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April 10, 2006
But -- my honor -- she's my wife!
I was handling the morning's cases in the master trial calendar court a few years ago, when a Spanish-speaking in-custody inmate stood up in the box to be sentenced by the judge.
He had entered a guilty plea to a violation of California Penal Code Section 273.5, misdemeanor domestic violence, had slapped his wife around, but without serious injuries -- that's why it wasn't a felony.
The case had been referred to probation for a sentencing report and recommendation, the usual practice in DV cases, and the judge was pronouncing sentence, based in part on what the deputy probation officer who had authored the report was requesting.
The court's Spanish-language interpreter stood outside the custody box, to the inmate's left, whispering in his ear, as his public defender stood to the defendant's right.
"Sir, you are sentenced to 45 days in the Ventura County Jail with credits of --" the judge paused, looking at the public defender.
"Seventeen days, your honor."
"With 17 days' credits," the judge continued. "The court offers to place you on 36 months formal probation, with weapons terms, 52 sessions of domestic violence counseling. You are furthermore ordered to use no force or violence against Maria X; do not annoy molest or harass Maria X. Do you accept probation on these terms?"
The interpreter murmured in the defendant's ear, then listened as he spoke in rapid-fire Spanish, a confused look on his face.
The defendant tried to speak, as his attorney tried to shush him.
Growing more agitated, he pushed the interpreter aside and began addressing the judge directly in passable English.
"But my Honor, she's my wife!"
The judge paused, studying the defendant over his reading glasses, then sighed and said, "That fact notwithstanding, sir, you are ordered to use no force or violence upon her. Do you understand?"
With a furrowed brow, the defendant said, "Yes," agreed to the strange conditions of probation, then disappeared into the sally port to begin serving the balance of his sentence.
Which serves as a long-winded introduction to how they do domestic violence
south of the border.
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - A Mexican couple were recovering separately after a marital spat got out of control and saw them firing guns, throwing knives and hurling homemade bombs, Mexican daily Milenio said on Monday.
In scenes taken straight out of hit romantic comedy "Mr. and Mrs. Smith," starring Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, Juan Espinosa and Irma Contreras fought until their house blew up in a homemade gasoline bomb explosion, Milenio said.
Police called to the home in the indigenous Mayan Indian town of Oxkutzcab in the southeastern state of Yucatan arrested Espinosa. Contreras was taken to hospital with third-degree burns.
A local police official confirmed the report but declined to provide further information.
In the violence-filled movie about the fictional Smiths, Pitt and Jolie play married assassins ordered to kill each other.
Espinosa told reporters he was glad his wife had suffered burns, while Contreras said she was only sorry she had not "hacked off his manhood" during the fight.
They probably wouldn't do well on probation up Ventura way.
Posted by Mike Lief at April 10, 2006 12:40 AM
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