They don't know how long it was going on for - she was left alone with him a lot. Her behavior has naturally changed of course, she felt sick around him, was getting really angry and lashing out (I think she's like 6 or 7) and she's of course, afraid to be left alone with men. But she's been really brave for what she's gone through and has already started down that long road of therapy.

The guy went on the run for a bit while the wall that is the girls stepfather went on the hunt for him. Cops got him thankfully and he's been charged and admitted to lewd conduct with a minor. The guys mom is screaming bullshit (despite a charge of the same at the age of 17) and I guess there'll be a trial...and I hate the thought of this kid under the scrutiny of a defense attorney.

The worst part is the sentencing, praying it gets that far. These douchebags get often tend to get less time than full out rape of a full grown woman and even that stupidly short. I really hope the system doesn't let her down.

Justice, by definition, can never be an objective measure of anything. It's a concept invented by human beings - as Terry Pratchett put it, speaking through Death in the novel Hogfather: "...take the universe and grind it down to the finest powder and sieve it through the finest sieve and then show me one atom of justice, one molecule of mercy. And yet you act, like there was some sort of rightness in the universe by which it may be judged."

I think you can take a class in it the same way you can take a class in sociology, or literature, or anything that doesn't - indeed, can't - rely on an objective measure of truth. But all you can do is study people's perceptions of it, and how the concept has evolved and changed in the hands of those that make the laws.

Some people think you can define justice and law by consensus: such thinking leads to ideas like "if the American public doesn't support gay marriage, we shouldn't have it", even though that issue doesn't affect the vast majority of people who would vote on it. If justice is reduced to democracy, it looks too much like mob rule for my liking. But if it's reduced to the whims of a few trusted individuals, that's an unjustified oligarchy, subject to the prejudices of the select few.

There's no satisfactory answer, and I don't believe there ever can be.

My justice classes consisted of a lot of history (police, juvenile delinquency and just general history of law). Then it got hard in criminal law (few passed, seriously) where we went over trial procedure; the serious specifics like mens rea and all that. Went through and read case histories and then had to put together a whole case on our own. Freakin hard. Was taught by a defense attorney too.

I think Thommys right. Its just basics. What is and what isn't law, personal opinions and politics enter into just like with any other subject. It's really up to the student to sort through them.

Without going too much into things (and without giving away the hours and hours I've spent on stuff like this) I would remind all involved that the "justice system" has nothing to do with the concept of being "just".

Reminds me of my juvie prof...that kinda crap puts me to sleep

Who stopped the wave?