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August 6. 2008
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Giving Measure 11 a Second Look Should juries know the likely sentence?
BY C ltll* SlIlkl.D S
S h o u ld
ju r ie s
know (he lik e ly sen
tence when deciding
guilt?
Y o u m ay have
missed this important
c r im in a l- ju s tic e
story. On M ay 9, the Oregon Su
preme Court decided it w ill con
sider whether, in the words o f
James Pitkin at W illam ette Week,
grazing a boy's head w ith your
breasts should get you over six
years in the slammer.
The case is State v. Veronica
Rodriguez. P itkin says, "T h e ju ry
v o te d 10-2 to c o n v ic t
Rodrigue/ for allegedly p ull
ing the back o f the bo y’ s
head against her chest.” She
is facing a six year and three
months sentence for Sex
Abuse I under Measure I I,
the 1994 voter-approved
ballot measure penned by K evin
Mannix.
Judge Nancy Campbell, now
retired, set aside the Measure 11
sentence and instead sentenced
her to 1 6 months using the state's
sentencing guidelines. She stated
that applying Measure 11 in this
case w ould violate the Oregon
constitution's cruel and unusual
punishment clause. The Court o f
Appeals overruled her and rein
stated the six year-three month
mandatory m inim um sentence.
What's interesting is that in
A p ril 2000, the Oregon Court o f
Appeals upheld Measure 11 in an
equally controversial sentence
given to Justin T horp— a 16 year
old who was sentenced to six
years and three months fo r hav
ing consensual sex w ith his 13
year-old girlfriend.
C lackam as C o u n ty C irc u it
Judge Robert Morgan determined
that such a sentence was cruel
and unusual punishment in vio la
tion o f the Oregon C onstitution.
Morgan based his decision in
part on the fact that the g irl said
she initiated the sex. T horp was
three years and 10 days older
than his victim . But had the d iffe r
ence in their ages been three years
or less, it w ould not have q u a li
fied as second-degree rape. A t
most, he w ould have faced a m is
demeanor sex offense and been
sentenced to probation, prosecu
tors and defense attorneys agree.
Morgan opted to sentence him
to 35 months in prison, based on
state sentencing guidelines. The
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MARC.IE BOOKER
T
re a su res
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elected to the Oregon Supreme
tutional scholar on the issue. I
haven't gotten his okay to use his
name yet, but he wrote back:
“ As a general proposition, I
believe that all human beings
should be as fu lly inform ed as
possible about the consequences
o f all o f their actions before they
undertake those actions. Before
you put your hand on that hot
We all want as much information
as possible about the consequences
of our actions; why shouldn't we
give a jury as much information as
possible about the consequences of
theirs?
Court six months later. He is now stove, you should understand
the Oregon Supreme C ourt C h ie f that you m ight get burned. Before
J ustice and a man fo r w hom I have you ju m p into the Clackamas River
at H igh Rocks, you should under
immeasurable respect.
Maybe Judge D eM uniz and stand that you m ight drow n in a
his Supreme C ourt colleagues w h irlp o o l. Before you get on
want to give Measure 11 a second T riM e t w ith o u t a tic k e t, you
look in State v. Rodriguez. But the should be aware o f the penalty i f
issues in this new case are much you get caught. A nd before a ju ry
decides to do X o r Y o r Z, its
narrower.
U n lik e in State v. T h o rp , members should understand the
Rodriguez. and her attorney Peter results that could flo w from that
Garlan are conceding that Mea decision.”
We all want as much inform a
sure 11 is constitutional, but are
c la im in g that its a p p lic a tio n tion as possible about the conse
against Rodriguez violates the quences o f o u r actions; w h y
proportionality clause o f the O r shouldn't we give a ju ry as much
egon constitu tio n in this case inform ation as possible about the
consequences o f theirs?
only.
So what do you think? Should
I trust juries, so in 2005, Sens.
Margaret Carter, A vel G ordly and Veronica Rodriguez" and Justin
1 introduced House B ill 2986 Thorp's ju rie s have known they
w hich gives ju ro rs inform ation w ould be sentenced to six years
on the lik e ly sentence the courts and three months each? O r is
w ill impose upon a finding o f guilt. justice best served by keeping
It died fo r lack o f a hearing in the that inform ation from them and
then R e p u b lic a n -le d O regon having ju rie s only decide g u ilt or
innocence?
House.
I've been th inking o f reintro
Chip Shields serves north and
ducing that b ill, so I checked in northeast Portland in the Or
w ith one well-respected consti egon House o f Representatives.
Practice what you Preach
proprietor
(ìif't & R esale Shop
Open lue - Sat
T *
state appealed, arguing that the
longer prison term did not violate
the Oregon C onstitution. A 5-4
m ajority o f the C ourt o f Appeals
agreed. Thorp had to do all six
years and three months.
What's also interesting is that
the T horp opinion was penned
by Judge Paul D eM uniz, who was
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Organized labor falls short on diversity
by
M arc M orial
There is no question
the civ il rights and la
bor movements have
shared a public com m it
ment to issues o f parity
and ju s tic e a ffe ctin g
A frica n Americans and
w orking people over the years.
Forty years ago. Dr. M artin
Luther King embodied that
partnership when he led
his last march fo rju stice in
support o f the striking sani
tation workers o f A FSC M E
Local 1733 in Memphis.
But, it is also true that the
union movement has been
slow to practice what it preaches
when it comes to equality w ith in
its own ranks.
In the early years o f the labor
movement, A frica n Am ericans
were systematically excluded from
m ajor unions, w hich led to the
form ation o f separate Black labor
unions. A . P h ilip Randolph
fo u n d e d the B ro th e rh o o d o f
Sleeping Car Porters in 1925 and
wageda 12-year fig h t to gain rec
ognition by the Am erican Fed
eration o f Labor. He went on to
become a national leader in the
fight against racism w ithin unions,
in the workplace and throughout
America.
N O W D E L IV E R IN G
Y o u r fa v o rite n e ig h b o r h o o d g r o c e r y s to re n o w d e liv e rs
g r o c e r ie s rig h t to y o u r h o m e o r o ffic e .
w w w .n e w s e a s o n s m a r k e t.c o m
you click, we deliver, (or pull up for pick up)
a lim e when the vast m ajority o f
new union members are women
and people o f color, "a m ajority o f
people o f co lo r still encounter
barriers to gaining leadership
positions w ith in their union and
even where they have reached
leadership positions, (hey face
additional challenges."
Lucy recommends mentoring
support, education, training, and
other pro-active efforts to achieve
opportunities and equality w jth in
the union movement. The Na
tional Urban League agrees. O r
ganized labor must not take A f r i
can American support fo r granted.
As the presidential election o f
At a time when African
Americans are an increasingly
important part o f the
organized labor's future, they
are still not adequately
represented at the top echelons
o f the American labor
leadership.
Those e a rly b a rrie rs have
slow ly fallen and now Blacks rep
resent about 14 percent o f A m e ri
can union workers. But, at a time
when A frica n Americans are an
increasingly im portant part o f the
organized labor's future, they are
still not adequately represented
at the top echelons o f the A m e ri
can labor leadership.
But don't take m y word fo r it.
Listen to what W illia m Lucy.
A FS C M E secretary-treasurer and
the hig h est ra n k in g A fric a n
Am erican in Am erican labor has
to say. In remarks to a 2005 na
tional sum m it on labor and di ver
sify in Chicago. Lucy said that at
2008 draws closer, the American
labor movement is m o b ilizin g to
represent the interests o f w o rk
ing people on issues like univer
sal health care, the elim ination o f
poverty and the right to organize.
L et's hope they apply that
same v ig o r to increasing d iv e r
sity in union leadership and in
the con tin u e d fig h t fo r equal
o p p o r t u n it y
th r o u g h o u t
Am erica. As A. P h ilip Randolph
rem inded us, "S alvation fo r a
race, nation o r class must come
fro m w ith in ."
Mare Morial is president and
chief executive officer o f the Na
tional Urban League.
i