# Ohio dad gets jail for mocking girl with cerebral palsy **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 28, 2012, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405 "2012-11-28T21:19:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Enkel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/df705f/32.png) [@Enkel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enkel)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 9:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405/41 "2012-11-29T09:58:35Z")
An Oct 3rd Report of the situation: > [@](#): > > The Knights [victims] have taken their plight to a Cleveland TV station WJW Fox 8, which first aired their story. > > Donning red shirts emblazoned with the words “Stop the Bullying,” the Knights say they want their message to reach everyone, and that they are encouraging everyone living in the Canton South School district to wear similar shirts when they meet next week with Bailey and the Canton City Prosecutor’s Office. The parties were to sit down with city prosecutors to see if charges are possible or a resolution can be found. > > […] > > “We’re not doing this for handouts, donations and any other monetary items of any sort,” Michael Knight said. > > “We just want the bullying and the ridiculous behavior from the kids and the adults to stop.” [http://www.cantonrep.com/news/x1784776973/Mocking-video-calls-attention-to-fighting-families?zc\_p=0](http://www.cantonrep.com/news/x1784776973/Mocking-video-calls-attention-to-fighting-families?zc_p=0) The Knights who had been renting at the time of the incident, have since bought the house that they live in. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405/42 "2012-11-29T10:41:18Z")
> [@tellyworth](#): > > Ah, l18n error. I meant imprisonment in its most general sense. We like to be specific about the way our system fails to function. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405/43 "2012-11-29T10:49:57Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > He’s going to jail, not prison. However, our jails are overcrowded also, mostly with people awaiting trial who will be released based on time served when they’re finally convicted. Statistics don’t usually separate those, because most of the world doesn’t see a difference between them either. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Borgia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/larry_borgia/32/156_2.png) [@Larry\_Borgia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Borgia)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 10:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405/44 "2012-11-29T10:59:39Z")
> [@Antinor01](#): > > Jail for maybe making fun of a handicapped person? That’s lame. Retarded, too. Seriously, there’s gotta be more to the story. Why would he plead guilty if it was merely a matter of making a few rude comments and mocking the girl’s gait? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405/45 "2012-11-29T11:07:08Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > Statistics don’t usually separate those, because most of the world doesn’t see a difference between them either. Ok, fine with me. 30 days in prison, not jail, and no appeal. I’m still good with this. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405/46 "2012-11-29T14:55:40Z")
> [@Larry\_Borgia](#): > > Seriously, there’s gotta be more to the story. Why would he plead guilty if it was merely a matter of making a few rude comments and mocking the girl’s gait? There is more to it. As **Tess** mentioned in post #16, he was originally charged with first-degree aggravated menacing because he threatened to choke the mother with a chain, and there has been ongoing tension between the two families involved. Article [here](http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/ohio-man-ordered-jail-mocking-girl-disability-article-1.1209410). ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405/47 "2012-11-29T15:11:28Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > Except that the guy agreed that he was guilty of criminal conduct. He stood in front of a judge and heard the judge explain each element of the crime and then he agreed that the state could prove him guilty, and that he was entering the plea because he was, in fact, guilty. Yeah, that’s fabulous. But my point is … what the hell was he doing in front of a judge in the first place? Can I go around and demand everyone who looks at my daughter funny when she’s in her wheelchair be arrested and brought before a judge because I thought they were being jerks? Edit: didnt’ see this: > [@Tess](#): > > From what I’ve read on another site, he did face a misdemeanor charge for mocking the girl, but the jail time is for threatening to choke the girl’s mother with a chain. If true, then I see why he was in front of a judge. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405/48 "2012-11-29T15:25:38Z")
> [@Gary\_T](#): > > There is more to it. As **Tess** mentioned in post #16, he was originally charged with first-degree aggravated menacing because he threatened to choke the mother with a chain, and there has been ongoing tension between the two families involved. Article [here](http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/ohio-man-ordered-jail-mocking-girl-disability-article-1.1209410). If this is the case, then both the OP and the Fox News article linked in the OP get a big FAIL for getting this story completely wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405/49 "2012-11-29T16:25:38Z")
OK, now give him a month in jail. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405/50 "2012-11-29T16:31:32Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > They used a menacing charge against him. It’s much worse than that. It was _aggravated_ menacing. :rolleyes: What does Ohio think it is? Texas? I sure didn’t know this was a crime. I better be sure who I say “walk this way” to from now on. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405/51 "2012-11-29T16:34:44Z")
If the jail time is for the threatening, then I retract my objections to him being in a cell. The couple articles that have been linked refer to there having been ongoing trouble between the two families.I’m curious whether that just means the jailbird’s family harassing the crippled girl’s family or more of a mutual feuding situation. ---
**Author:** ![lawbuff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/13edae/32.png) [@lawbuff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lawbuff)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2012, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405/52 "2012-11-29T17:05:52Z")
> [@Rhythmdvl](#): > > Per the OP’s link (and a second I double-checked) he plead ‘no contest’. IIRC, he didn’t admit guilt, he admitted that if he went to trial he’d likely be convicted. Further, though I don’t know the specifics of his jurisdiction, I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t have had to allocute to the charges–to say that he was entering the plea because he was, in fact, guilty. I live in Ohio also. 2903.21 Aggravated menacing. (A) No person shall knowingly cause another to believe that the offender will cause serious physical harm to the person or property of the other person, the other person’s unborn, or a member of the other person’s immediate family. Some have said he threatened a person with a chain? In Ohio, any offense over a Minor Misdemeanor is triable by jury and if indigent, a public defender will be appointed to repesent them. When Arraigned, a defendant is instructed in this regard. If he plead “no contest”, the court must give approval, it is not required to accept such a plea, further, Rule 11; (2) The plea of no contest is not an admission of defendant’s guilt, but is an admission of the truth of the facts alleged in the indictment, information, or complaint, and the plea or admission shall not be used against the defendant in any subsequent civil or criminal proceeding. He had the opportunity to Plead not guilty. If the charge was against the manifest weight of the evidence, an attorney can argue that. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Call\_Me\_Shirley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Don\_t\_Call\_Me\_Shirley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Call_Me_Shirley)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2012, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405/53 "2012-11-30T19:52:06Z")
> [@zoid](#): > > Bullshit. I’ve stood in front of a judge and heard the judge explain each element of the crime and then agreed that the state could prove me guilty, _ **because someone lied through their teeth to get me there** _. Pleading guilty in this country is in no fucking way proof you did what you were accused of. Innocent people plead guilty every fucking day and you God-Damn-Well know it. OK, so you’re guilty of perjury, a felony, which is probably more serious than the crime you falsely admitted to. So you got off light. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2012, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405/54 "2012-11-30T20:38:48Z")
Entering a plea does not subject you to liability for perjury. ---
**Author:** ![taskmgr.exe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@taskmgr.exe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/taskmgr.exe)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405/55 "2012-12-01T01:02:23Z")
From a suicide thread: > [@Why do some people mock the ones who are suicidal?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-some-people-mock-the-ones-who-are-suicidal/612537/32): > > People demonize the weak because they don’t want to be them, be associated with them, empathize with them, experience in any way the hopeless circles they travel in. > > My guess is that middle and high school children are so remarkably cruel because they are at a stage of life with a typically high level of uncertainty and fear. Real empathy is something only the brave can stand to experience. > > When people say, “oh, he only does that for attention”, I can only think, “then why don’t you give just him some, since he doesn’t know how to ask directly?” > > I’m not brave. But I know what it looks like, and it doesn’t look like contempt for the weak. Then, can we say that those who mock suicides should be jailed? ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2012, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405/56 "2012-12-02T04:10:50Z")
> [@taskmgr.exe](#): > > Then, can we say that those who mock suicides should be jailed? And this relates to the subject at hand, which despite the OP’s erroneous title involves someone jailed not for mocking but for threatening, how? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ohio-dad-gets-jail-for-mocking-girl-with-cerebral-palsy/642405.md?page=2)