Sympathy for the Devil?

In Tuesday's New York Times, you will find an article on convicted child pornographer Jorge Pabon-Cruz and a federal judge who feels sorry for him.

I know it's hard to believe, but here's the deal. Judge Gerard Lynch, who sits here in Manhattan, apparently objected to a mandatory sentence of 10 years he had to give Pabon-Cruz. So I'm sitting there reading this. And I'm thinking why would anybody object to giving this guy 10 years? Here's what he did: Operated a sophisticated image exchange device on the Internet (search) for at least three months and sent out 8,000 pictures of children being brutally sexually abused to almost 3,000 perverts.

He was 18 years old when he was caught by the feds and was actually luring people into his sick Web site by advertising on Internet sites like preteenrapesex.

Let me repeat that. This Pabon-Cruz advertised his sick pictures of children on a website called preteenrapesex.

His trial lasted less than a week. He had no defense, other than to say he didn't know what he was doing was a crime. After hearing that, I would have tacked on another two years for insulting the court, if I were the judge.

Anyway, The New York Times, which has been railing against mandatory sentencing for years, apparently felt that profiling this case and the misguided judge would help its editorial cause. You make the call.

But let me say this: Sexually abusing children is like putting a blowtorch to their skin. It scars them forever. It can easily ruin a child's life. Society must, I repeat must, deter people from exploiting children in this brutal manner by punishing them harshly in every aspect of the vile business.

Judge Lynch actually wanted to tell the jury before they rendered a verdict his objections to the mandatory sentence in the hope the jury would share his sympathies for the pervert. He was forbidden by law to do that.

For this, Judge Gerard Lynch needs to resign or be impeached. He is a disgrace to the bench. As for The New York Times, it is enough to know the paper continues to impose its editorial view on its news pages.

We are now living in a time where some federal judges feel that trafficking in child porn and selling hard drugs are crimes that deserve sympathy. Of course, these actions destroy lives. Everybody knows that. Yet some judges continue their misguided beliefs. That is why Congress passed the mandatory sentencing laws.

By the way, Pabon-Cruz got off lightly. The new mandatory sentence for what he did is now 15 years, which should depress Judge Lynch and The Times even more.

And that's The Memo.

The Most Ridiculous Item of the Day

In New Jersey, a 20-year-old man stole two snakes from a pet store and was driving away when one bit him. Police say the snake is not poisonous, and the guy did not seek treatment for the bite to his groin. Oooh. Might want to rethink the treatment deal, dude. Could be ridiculous.

What was the snake doing in his groin?