The woman in this case (KDFW, 12/15/08), Phylecia Humphries, 26, admits raping her foster son, aged 13, five times.  And whose fault was it according to her?  I'll give you one guess, but you already know the answer.  It was his fault of course.  And she gets off with 90 days in jail, probation and a $10,000 fine.  She'd done the same thing before with another foster son.  I guess it was his fault too.

It's good to know the double standard in sentencing is still firmly in place.  Can you imagine if a man had had sex with his 13-year-old foster daughter after having sex with another foster daughter?  Can you say serial rapist?  Can you imagine the maximum punishment allowed by law?  I can.

But...

Should she do the maximum jail time of 20 years?  Should a man, if the sexes were reversed?  If the adult goes to prison, what happens to the child?  Should it be raised by the father who's 13, maybe 14 years old?  Should it not get to know its mother until it's 20 years old and she gets out of stir?  Many of us go to bat for children's rights.  What's best for the child in this case?  Should the judge consider that at all?  If not, why not?

These questions need to be asked and answered in deciding punishment in this and every other case of statutory rape that results in the birth of a child.  Whether the perpetrator is male or female, don't we need to consider the child's welfare?

But...

Women have the right to abort the fetus or not as they choose; if the existence of a child determines the sentence given the perpetrator, doesn't that give female perpetrators control over their own punishment?

You be the judge.  What would you do?

Thanks to Jim for the heads-up.

This entry was posted on Friday, December 26th, 2008 at 9:40 am and is filed under Crime/Criminal Justice System/Police, Child Protective Services/Child Welfare System, Foster Care, Child Abuse, Rape/Sexual Assault/Statutory Rape. You can trackback from your own site.