41 replies to this topic

[jagayman]

Well, after being alerted by friends that their activity was posted all over the internet, the girls did the right thing and came forward.

They first tried to talk to my wife while I was still at work, but my wife didn't want to answer the door by herself so she called 911. A little while later, the girls turned themselves in at the Folsom PD.

They claim they were drunk and it was out of character. They both have jobs in El Dorado Hills and are 18.

Rather than pressing charges, we're going to give them a chance to make restitution. We agreed that they should each make a donation to Make-A-Wish. And as a fitting action, they are going to come over this weekend and help me take down the lights.

[Devdave]

Great outcome!

Do they work somewhere, where they rely on tips? I just want to go in and stiff them.

Sorry....

Their parents must be real *proud* of them...

Well, after being alerted by friends that their activity was posted all over the internet, the girls did the right thing and came forward.

They first tried to talk to my wife while I was still at work, but my wife didn't want to answer the door by herself so she called 911. A little while later, the girls turned themselves in at the Folsom PD.

They claim they were drunk and it was out of character. They both have jobs in El Dorado Hills and are 18.

Rather than pressing charges, we're going to give them a chance to make restitution. We agreed that they should each make a donation to Make-A-Wish. And as a fitting action, they are going to come over this weekend and help me take down the lights.

[jagayman]

Great outcome!

Do they work somewhere, where they rely on tips? I just want to go in and stiff them.

Sorry....

Their parents must be real *proud* of them...

They both work in El Dorado Hills -- I won't say where. Sorry, it's not a tipping job.

[cw68]

I'm glad that they came forward, that you aren't pressing charges and that they are going to spend time with you facing up to their wrong doings and helping you. While this is a bad thing, it's also not the kind of the thing that should be on their record and hampering their future IF there is an alternative such as the plan you've decided. You get kudos from me by making this a learning lesson - considering the minimal amount of damage they inflicted - instead of a unnecessarily huge obstacle they must overcome at a young age.

Lest anyone think I'm downplaying what they did, I'm not. I think it takes a heck of a lot more guts for both Jason and the girls to face this together and spend healing time together than it would had they let the courts deal the cards. The legal system is bland. What they are doing puts people behind the crime and victims and goes much farther towards preventing future actions.

Hear Hear. I'm very pleased in the community spirit shown here.

[Thinkingoutloud]

I'm glad that they came forward, that you aren't pressing charges and that they are going to spend time with you facing up to their wrong doings and helping you. While this is a bad thing, it's also not the kind of the thing that should be on their record and hampering their future IF there is an alternative such as the plan you've decided. You get kudos from me by making this a learning lesson - considering the minimal amount of damage they inflicted - instead of a unnecessarily huge obstacle they must overcome at a young age.

Lest anyone think I'm downplaying what they did, I'm not. I think it takes a heck of a lot more guts for both Jason and the girls to face this together and spend healing time together than it would had they let the courts deal the cards. The legal system is bland. What they are doing puts people behind the crime and victims and goes much farther towards preventing future actions.

Hear Hear. I'm very pleased in the community spirit shown here.

Very, very well said!! +1

[Bill Z]

Very, very well said!! +1

I concur. Since the girls show remorse and are willing to do the right thing to make things right (like donate to Make a Wish and help Jason remove his lights to store for next year), they are showing they want to be good productive citizens in our society.

I'm happy to hear this is the outcome.

[WolfMom]

I've been following this thread with interest and I must say that I am pleasantly surprised at the outcome. Thank you for giving them a chance to do better. I hope they embrace your generosity with an open mind and heart. Dale Carnegie would be proud.

Dawn

[old soldier]

agree with the solution...we all have done bad things when we are drunk and the saw the error in their ways, or maybe the certainty of their identification.

what folks have got to realize is cameras are watching everywhere. guess that message could go to the skipper of that aircraft carrier as well.

in a way the girls got a reduction of sentance just like the gov handed out

[cw68]

agree with the solution...we all have done bad things when we are drunk and the saw the error in their ways, or maybe the certainty of their identification.

It's not even just when we're drunk, often when we're young. Now that our society is so sue-crazy little things that in the past would have been handled between people now get completely blown out of proportion and kids aren't able to learn from their mistakes - instead they can ruin futures.

A family friend's son (let's call him Matt), at 18, got into a fight one night when a stranger yelled some VERY disturbing things at his girlfriend. Things that nobody should say, let alone to a stranger. Matt went up to the car and punched the guy in the face, breaking his nose. The family pressed charges and sued Matt and Matt's family because he was a full-time student and still under his parent's insurance. Matt lost his scholarship to the University of Illinois where he was studying Engineering and also got kicked out of the school of Engineering.

He was convicted of a class A misdemeanor at the trial, during which the judge said he was sorry that it had come to this, that in the past the two families would have worked it out without so negatively effecting a kid's future and that while Matt punching the guy was wrong, what the other kid said was wrong too and it was too bad he couldn't sentence him to some kind of consequence for his actions. Instead of going to jail Matt had to do community service and was placed on probation. One of the conditions of probation was that he had to live in the county where his parent's home was. He had to leave the University of Illinois and now goes to the local community college.

I'm not defending Matt's punching the guy, violence is wrong and doesn't solve anything. But it's very sad, IMO, that one punch led to ruining the educational track he spent so much effort working to achieve and that Matt's family had to spend a fortune on legal fees and fines. It's very sad that the family of the rude kid took it to the legal extremes they did.

Oh, and the family is now suing for medical reimbursement and "pain & suffering." Will be interesting to see where that goes...

[SacKen]

...
Rather than pressing charges, we're going to give them a chance to make restitution. We agreed that they should each make a donation to Make-A-Wish. And as a fitting action, they are going to come over this weekend and help me take down the lights.

That's excellent! Seems like something out of Little House On The Prairie.

[Bill Z]

It's not even just when we're drunk, often when we're young. Now that our society is so sue-crazy little things that in the past would have been handled between people now get completely blown out of proportion and kids aren't able to learn from their mistakes - instead they can ruin futures.

A family friend's son (let's call him Matt), at 18, got into a fight one night when a stranger yelled some VERY disturbing things at his girlfriend. Things that nobody should say, let alone to a stranger. Matt went up to the car and punched the guy in the face, breaking his nose. The family pressed charges and sued Matt and Matt's family because he was a full-time student and still under his parent's insurance. Matt lost his scholarship to the University of Illinois where he was studying Engineering and also got kicked out of the school of Engineering.

He was convicted of a class A misdemeanor at the trial, during which the judge said he was sorry that it had come to this, that in the past the two families would have worked it out without so negatively effecting a kid's future and that while Matt punching the guy was wrong, what the other kid said was wrong too and it was too bad he couldn't sentence him to some kind of consequence for his actions. Instead of going to jail Matt had to do community service and was placed on probation. One of the conditions of probation was that he had to live in the county where his parent's home was. He had to leave the University of Illinois and now goes to the local community college.

I'm not defending Matt's punching the guy, violence is wrong and doesn't solve anything. But it's very sad, IMO, that one punch led to ruining the educational track he spent so much effort working to achieve and that Matt's family had to spend a fortune on legal fees and fines. It's very sad that the family of the rude kid took it to the legal extremes they did.

Oh, and the family is now suing for medical reimbursement and "pain & suffering." Will be interesting to see where that goes...

I have a very low tolerance for those who initiate violence. I'm glad to hear "Matt" didn't skate away with a slap on the wrist as so often happens in cases like this. Is the family now going too far with a "pain & suffering" lawsuit, yes, I believe so, but I hope "Matt" has learned his lesson that verbal disagreements aren't resolved by punching someone in the nose.

[Jolene]

Okay, I'd FB'ed Jason telling him to throw the book at them, but as usual, CW's cool head and logic has won me over. I still don't think they are necessarily showing remorse, and likely only turned themselves in because they knew that it was only a matter of time before someone else did, but I admit that is MY downfall of cynicism and I could be completely wrong. Bottom line, they are making reparations for their crimes and hopefully they will prove me wrong, wrong, wrong and will learn a lesson.

You rock, Jason!