SPOOFE
February 21, 2003, 8:06am
101
NOTE: I’m not accusing anyone of being heartless or anything (that would be ironic). Just pointing out that “mental illness”, as an excuse, only goes so far. Like the “I was drunk” excuse.
*Originally posted by Mockingbird *sigh
Why is it in most of the discussion of the offenders in this thread, I have seen little to no discussion of these two being mentally ill.
What I think is that they need be put into a mental health program to treat them. A healthy person, as far as I believe at least, does not want sex with the dead, not to mention dead children. **
Have the offenders been classified as unfit to stand trial because of their mental illness/disability?
Heloise
February 21, 2003, 3:45pm
103
No, it doesn’t look like it. All they are being charged for is mutilation of a body, not necrophilia. One good thing, though:
The difficulty facing prosecutors is that currently there is no law in the state that outlaws sexual acts on a dead body.
On Thursday, Assemblywoman Sharon Runner, D-Lancaster, took the first step to create a state law that would prohibit such acts.
Runner, who represents Adelanto, introduced a bill to make such acts a criminal offense as well as strengthen health and safety codes that apply in such cases.
"Nobody thinks of anyone doing something like this to a body,’ Runner said. "If this can keep one person from going through what Robyn’s family has gone through, the effort to pass this will be worth it.’
Runner said the bill would make such acts punishable with sentences akin to those for others sexual offenses and will require those convicted to be registered as sex offenders.
So, although it wasn’t against the law before, they are doing something about it now.