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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsWisconsin 4-year-old foils sitter’s plot to blame ‘home invasion’ and robbery on ‘black men’
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/06/24/wisconsin-4-year-old-foils-sitters-plot-to-blame-home-invasion-and-robbery-on-black-men/The sitter told police shed never seen the men before, but that one of them looked like an African-American neighbor named Cody Oaks.
Police handcuffed Oaks and questioned him for hours. It was Abby, however, who told police that he couldnt be the robber.
It wasnt the right skin color, said Abby. The robbers she saw, she said, were white men.
joeybee12
(56,177 posts)There goes her career in politics!
KNR
rug
(82,333 posts)arthritisR_US
(7,269 posts)"Uh, yeah...whatever"
Catherine Vincent
(34,485 posts)Submariner
(12,485 posts)they have no fear of telling the truth, because they haven't learned "tact" yet.
Awhile back, a neighbor's wife was talking to my wife about having a childhood friend visit her new home. With her 4 year old daughter standing nearby, her mother told my wife that her friend is a wonderful person, but extremely fat and overweight.
Sure enough the friend visits the next day, and while standing next to her mom and her mom's friend, the 4 year old said, "Gee mom, you're right, she sure is really fat."
The mom I heard felt like shriveling into a crack in the seat cushion to disappear. So the mother learned a hard lesson that day. Four year old kids are brutally honest.
LisaL
(44,962 posts)Her things were stolen. There was no motive for her to lie to begin with. Of course she was honest.
woodsprite
(11,853 posts)When I was about 4yo, I ran up to our door to welcome my great aunt, gave her a hug, and said "I just knew it was you Aunt Alma!" She said "How did you know that sweetie?" I answer "Cause Daddy said "Oh shit, here she comes again." Needless to say, my father was in the doghouse for awhile where my Mom, Gmom and GAunt were concerned
tblue37
(64,979 posts)safeinOhio
(32,527 posts)a regular customer came in and I asked him about the armed robbery he was hit by at the business he managed. It was in the paper and said he was stuck up by 2 Hispanic men with guns. I asked him if had taken the lie detector test yet. He gave me a strange look. Later he was arrested for being part of an inside job.
catbyte
(34,169 posts)The truth usually comes out. Bravo to the little girl and shame on that racist piece of garbage sitter.
arthritisR_US
(7,269 posts)Stellar
(5,644 posts)LOL, out of the mouth of babes and sucklings...
Glad the little girl spoke up.
Cops always look for the easy arrest nothing new here, remember the central park 5 ?
KamaAina
(78,249 posts)And the couple in Boston? And so on ad nauseam.
Agreed
Michigander_Life
(549 posts)The police were investigating a serious crime and the "victim" named a suspect -- failing to locate / arrest / interview that suspect would be derelict.
If the police were to blame in this case, they would have kept the original suspect in custody despite learning the exculpatory information about his involvement. But they didn't. Despite what you may have read on DU, not every single arrest is unjust or unwarranted.
The sitter should do just as much time as the "robber" she falsely accused, plus an additional 10 years.
Mr Dixon
(1,185 posts)Last edited Tue Jun 24, 2014, 03:23 PM - Edit history (1)
As if they didn't investigate the central park 5? you can't be serious.
Michigander_Life
(549 posts)If a neighbor you recognized broke into your house and robbed you, and you told the police who had done it, surely you would expect them to arrest and interview the man.
The police conducted what appears to be a competent investigation which revealed that the named suspect was innocent and the crime was staged. I think applauding them for a job well done is more appropriate than berating them for the ineptitude of the investigators in other cases that werent handled well.
It bothers me that when the police do their job properly and the result is justice, that people here still jump on the opportunity to bash them. How are we supposed to fix the real problems with our police departments if we are berating them when they do good work?
Mr Dixon
(1,185 posts)Perceptive
IMO the police should error on the side of caution rather than speed of arrest, if it takes them awhile to solve a crime so what, but I think it definitely matters that they get the right person would you not agree? You brought up cops bashing which I dont agree with, how many hundreds of people have been released from prison after true investigations were conducted and innocent people were finally released? Now image how many people are still in prison because the police rushed to solve the crime? My point is there seems to be pressure on the police to solve crimes quickly instead of proficiently. Does us no good to imprison there wrong person and have the real criminals still on the street would you not agree?
Michigander_Life
(549 posts)They are two very different things. An arrest often is, and should be, at the forefront of any investigation. Probable cause is required for an arrest, and the PC standard is far lower than the standard of proof for conviction -- which requires a case be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
Because of these two different standards, we should expect there to be a significant disparity between number of arrests and number of convictions. That's the way our system is designed to work.
Obviously the goal should be to arrest as few innocent people as possible. But I think that in this case, when a serious crime is reported and the suspect identified, an arrest and interview with the suspect is proper and prudent.
It's unfortunate that the real suspect was the original victim, but she deserves the blame. The police do not.
rocktivity
(44,555 posts)If that child hadn't spoken up, or hadn't been believed, the odds are that the "suspect" WOULD have been charged based on the sitter's "positive ID," if not a forced confession. An alibi? Not if he were home alone. A lie detector test? I hope so, but I read about someone passing a lie detector test, and the cops telling him he'd failed it -- which they have a legal right to do!
rocktivity
Michigander_Life
(549 posts)In a case where a crime has been reported and a seemingly credible victim identifies the suspect by name, such as her ex-boyfriend or neighbor or whomever, but there is a lack of evidence aside from the identification, what should we do? I think the police should arrest the suspect and interview the suspect. I think the prosecution should weigh the facts of the case to determine whether charges should ultimately be filed or not.
But if I was sitting on a jury, I would have a hard time convicting someone in such a case.
dsc
(52,129 posts)A person says I know person x and person x broke in and stole stuff. They should say, well the person might be a big fat liar so we won't investigate, we won't question him, and life will go on. Is that really what the cops should do in your world?
They questioned him for "five, six hours" seems like they had no intention of following up any leads
dsc
(52,129 posts)I would presume because they asked the girl what happened and then they freed him.
However they also gave the real robbers 5 to 6 hours worth of a head start, image if this was a murder charge? what are the chances of catching them with that type of head start?
Michigander_Life
(549 posts)It sounds like he gave them his statement and they were corroborating it. Should they let everyone who has been lawfully arrested and proclaims innocence go free before verifying any of their statement?
noiretextatique
(27,275 posts)so, i think they should be skeptical when someone uses that excuse. perhaps they were, and from what i've read, i cannot blame the police. however, if we know about "the black guy did it" so do they.
Michigander_Life
(549 posts)Naming a specific person is a lot different than providing a vague physical description of someone. It seems reckless for the sitter to name a specific person, as that person could be easily proven to be uninvolved, which would immediately discredit her entire story.
Then again, she's a 17 year old staging a robbery. She's probably not that smart and reckless seems right up her alley.
muriel_volestrangler
(101,149 posts)You might be able to get away with saying a 4 year old couldn't recognise someone from a line-up, but for them not to be able to remember the colour of their skin?
gollygee
(22,336 posts)when this kind of thing happens.
Yes, 4-year-olds tell it like it is.
(Edited to add a disclaimer that I don't actually wish 4-year-olds were at crime scenes, just commenting on the fact that this also happens when there is no 4-year-old to tell the truth.)
Jeff In Milwaukee
(13,992 posts)A four-year-old should be on duty in the Oval Office at all times. Daily press briefings.
Jefferson23
(30,099 posts)Idiot schmuck babysitter..will the babysitter be charged with making false accusations? hmm.
HooptieWagon
(17,064 posts)Jefferson23
(30,099 posts)did to upset the life of the man she tried to blame..disgusting behavior.
HooptieWagon
(17,064 posts)Its also a possibility she was in on the planning of the robbery, letting the bf know what valuables there were, when the homeowners would be away, etc. In which case she'd be guilty of armed robbery also.
Jefferson23
(30,099 posts)Baitball Blogger
(46,572 posts)Stay honest and don't ever grow up.
Dopers_Greed
(2,640 posts)Filing a false police report is a felony. Will prosectors throw the book at her like they would a black person charged with a felony?
rocktivity
(44,555 posts)Last edited Wed Jun 25, 2014, 12:55 AM - Edit history (9)
and knowingly participated in it by playing the role of one of the victims and giving the cops false info (accessory).
I'd threaten her with running her sentences consecutively, which should be enough to make her "flip" on her accomplices: "What would you rather be doing five to ten years from now -- walking out of here, or only qualifying for parole?"
rocktivity
raccoon
(31,089 posts)AverageJoe90
(10,745 posts)Hope that 'sitter gets some jail time for the idiocy she pulled.....go Abby!
Initech
(99,910 posts)Couldn't resist!
CBGLuthier
(12,723 posts)the people are in this country. I do hope the babysitter does not have any bad experience in prison with actual black people who might take offense to her lie. I really do.