7

Jail for stealing pinapple lumps…what about for dog basketball?

by Whaleoil on August 31, 2010

I see in the paper that;

Two youths have been jailed over the theft of a packet of pineapple lumps worth $2.90.

Darcy Te Kiri, 20, and Boudene Gerry Walden, also known as Mahiawere, 21, were both jailed in the Rotorua District Court after pleading guilty to the aggravated robbery of Jeram’s Superette in March this year.

The pair, with 17-year-old Mere Ohlson, had gone into the Te Ngae Rd shop, which had been robbed at gun-point only five weeks previously, pretended to have a gun and demanded cigarettes and cash from the owner’s son.

For a start they are hardly youths at 20 and 21 years. Good though to see that the jail sentence isn’t for the amount involved but rather for the actions involved in nicking the pineapple lumps. But it does beg the question doesn’t it, that if you get jail for stealing pineapple lumps, and I have no problem with that, then surely something a bit more drastic should be visited upon these four:

A puppy has been rehomed in an animal shelter after being kicked, struck against a tree and thrown through a basketball hoop by four boys.

A resident in Papakura heard a dog yelping on Saturday night, and witnessed the boys kicking the 2-month-old labrador-cross puppy among them in a reserve on Wilson St.

The resident did not lay a complaint, but when the boys, aged 12 and 13, returned to the park on Sunday evening the police were called.

Police communications spokesman Lou Alofa said neighbours saw the dog being repeatedly kicked before it was thrown up a tree.

“The dog was motionless when it fell back down. One of the boys then held it by its front legs while another boy kicked it in the stomach.

“They continued punching and kicking it and then threw it through a basketball hoop.”

The boys were apprehended by police at the reserve, and have been referred to Youth Aid.

At 12 and 13 their future isn’t looking too bright. This is definitely a valid case for the rotan, certainly not the group hug they are likely to be sentenced to.

SPCA chief Robyn Kippenberger said violent acts on an animal by a young person gave a strong indication they would be involved in greater violence later in life.

“The problem we have is that when kids are involved with something like this, it’s the tip of the iceberg.

“We know that it is linked to human violence; they’re not just being careless with animals.”

Yep so time to nip it in the bud. A short sharp shock administered whilst they serve time. The social experiment of group hugs for crims must end. A good start would be the adoption of Singapore and Malaysia criminal code on these sorts of things.

Tagged: • • • • •

Related posts

  • hawkes

    Is the whale still writing these pieces? The style has changed and the typos have disappeared.

    • http://whaleoil.gotcha.co.nz Whaleoil

      I am trying to take more care….if you would like the typos back in then I can do that too.

  • crabby

    Something needs to be done…

    Burning all the old dead wood out of the judicial system would be a good start.

  • theresaj

    Why would we copy anything Malaysian? It is one of the most venal , racist , corrupt places on earth. It is the Pakistan of our region. They smile and nod at western politicans at the same time as supporting islamic terrorism in Thailand , the Phillipines and Indonesia , It is no surprise that have never had a big terrorist attack on their own soil. They harboured Bashir and others when the Indons were after them .
    In Singapore , the death penalty causes a lot of depression among the families of those who are executed. For the record , Lee Kwan Yew got his ideas from the occupying Japanese.

  • http://keepingstock.blogspot.com/ inventory2

    The link between cruelty to animals and later criminal behaviour is well established. We have twice this year had an aviary broken into and birds slaughtered by children aged 10, seven and six. The police have been powerless to do anything except take the kids back to their dysfunction home, and notify CYFS. Since the second offence, the same children have also burned down a neighbour’s shed. Again, the police were powerless.

    It is time that Parliament took a serious look at the age of criminal responsibility.

  • cheshirecat

    So, Theresaj, “In Singapore, the death penalty causes a lot of depression among the families of those who are executed” Is that right? So why do they execute people in Singapore? Do you think it’s just random people they drag off the streets and string up? Or do you think it might just be because the death penalty is more or less mandatory for crimes like murder and drug trafficking in Singapore?

    I imagine that in good old incorruptible, unprejudiced and caring Godzone that the families of murder victims, and families of those whose lives are destroyed through drugs, experience a bit of depression too. Do the crime, take your chances.

  • blondie

    I believe the justice system in Singapore is so effective precisely because it’s so draconian. And maybe we could learn a great deal from it, if we’re truly serious about bringing down the crime rate and making NZ a safer place.

    It kinda reminds me of the Legalist system in China, 4th Century BCE. Enforcement was prompt and harsh – and if people were afraid of harsh penalties for minor misdemeanours, then they were all the more terrified to commit more serious offences.

    The Chinese also drew on the principle of Collective Responsibility. That is, if you screw up, your whole family gets punished. We don’t like this theory in the west – hey, any form of responsibility is shied away from nowadays – but it certainly provided an incentive to monitor a relative’s behaviour. After all, most people don’t want to get shot because of the actions of their nearest and dearest.

    Maybe, if the parents were held accountable for their kids torturing this puppy – they would ensure that their kids didn’t hurt any more puppies? Just an idea.