In The Circumstances Does One Think That Maybe The Recorder Was Being A Little Harsh?

[anotheoldgit]

Obviously I am being a little sarcastic, but perhaps there are some out there who really think he was.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3720136/Muslim-mother-43-lawyer-said-not-jailed-sex-offences-against-girl-nine-shame-brought-family-punishment-gets-seven-years.html

Here is her lawyer Alison Pryor defence.

/// Ms Pryor said: 'The shame that this has brought and will bring upon Miss Dar and her family cannot be underestimated. ///

/// 'This is different from what you would find in another case of this type. That is punishment over and above what this court can impose ///

Good so that is a double whammy, well deserved.

[andy-hughes]

Defence in law is obliged to use any and everything at its disposal in order to present as vigorous a defence as possible - that is how the legal system operates.

So, what the defence lawyer says may well be true, but that is a cultural aspect of the situation, and has no bearing on the penalty under the law.

The defendant is subject to the law of the land, and should be punished accordingly.

If her culture heaps additional punishment on her, that is not a matter for the court to consider.

The defence lawyer is doing her job - but I am sure that in cases like these, even the defence accepts that this is a token attempt, and does not expect to obtain an iota of support from the court - and nor should she.

[andy-hughes]

Put more prosaically - "You run it up the flag pole, and I'll laugh it out of court, and then we can get on with applying the law of the land."

[jourdain2]

Quite, andy-hughes.