<![CDATA[Criminal Justice]]>

Suspect in Shreveport mass shooting was on probation for previous gun charge

March 27, 2023 by Cam Edwards Leave a Comment

A Shreveport teenager now charged with second-degree murder and a litany of other charges for his alleged role in a shooting early Saturday morning was on probation for a previous gun charge and the recipient of a sweetheart plea deal accepted by a judge even after he skipped out on his sentencing hearing.

Devin Owen Porter, Jr. allegedly opened fire on a group of people inside a vehicle waiting at an intersection. Police say that “several” men stepped out of another car and began shooting at the victims, but so far Porter appears to be the only person arrested in connection with the shooting.

This isn’t the first run-in that Porter has had with the law, though second-degree murder is the most serious charge that he’s faced in his 19-years. And if the criminal justice system had actually doled out justice the last time Porter was in court, he probably wouldn’t have been out on the streets on Saturday morning.

Porter has a prior arrest for illegal gun possession in March 2022. He pleaded guilty in October to misdemeanor illegal possession of stolen things. He was given a six-month suspended jail sentenced and placed on supervised probation for a year.
Sentencing was deferred until December, but Porter failed to show up so a bench warrant was issued for his arrest. He was again a no-show in January but the judge recalled the bench warrant and ordered the sentence and $400 fine to be executed.

Among Porter’s current charges is one for possession of firearm by a felon. Given that his last court case involved a misdemeanor, it sure sounds like he was already prohibited by law from possessing a gun when he was caught with one last year. Despite his status as a prohibited person, however, prosecutors allowed him to plead down to possession of “stolen things” and offered him the opportunity to walk away on probation without spending any more time in jail.

Amazingly, a judge not only went along with the original plea deal but imposed its terms despite the fact that Porter skipped out on his sentencing on two separate occasions. In fact, he even made the bench warrant disappear, so Porter didn’t have to worry about getting in trouble for his unexcused absences from court.

Is it any surprise that Porter apparently felt emboldened enough to (allegedly) pick up a gun again after his treatment in court? What consequences did the criminal justice system deliver to him? If he was prohibited by law from possessing a firearm last year, he could have been subject to 5-to-20-years in state prison, or a ten-year federal prison sentence. You can’t even call what he actually received a slap on the wrist; it’s more like a full body massage complete with a happy ending.

I can’t help but wonder what, if anything, would have happened if Porter failed to check in with his probation officer, but now that he’s behind bars I guess it’s a moot point. Still, Porter’s case is a vivid reminder that we already have plenty of gun laws on the books that aren’t being fully enforced; a topic that is strangely absent from the talking points of the anti-gun activists intent on improving public safety by criminalizing the individual right to keep and bear arms in self-defense.

More than majority say ‘danger to community’ important factor in setting bail

March 7, 2023 by John Petrolino Leave a Comment

The topic of criminal justice reform and how society could better handle lawbreakers is a common subject here at Bearing Arms. Take for example two different vantage points on the same topic, both valid and slightly complimentary, between Tom and myself, on a controversial story involving a prosecutor dropping some 15 gun charges in New Orleans. When it comes to the justice system, there’s one area that a near supermajority agrees on, and that’s the setting of bail weighted against potential danger to the community. A recent Rasmussen Reports® poll turned up some strong results on the subject.

Crime has emerged as a major political issue, and voters overwhelmingly disagree with controversial “bail reform” measures that return criminals to the streets.
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that 91% of Likely U.S. Voters believe that, when determining how much bail to require for suspects arrested and awaiting trial, it is important for judges to consider whether the suspect would represent a danger to the community if released. That includes 76% who say it’s Very Important for judges to consider whether a suspect is a danger to the community. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis made headlines last month when he went to Staten Island to criticize New York as “the only state that doesn’t allow judges to consider — when they’re making a bail determination — whether someone’s a danger to the community.”
Majorities of every political category – 72% of Democrats, 81% of Republicans and 75% of voters unaffiliated with either major party – think danger to the community should be a Very Important consideration in determining bail for criminal suspects.

Progressive strongholds are notorious for having a revolving door criminal justice system. Often we can find stories of criminals who have been released on one’s own recognizance, or on a paltry amount of bail, being caught up committing another crime in short order. That was the case of Darrell E. Brooks Jr., who committed the Waukesha Christmas parade attack in 2021. Brooks was arrested three weeks before he plowed through a crowd of people at the parade for hitting his girlfriend with his car, and was released after only posting $1000.00 bail. That offense was alleged to not be Brooks’ first, with him having a past full of serious criminal allegations.

What’s an appropriate bail, who should have control, and the proper application of appropriate bonds are all things that are important when dealing with public safety when a crime has been committed. The case for bail reform and egregiously high bonds being levied against marginalized communities is a valid concern. So is the topic of just releasing suspects with an already weighty criminal history after allegedly committing a violent act. That thousand dollars bail in the case of Brooks cost six people their lives.

Fifty-seven percent (57%) of Likely Voters believe that courts are releasing too many criminals back onto the streets, compared to 26% who think that courts are sending too many criminals to prison. Another 17% are not sure.
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Majorities of every racial category – 82% of whites, 53% of black voters and 70% of other minorities say it’s Very Important for judges to consider if suspects are a danger to the community when determining bail.

This country does have an issue with prioritizing what cases should get attention and which ones should not. The people of the U.S. do seem to universally agree that automatic release and removing the discretion of judges to hold a suspect in a criminal case pending a trial would be inappropriate.

There is a delicate minuet that must be done when exercising such powers. One of the beautiful things of living in the U.S. is that we’re assumed innocent until proven guilty in our criminal justice system. We legally give people the benefit of doubt. We’ve seen gross abuses of the system with the locking up of persons involved in the demonstrations on January 6th, 2021, without granting bail or scheduling speedy trials. The system can easily be abused where people can quickly become political prisoners when arrested for mopery.

What’s apparent is that something has to change if it’s society’s view that the majority believe too many criminals are being put back on the streets. The proof is also in the statistics, if jurisdictions are being honest, with progressive areas seeing incredible upticks in crime in areas that utilized so-called “defunding” and or bail reform tactics. We don’t have a vested interest as a civilized society to allow those who are alleged to have committed a crime to be released on little or no bail, just like we can’t expect to lock everyone up for every crime. As with near every statue or depiction of Justitia – her holding scales – in practical applications, there too needs to be balance in our system. In this case, life should imitate art.