In Texas, man gets 4mos for killing wife, 15yrs for wounding her boyfriend

[lavenderdiva]

CNN link:

http://www.cnn.com/2005/LAW/01/06/jealous.husband.ap/index.html

This makes me embarrassed and ashamed to admit that I live in Texas.

[Maraya1969]

1. I'm embarassed that Texas lives in the US n/t

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

2. Why the difference between the two murders

since both happened under "sudden passion"? My conclusion is that a MAN's life is worth more than a woman's, especially a wife's.

[lavenderdiva]

3. that's the way I read it as well, unfortunately n/t

[iamjoy]

5. Yep, That's What It Sounds Like

it is okay for a man to kill his cheating wife because he is understandably angry at her infidelity.

But if a woman kills an unfaithful husband, that is 1st Degree Murder.

Sure sounds like that is what they are saying.

Added on edit:
And what would happen if the son would kill the father and claim temporary insanity at the idea that the man got away with murder? that he felt it was the only way to exorcise the horrible image in his mind...his mother dying.

[The Stranger]

11. Actually . . .

But if a woman kills an unfaithful husband, that is 1st Degree Murder.

. . . the woman could assert the same sudden passion defense the man asserted, if the circumstances were reversed.

And if you were a woman on that jury, you would have to consider it.

[iamjoy]

20. Wouldn't Work For A Woman

I think some women have tried it, with no success.

The Dallas Prosecutor actually once drafted a manual saying their attorneys should try not to have women and minorities on a jury.

[The Stranger]

52. Well, if it is any consolation,

a woman's conviction for murdering her four sons was just overturned on appeal in Texas.

[Jazzgirl]

14. In Texas its okay for a man to kill his wife period!

I remember two cases several years ago. Two guys I worked with both killed their wives. One dragged his wife up the steps by her heals (supposedly) causing her head to bump violently against the steps resulting in her death. Another one took a rifle and unloaded it in his wife. He lived next door to the Tarrant County (Ft. Worth) DA. the first one got thirty days in jail and was forbidden from seeing his young daughters until they were old enough to decide for themselves or over eighteen. The other one got 25 years. Texas does NOT value women.

On edit: In the first case the jury felt not letting him see his daughters would be enough punishment. It was big news....

[rodeodance]

15. they have this same reasoning is Muslum countries!

....it is okay for a man to kill his cheating wife because he is understandably angry at her infidelity.

But if a woman kills an unfaithful husband, that is 1st Degree Murder.....

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

17. sources, please?

the Qur'an doesn't differentiate between gender when it comes to murder.

[nine23]

19. Sharia law loophole/defense strategy: honour killings? Just asking.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

22. that's culture,not Qur'an

the Beloved Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) tried to steer the Arabs away from their old ways of degrading women. Unfortunately, many people believe first in culture, next in faith.

[The Stranger]

54. I don't know about Muslim countries, but under common law,

which is a system of justice that arose from England, the Mother Country (and I believe Protestant), in some states, there was (and possibly still is) an affirmative defense for a cheating spouse (possibly still just the wife) making "it is okay for a man to kill his cheating wife because he is understandably angry at her infidelity," as you put it.

Sorry to ruin your Islamophobic post, but they didn't start the whole idea.

On another note, do they Rodeo in Islamic countries? Maybe the U.S. should invade Muslim countries to set up rodeos and rodeo dances. Those backwards people should be free to rodeo, don't you think?

[Inland]

6. Was it the same incident, ie,

the man killed his ex wife and wounded her boyfriend in same "passion"?

There must have been a ruling that he had a chance to cool down before wounding the guy.

[NYC]

36. She was dialling 911 at the time

because of the wounding of the boyfriend.

...Jimmy Dean Watkins pleaded guilty Wednesday to attempted murder for shooting Keith Fontenot on December 22, 1998. Watkins' estranged wife, Nancy, was killed with multiple gunshots as she tried to dial 911 during the attack...

[Inland]

38. Bizarre....

All I can think is that he plead to the attempted murder--an intentional murder--and was convicted of manslaughter--which is a lessened capacity/passion of the moment--

[goddess40]

7. women in Texas appear to be equal to the family dog

the man had a penis so therefore he was valuable - my guess was that he had the proper skin tone as well.

[0007]

10. Are you kidding? The dog is way up the ladder, especially if

Rove can hunt and growl at Dem's and folks that don't have the proper skin tone.

[ElectroPrincess]

26. Damn Straight! LOL (tease)

BTW the more I know about humans, in general, the more I love my dog. :-)

On edit: A stable dog (any breed) is a good judge of character. They know who they can trust. Bloodhounds are beautiful creatures ... but "Why the long face?" :evilgrin:

[0007]

30. Great photo of your dog! I love cats too!!

[ElectroPrincess]

37. Oh I wish, that's from a UK Bloodhound admiration site ...

My most beautiful dog was an Old English Sheepdog we named Mister Benjamin, Apr 1992 - Oct 2001, I was blessed to have loved and care for this big beautiful boy since he was 8 weeks old.

I kept him in "full coat" for his first three years, then a more modest "puppy cut." Here's one:



Yes, cats are also OK by me, but my K9s would chase them around too much. :-)

Damn, sorry ... off topic again.

[Bridget Burke]

50. Nope. "Texas is Heaven for Men & Horses, but Hell on ....

Women & Dogs"

Or so they used to say.

[rurallib]

9. Unless. of course,

the man is the wife in which case his life is worth less than the dog's.

[ProudToBeBlueInRhody]

13. I think it was a different jury.........

....maybe even another trial....

[Lone_Star_Dem]

33. Oddly enough

My daughter and I were just discussing something along these lines. One person in FCCLA is doing their Star Event on the fact that men in Texas receive pittance sentences for murdering their wife. Where as a wife receives a full sentence generally.

If a 17 year old senior in a small town HS can recognize this problem, why can't our government?

[genieroze]

45. He wounded the man and got 15 years, he MURDERED his wife and

got four months. :wtf: :grr:

[JNelson6563]

53. She probably deserved it.

sarcasm off

[patdem]

4. man good...woman not good...grunt...urgh...Is my tie on straight?

freeks all of them...not men..but men who decide these kinds of verdicts...and a pregnant woman cannot divorce an abusive husband in jail who is not the father of the pregnant womans baby?

man good ... woman not good...grunt..ohhhooohhoohhh...(scratches his underarms)...eeekkkeeeeekke woooohhh.,.....Is my tie straight?

[Francine Frensky]

39. retarded man-children run things in Texas

best line (so far) from America/Stewart

[Momgonepostal]

8. And people complain that CA courts are soft

Unbelieveable that the jury initially recommended PROBATION. Probation for murder? What on earth were they thinking?

[daleo]

12. Who says that honor killings are only in Muslim countries.

This sounds very similar to me.

[depakid]

16. Exactly

Many cultural mores in places like Texas aren't all that much different that those in certain other countries- Muslim countries clearly among them.

The fact that this is somehow a strange notion to most Americans is testimony both to the degree of ethocentricism in this country and to the profound inability of most people (especially red stater's) to think either critically or abstractly.

[acmavm]

18. Read up on T. Cullen Davis. He not only killed and ex-wife, he killed her

boyfriend and her daughter and tried to have a judge killed; he got away with it all.

[lavenderdiva]

21. Glad you mentioned this...

Last night on Court TV, Dominick Dunne had this specific incident in an hour-long broadcast. I had seen it before, but it was still interesting. He got away with everything, at least here on this earth. What a character.

[lavenderdiva]

23. hey, acmavm,, just saw your post on DU Lounge

I hope you are feeling better after your stroke and am very glad you are back here with us! I hope the stress of today and everything hasn't gotten you too upset and tired. You should be resting! Glad to see you posting though!!

[acmavm]

25. Thanks. It's good to be back here. I can hardly type, talk, or walk but

thank God (or whoever you want) that I've been rescued from the Land of the Lost, otherwise know as CNN.

[lavenderdiva]

28. glad to see you have not lost your sense of humor though! n/t

[melnjones]

24. I believe the ex-wife was only injured, the rest sounds right though.

nt

[lavenderdiva]

27. melnjones, I wonder if you are speaking to the topic case or

the Cullen Davis case? If its the topic case, that woman was shot several times and killed by her ex. In the Cullen Davis case, he shot his ex (didn't kill her), but shot her young daughter twice in the chest killing her, and shot and killed his ex's boyfriend. He did kill two people in that case. Yet he got off. Had the colorful 'Racehorse' Haines (sp?) as his attorney.

[melnjones]

31. sorry, was talking about the Davis case. Thanks for the clarification! nt

[efhmc]

29. Tons of money and connections. That will do it for you every time. Just

look at OJ and mister and madam bush.

[MisterP]

40. I think he found JAAAAAAAAYYYYZZZZUS, so he can do it all again

publicly and get off scot-free--or even nominated!

[damntexdem]

32. "I will never call you Dad again,"

That's the only real justice in the affair, administered by the perpetrator's son, not the justice system. I wonder if the perpetrator has enough sense to realize that the heaviest sentence was that pronounced by his former son.

[NYC]

34. Same story:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x1127478

[sampsonblk]

35. What's the problem?

I have no problem with this. None at all.

[Divine Discontent]

41. no problem?

we're beyond "simple sarcasm" here at DU. and that short comment of your's could be done over & over again on every subject in the news, so, people don't do it without saying a follow up, because it'd be stupid.

So, why do you not have any problem with it?

IF you are being childish, please don't post silly comments, because the woman you're using to make a lame joke was murdered dialing 911 when her crazy husband decided death was her judgement.

So, where is the HUGE public outcry for this, I hope it's coming. Texas is an embarrassment to the United States. SO much crap goes on there that they boast about. Yeah, Texas government is something to boast about...

losers.

[Skittles]

42. I am well aware many, many men do not "get it"

it just makes me f***ing CRINGE when I see it in the DEMOCRATIC Underground. :puke:

[jobycom]

43. It's CNN, who knows what really happened?

C'mon, CNN is just trying to yank your chain by slanting this in the most sensationalist way possible. Same thing they did to Gore and Kerry. They are worse than a tabloid. There are no facts in this story to explain it. How much did the wife abuse the husband emotionally, for instance? How crucial was the perjury in the first trial? Did the jury know that by ruling he acted in a blind rage (notice he was found guilty of murder) the sentence would be limited to six months in jail and ten years probation? If not, the jury ruled what seemed reasonable-- that a man catching his wife in bed with another man is going to be a bit irrational-- and the judge's hands were tied.

There's nothing in the story about what the prosecution was pushing for, even. Were they trying for capital murder, manslaughter, first or second degree murder? Were they pushing for a murder conviction with a blind rage qaulification because otherwise they were afraid the jury would clear him altogether? Or were they planning to go for a lighter sentence on the first charge and a heavier sentence on the obviously more caculated attack on the boyfriend?

The cases and decisions could be either more understandable or more outrageous than this story makes it seem, and we have no way to judge from this tabloid story.

The only thing I'm outraged about is that someone was paid money to write this garbage-level story to tweak emotions and reveal no facts. Are there any teachers here who would give a passing grade in high school even for such poorly written tripe? I remember the old days when CNN was where you turned to find out the real story. Now it's where you turn when Jerry Springer isn't on.

[delete_bush]

48. You're right about 'garbage-level reporting'

I Googled the story and found another article with just as many holes as this one, but it did reveal this tasty tidbit:

Watkins was convicted of bursting into his Dido home on Dec. 22, 1998, and shooting his estranged wife, Nancy Watkins, in the kitchen as their 10-year-old son watched.

Jimmy Dean Watkins then chased his wife's boyfriend, Keith Fontenot, who had been standing in the kitchen with her, shooting him twice, according to testimony. Fontenot survived.

Watkins drove off in his pickup but returned after unjamming his gun. As his wife lay on the floor begging a 911 dispatcher for help, Watkins shot her again, killing her, according to testimony.

I was under the impression that a crime of passion was committed in the heat of the moment, with the stress on the moment. Leaving and coming back after unjamming one's gun would seem to me to take away this defense.

[genieroze]

44. Well. isn't this special. eom

[Downtown Hound]

46. "Sudden passion" in Texas

is an excuse to commit murder? Meaning it's okay to just get so angry that you kill someone, and you are not at fault? This coming from a state that executes the mentally ill? Sudden passion is an excuse but mental retardation is not? The mind boggles...

[Porcupine]

47. Stupid Texans got it reversed...

killing your wife's boyfriend should be the freebie. After all he's (1) just a useless man and (C) violatiin your property rights. Wounding or bruising the little lady should get life in prison for domestic violence.

If the fool had waited until he could run them over with a car he could have had probation for the whole mess. Just like the Texas lady who ran over her husband, stopped, and backed the car over him a second time. Killing a stranger with a car is usually a freebie.

(sarcasm off)

Our criminal justice system is designed to fill prison space. Any other result is just an accidental side effect.

[proudbluestater]

49. The continued devaluation of women's lives is not surprising.

We are being reduced to a subspecies by the right wingnuts.

[GOPBasher]

51. Unbelievable.

I wish Texas remained its own state. No offense to fellow liberals living there.

[Moderator]

55. duplicate topic, please discuss here

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=1127478&mesg_id=1127478