Source: Joe Raedle / Getty
We all know how often white privilege manifests itself in courts of law. If you’re a white defendant in America, chances are infinitely higher than they are for Black people and people of color that you will go before a sympathetic white judge and mostly white jury who will see you as the kid next door and go out of their way to either set you free outright or lightly slap your wrist and give you the most lenient sentence allowable by law.
We saw this with the judge in Kyle Rittenhouse’s case, and we’ve seen this play out in the trials of countless white cops who killed or brutalized unarmed Black people—and we often see it when it comes to young white males accused of rape or sexual assault. (Brock Turner anyone?)
18-year-old Drew S. Clinton was arrested after May 30 high school graduation party in western Illinois, during which he was accused of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl. In October, Adams County Judge Robert Adrian found Clinton guilty of felony sexual assault, according to the Associated Press. But during sentencing on January 3, Adrian refused to impose the mandatory minimum sentence of four years in prison for Clinton’s crime.
“Mr. Clinton has served almost five months in the county jail, 148 days,” Adrian said in his ruling. “For what happened in this case, that is plenty of punishment. That would be a just sentence.”
“There is no way, for what happened in this case, that this teenager should go to the Department of Corrections,” he continued. “I will not do that.”
So what exactly did happen in this case.
“During the trial, the judge heard evidence that the girl had told police she’d attended the party, where she drank alcohol and swam in a pool in her underwear before she eventually passed out. She said she woke up to a pillow pushed on her face and Clinton sexually assaulting her,” AP reported.
At this point, it’s worth mentioning that not only is Clinton white, but he’s male and he’s accused of sexually assaulting the type of young girl who is often victim-blamed by the type of person who sees underaged drinking and the promiscuous behavior of women and girls as more condemnation-worthy than a man who commits rape or sexual assault.
Either way, Clinton was the boy next door in that white male judge’s courtroom, not an attempted rapist.
In fact, Adrian went so far out of his way to coddle a violent sexual abuser that he essentially threw out Clinton’s conviction in order to justify his refusal to impose the legally-required sentence.
According to AP, Adrian said flat out that “if he were to rule that the sentencing statute he was bound to follow was unconstitutional, his decision would be overturned and Clinton would be ordered to prison.” So in order to avoid that appeal, he said he would determine that the prosecutors failed to “prove their case” and dismiss the sexual assault charge.
Bruh, HOW TF IS THAT EVEN LEGAL?
How the hell is a judge legally able to take it upon himself to determine that prosecutors failed to “prove their case” after he had already acknowledged that the defendant was successfully convicted?
Anyway, now Adrian is getting dragged up and down social media for his rape apologist decision, and he’s apparently in his feelings about it, because, on Wednesday, he booted another prosecutor on an unrelated case from his courtroom because he saw that the attorney “liked” a disparaging comment made about him on Facebook.
“I can’t be fair with you,” Adrian told the Adams County prosecutor, according to the Herald-Whig. “Get out.”
Nah, bruh—if anything, it’s the rapey-defendant-loving judge who needs to “get out” of the business of legal proceedings.
As for the prosecutor in Clinton’s case, Anita Rodriguez, she said in response to Adrian’s disgusting ruling that her “heart is bleeding for the victim.” And a group called the Quincy Area Network Against Domestic Abuse said Adrian’s ruling sends a “chilling message to other rape victims that their behavior, not the rapists’ will be judged,” and that the “judgment reinforces the fact that standards for women have always been impossibly high while they are impossibly low for men.”
Exactly—but also being white helps a lot.
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This is how Judge Tammy Kemp look hugging Amber guyers pic.twitter.com/MAX6sQqKRN
Judge Tammy Kemp, please keep that same energy the next time a brother or sister is on the stand. The white privilege is beyond me #AmberGuyger pic.twitter.com/Y6kOURn8f4
This Judge #TammyKemp in the 204th judicial District is no longer black! She is white as snow! She is white white! She's a white supremacis just like #AmberGuyger! She should be no longer accepted in our community in any form or fashion! pic.twitter.com/iIOTmGWPWY
How Judge Tammy "The Mammy" Kemp look hugging Amber Guyger pic.twitter.com/b2iYgCjSwD
#TammyKemp
Shiiiiiiiiiiiit she lost her mind. pic.twitter.com/JgrjskAra1
And I didn’t see that judge hug or show any gotdamned sympathy to Bothams family!!! But had to jiggity jig her way to hug that non remorseful racist killer #AmberGuyger #TammyKemp pic.twitter.com/anc5IMy3rd
Let me get this straight. Judge Tammy Kemp gave convicted murderer Amber Guyger a bible, a pep talk, a hug, another pep talk and second hug at the end of this trial? Unf**kingbelievable. pic.twitter.com/pQH9q6tYQN
😡🤔Judge Tammy Kemp needs to be off of the bench ASAP. What judge hugs a murderer, I mean the defendant?!? #MissMeWithTheBS pic.twitter.com/v0qTVGDxBQ
Amber Guyger receiving a light sentence of 10 years for killing her neighbor Botham Jean has people outraged. READ MORE: Watch Live: Amber Guyger’s Murder Trial For Killing Botham Jean Streams Online However, another apparent disappointment came when Judge Tammy Kemp gave the convicted murderer a hug and a Bible after the sentencing. https://youtu.be/h7FkaL5GCZY The jury came to a guilty verdict on Tuesday after less than 24 hours of deliberation. Those present reported tears of joy for Jean’s family while Guyger was left in agony. Cheers also reportedly erupted in the courtroom as well as throughout the courthouse after the verdict was announced. Some folks could even be found flying the national flag of St. Lucia, where Jean and his family hail from. On September 6, 2018, Guyger said she mistakenly entered Jean’s apartment after a long day at work as a Dallas police officer. She says she mistook Jean for a crook and ordered him not to move. Then she shot him twice before realizing her catastrophic error. Jean was killed at 26 while watching T.V. and eating ice cream. Many people questioned Guyger’s story because of various factor, particularly her assertion that Jean’s door was ajar. Clips posted to social media by neighbors appeared to show that apartment doors in the apartment complex shut automatically, which suggests that Guyger was lying. Guyger’s murder trial took a full seven days, ending much faster than expected. The prosecution rested its case by Thursday, while the defense rested its case by Monday, which is when the jury deliberation started. Guyger admitted under cross-examination that she intended to kill Jean when she shot him, and the former officer also admitted that she was trained in CPR but refrained from performing the life-saving technique on Jean after she shot him. Instead, the 911 call she made along with her actions following the incident suggested that she was more concerned about saving herself rather than Jean. Deleted text messages that weren’t allowed in the trial also showed that Guyger was racist. In text messages that were released, she communicated with a person identified as Etheridge who said they had a dog for Guyger who “may be racist.” Guyger responded, “It’s okay… I’m the same.” Guyger also made violent jokes about Martin Luther King Jr. While she was working at an Martin Luther King holiday parade she was having a text conversation with another person identified as Blevins, who typed, “When does this end?” Guyger replied, “When MLK is dead.” The prosecution brought up these text messages before Guyger’s sentencing. Guyger was put in custody immediately. See her most recent mugshot below. https://twitter.com/FOX4/status/1179170623232212992?s=20 Is this someone who deserved a hug? Twitter doesn’t think so. Read the reactions below.
The Court Of White Privilege: Judge Throws Out Conviction For Man Guilty Of Sexually Assaulting 16-Year-Old Girl was originally published on newsone.com
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