Parents Jail Sentence

[LittleButton]

The parents of a bullied teenager in QLD took matters into their own hands and bashed the bully. The judge let the parents off with suspended jail sentences. Was the judge wrong to let them off so lightly?



Vigilante Baker parents bashed daughter's tormentor

A QUEENSLAND couple so fed up with their 14-year-old being bullied at school have narrowly avoided jail after bashing their daughter's tormentor.

Stephen Lester Baker and Suzane Maree Baker took justice into their own hands when they believed Queensland police and Beenleigh High School failed to act on their complaints about the bullying.
The Beenleigh District Court was told yesterday how the pair confronted their daughter's tormentor and repeatedly punched her in the head.

The court was told the Bakers' attack, which took place in a park on April 3, 2006, came after the parents notified the school and police over the repeated bashing and bullying of their daughter.
Prosecutor Nicholas McGhee said the Crown conceded the couple's daughter had been subjected to violent bullying by the girl identified only as Rachel, including an attack in which she bashed the girl's head against a school toilet wall.
But Mr McGhee said Baker, 44, and his wife, 41, had acted like disgraceful vigilantes by attacking their daughter's assailant rather than pursuing the matter through police.
He said the issue came to a head when Rachel and the Bakers' daughter became involved in an after school argument, which involved taunts and pushing.

After the incident in the park, the Bakers and their daughter drove around the area looking for Rachel and a group of her friends in a bid to resolve the bullying problem.

Mr McGhee said Stephen Baker punched Rachel in the head up to four times.

"(Baker told Rachel) 'no one hits my daughter'," Mr McGhee told the court. "(Baker) stated he would kill them if they touched her again."

Suzane Baker then grabbed Rachel by the hair and punched her in the head up to four times, he said.

Barrister Paul Brown, for Stephen Baker, said his client had become frustrated when neither the school or the police appeared to act on the family's complaints.

"Instead of putting (your daughter) in the car and looking for the bully, you should . . . (have been) driving to the police station," he told the Bakers.

"The 14-year-old (Rachel) could/may (still) be subjected to criminal offences (if reported to police)."
Judge Dearden also gave a forceful warning to both families to try to resolve their differences to avoid establishing a long-term feud between them.

Stephen and Suzane Baker were given wholly suspended jail terms of six and three months respectively.

[BreakfastatTiffanys]

It is hard to say, without knowing the full story.....

Would you have a link?:D

[LittleButton]

Looking now, cant remember where i found it though :laughing:

[tyler's mum]

It is hard to say, without knowing the full story.....

Would you have a link?:D

:iagree::iagree:

[Aussiemummy]

I think it would deffinately make a difference knowing the whole story, severity of how their son was bullied... what happened to the bully?? :confused: Still sad on the parents behalf though!

P.S- Must add, you make some very interesting threads to keep us thinking lol :D.

[Missy75]

I said it's a fair decission because I would assume the judge was thinking of their own child's welfare. He/she would be pretty mentally and emotionally damaged already, so sending his/her parents to jail would make for one very screwed up kid.

[Silvana]

Just because the crime may be justifiable doesn't make it right.

We have a system of law in place for a reason. It is not there for it to be taken into our own hands.

Bashing another person, for whatever reason is against the law. If we start excusing crimes such as this one, then where do we stop? The majority of murders actually have a reason behind them, do we excuse them too?

Sorry, but to support vigiliantism is wrong. Like I said, there is a system of law and order in place. It doesn't always work but it doesn't give someone the right to take matters into theri own hands.

[FishFace]

I dont think it matters why the parents did it.

There is NO excuse for bashing someone. You cant get away with it because you had just cause.

Its vigilante behaviour and they deserve what they got.
I agree with missy75 it was probably suspended for the childs welfare.

[Ange&Seth]

I think the parents got fed up with nothing being done about the bullying - I think they went too far in bashing the kid but as parents your instinct is to protect your kids and that's what they were doing as the school wasn't doing a thing.

I don't think the parents should have gone to jail but I also don't condone what they did. Imagine this 'ok kid, you've just been bullied for the last *insert time frame here* and now we're gonna put mum and dad in jail and ship you off to a foster home' Yep, that sounds like it's going to make for a well adjusted teenager LOL.

[LittleButton]

Thats the whole story updated

[LittleButton]

P.S- Must add, you make some very interesting threads to keep us thinking lol :D.

Gotta keep everyone on their toes, Like to see everyone reactions and opinions. Plus everyone like to gets their post count up aswell

[GummyBear]

I think this is crazy. Bashing a kid for bashing your kid?

Bullying is awful and schools and education departments need to pull their finger out and start dealing with the problem more proactively.

But for two adults to physically assault a teenager is disgusting.

[Mahjong]

Two wrongs dont make a right :no:

[Benji]

Just because the crime may be justifiable doesn't make it right.

We have a system of law in place for a reason. It is not there for it to be taken into our own hands.

Bashing another person, for whatever reason is against the law. If we start excusing crimes such as this one, then where do we stop? The majority of murders actually have a reason behind them, do we excuse them too?

Sorry, but to support vigiliantism is wrong. Like I said, there is a system of law and order in place. It doesn't always work but it doesn't give someone the right to take matters into theri own hands.

I have to agree, Silvana.

Not only have they assaulted someone, they have taught their daughter (? I think it was their daughter) that revenge is acceptable.

If they were "fed up", they should have moved their child to a different school!!! This was not a last resort IMO.

[Benji]

I also have to add, a grown man and woman bashing a 14 year old girl is not acceptable under any circumstances!!!!!!

[Chunkydunks]

What they did was very wrong. THeres no doubt about it.

The judge probably took into account their previous records (if they had one) and all the rest of it when sentencing. If it wasn't the parents of the girl and the person had no record then I'd say they would have gotten a suspended sentece aswell.

Its just a shame they went that far to "protect" their daughter. Honestly she will probably be picked on more now because it will be seen as her not being able to stand up for herself.

Its hard being bullied. I was bullied right through school but not once was it ever in my parents mind to "get back" at those that bullied me. Its just not right.

[melbdad]

This is so sad. I dont envy children living today in a world of rage. Where has those Roald Dahl's children era went to?

[sockstealingpoltergeist]

Absolutely discusting that these parents behaved like ridiculous children them selves. My daughter was badly bullied (along with all her friends) by a bunch of nasty girls at her school. I just kept complaining to the school, wrote them a letter (which seems to get further then verbal complaining), and made it clear through meetings with the girls that if one more incident occurred that we would be laying charges through the police. Eventually they got the message and left our children alone. We also worked out a system with the school that had our children leaving 10 minutes early every day and thus they avoided the bullies.

I would never lay my hands on some one elses child- it makes me sick.

[maddiebub]

I think what the parents did was very wrong, for many reasons. We had a lot of bullying when I was in high school, heads being bashed against toilet walls and so on... If the parents were concerned about there daughters welfare they could have taken her out of that school. If the parents truly wanted to get justice they could have charged the girl with assault, this would have been more likely to stop the bullying than beating the bully.

What were the parents trying to get out of approaching their daughters attacker anyway? Did they seriously think that it would have solved things? If they hadn't injured her, would she have been stopped? Where I went to school, if you got your parents involved the bullying usually escalated unless the bully was actually charged.

So what message where the parents trying to send their daughter? "its ok to bash someone who is smaller than you, if you feel you are justified"

[Harlequin]

I also have to add, a grown man and woman bashing a 14 year old girl is not acceptable under any circumstances!!!!!!

:iagree:

Well, unless the 14yo has a knife or something and needs to be subdued... but yeah. heh.

They should have bashed the parents of the bully. *cough*
Ok just kidding. They shouldn't have bashed anyone. I can understand how frustrated they would be about their daughter being bullied, but they shouldn't have done what they did.

[Kazamataz]

Sadly when I read the word Beenleigh I wasn't shocked this sort of thing had happened.

I do think they got off very lightly, What are we taught as little children?

"Two wrongs don't make a right?"

They are adults and they should have known better.

It doesn't matter how much your child is being bullied that doesn't give you permission to go get violent with a child!

[forbetoel]

Mmm...Bashing a kid for bashing your kid...... I can see how much anger and even hatred that these parents may have had for their daughters bully, but there are non violent, more productive ways of sorting out this problem, and bashing the child IS NOT on the list.

[GiftofLife]

I said it's a fair decission because I would assume the judge was thinking of their own child's welfare. He/she would be pretty mentally and emotionally damaged already, so sending his/her parents to jail would make for one very screwed up kid.

:iagree: I also have to say that if my daughter was coming home everyday after being beaten and tormented, and no one was doing anything about it, I would probably find it hard to restrain myself. I'm not saying I would do what these parents have done, but I certainly would not be letting it go and would be making sure it was resolved as soon as possible.

I certainly don't think they sound like bad people, more like desperate parents who felt like they had no other option.

[Mischief]

Two wrongs dont make a right as someone else said. :(

I think its sad that we live in a world where children bully eachother like that, and the police and schools are powerless to stop it.

I can understand why the parents felt the need to take the law into their own hands, but still dont agree with it. I feel sorry for all involved.

[Sarahmum24]

I still can't believe a full grown man actually punched a young girl, in shock.