FROM everything I have heard through sources in the legal system, Circuit Judge Sandra Simms seems to be a decent, honorable person. Simms city
a different worldNevertheless, in view of some of her recent sentencing decisions, I must respectfully ask if she lives on the same planet with the rest of us.
I realize that judges sometimes fall out of step with society. It's something about the black robes, I suspect. They are comfy and cool, giving one a feeling that all is right with the world. At the same time, having a little wooden hammer at arm's length gives the robe-wearer a feeling of power. Judges know that they can just reach out with that elegant mallet and knock someone (figuratively speaking, of course) into the slammer.
Simms, however, is developing a bit of a reputation as a judge who spares the gavel and spoils the defendant.
City Prosecutor Peter Carlisle has been gently attacking Simms' recent ruling on Rodney Balbirona, a punk who took part in the beating and robbery of an unarmed tourist. Simms sentenced Balbirona to probation, even though the victim was beaten so badly, his face looked like a Mr. Potato Head with all the pieces in the wrong places.
Balbirona violated probation, which is usually a "go-directly-to-jail" card. But Judge Simms said Balbirona would only have to do 30 days in jail, most of which he had already done waiting for trial. So Mr. Balbirona will be able to enjoy Super Bowl weekend a free man.
SIMMS points out that Balbirona was only convicted of theft, not assault. She chose to, apparently, ignore the fact that Balbirona was part and parcel of the beating and robbery. This is like considering a getaway driver a minor participant in a bank robbery, which they used to do. Now, the law considers the getaway driver a fully vested member of the criminal enterprise.
If two or three guys decide to beat and rob an innocent person, they are equal partners in my book. The fact that they delegate various aspects of the beating/robbery to individual members of the partnership doesn't change the fact that they were equally involved in the venture.
Judges can take all aspects of a case under consideration during sentencing, including evidence that was not admissible during trial, but Simms chose to narrowly interpret Balbirona's involvement and give him yet another pass. She's essentially giving him one more chance to screw up. That means one more innocent person has to be injured before this jerk is forced to pay for his crimes. Seems like Judge Simms is writing a check that some unfortunate citizen eventually will have to cash.
When judges did such things in the past, then-city Prosecutor Charles Marsland would go through the roof. He'd jump up and down and call the judges really bad names. Prosecutor Carlisle, then one of Marsland's chief deputies, knows that kind of reaction is not helpful. So, he has been challenging the judge's recent slap-on-the-hand rulings by calling for mandatory sentences.
Judges hate when their hands are tied by mandatory sentences. But, it is because of rulings like Simms' that legislative bodies strip judges of their power.
Simms has shown she will not bow to public pressure, even though that pressure is coming from people who simply want dangerous criminals -- not drug users, but those who have shown a willingness to seriously injure others -- off the street. Perhaps her fellow robe-wearers will take her aside and explain that if she does not curb her willingness to go easy on street thugs, legislators will be issuing all judges smaller mallets.
Charles Memminger, winner of
National Society of Newspaper Columnists
awards in 1994 and 1992, writes "Honolulu Lite"
Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
Write to him at the Honolulu Star-Bulletin,
P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu, 96802
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