Law Student’s Sentence for Sexual Offending Totally Inadequate

9th May 2017

The Sensible Sentencing Trust is appalled that a 26 year old post graduate law student – a man who knows the intricacies of the criminal law far better than most – has received a sentence of 100 hours community service for paying a 13 year old girl to perform oral sex on him.

“What sort of man thinks this kind of behavior is remotely acceptable?” said Trust Child Abuse spokesman Scott Guthrie. “It appears his only feeble excuse is that the girl – who was intoxicated at the time – looked older. She would have needed to be at least five years older to be of an age when he could legally purchase sexual services from her” Guthrie said.

“This is not a case where a vampish 16 year old and a drunken young man of around the same age had consensual sex. This is far far worse than that scenario. Dan William Benny is thirteen years older than the girl. While she was intoxicated, he apparently was not. He cannot claim that his judgment was impaired. According to the evidence, there was some bargaining over the fee before the act occurred. This is a man who callously took advantage of a much younger vulnerable person” Guthrie said.

“And what does the Judge give this sexual predator? One hundred hours of community service which Benny will, in all likelihood, only ever complete part of if he is anything like most who get these pathetic sentences. Just what would it have taken for Benny to receive a sentence of imprisonment – perhaps if the victim was aged 10?” said Guthrie.

“A sentence of community service sends completely the wrong message to predatory men who think it’s OK to prey on drunken young girls. We are informed that partly because of ridiculous health and safety rules, community service is nothing like the Periodic Detention of years past. Those serving these nonsense sentences can’t cut scrub anymore because they might hurt themselves. They can’t work in the rain in case they catch cold. When ‘cleaning up’ public parks they can’t pick up any food waste in case they get an infection. And if they don’t turn up on time, they don’t go straight to jail as was once the case, the person in charge asks them nicely to be on time next time” said Guthrie.

“The Judge must know all of this; if he didn’t he has no place sitting on the bench of the District Court. So this despicable individual gets to do a few hours picking up papers at the local park – but only if it’s not raining.”

“We all sign up to a social contract that says we must not take the law into our own hands; that must be left up to a learned Judge, who is supposed to know all about the law and the consequences for those found guilty of it. Judge Kevin Phillips is not fit to hold office. He should be ashamed of the ‘justice’ meted out to this man. But nothing will happen. Judges are immune from consequences, and that is disgraceful. If any case demonstrates that Judges need to be held to account this one does” Guthrie said. ENDS

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11852062

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