is when I got to play the part of Ron. I got to go on the witness chair and speaking. I helped Potter to be not guilty. Thank you for the great opportunity.
- Johnathan M [Harmon Elementary - Grade 4]
Project Real
2020-12-16T21:47:04+00:00
My favorite part of the fieldtrip to the courthouse is when I got to play the part of Ron. I got to go on the witness chair and speaking. I helped Potter to be not guilty. Thank you for the great opportunity. - Johnathan M [Harmon Elementary - Grade 4]
