2006
“Repent America” Launches Petition Drive Calling For The Impeachment Of Judge Edward Cashman
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Press release from Repent America
PHILADELPHIA (Jan 13, 2006) - Repent America (RA) has launched a petition drive calling for the Vermont legislature to immediately begin impeachment proceedings against District Court Judge Edward Cashman for allowing a confessed child rapist to go free in sixty days.
The petition calls upon members of the Vermont House of Representatives to take the necessary steps to have Judge Cashman removed from the bench for giving 34-year-old Mark Hulett, who confessed to raping a six-year-old girl over a four-year period, a sentence of only sixty days in prison.
"The decision by Judge Cashman to allow this child rapist to essentially go free is inexcusable. The judge’s confessed belief of no longer desiring to administer justice, accompanied by his actions in this case, are sufficient grounds for impeachment," stated Repent America director Michael Marcavage. "A judge who does not believe in punishment is a judge who is a danger to all people," Marcavage continued.
The petition calls upon members of the Vermont House of Representatives to take the necessary steps to have Judge Cashman removed from the bench for giving 34-year-old Mark Hulett, who confessed to raping a six-year-old girl over a four-year period, a sentence of only sixty days in prison. "The decision by Judge Cashman to allow this child rapist to essentially go free is inexcusable. The judge’s confessed belief of no longer desiring to administer justice, accompanied by his actions in this case, are sufficient grounds for impeachment," stated Repent America director Michael Marcavage. "A judge who does not believe in punishment is a judge who is a danger to all people," Marcavage continued. The cites that Judge Cashman "remains an immediate threat to the children of the State of Vermont" and that the actions of the judge "provide sufficient grounds for impeachment for his disregard of the law by no longer willing to administer justice through punishment for such heinous crimes."
Under Vermont’s Constitution, the legislature has the power to impeach judges with such proceedings beginning in the State’s House of Representatives.
"Judge Cashman’s sentence sends a clear message to those who desire to rape children, which is, ‘Go ahead and I’ll make sure you get out in no time,’" Marcavage stated. "Now it’s our turn to send a clear message to Judge Cashman for being a danger to children everywhere by delivering a petition to the Vermont House of Representatives seeking his immediate removal from the bench," Marcavage concluded.
Please click here to sign the petition.
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I just finished a long entry on my blog about it:
http://www.recoveryvehicle.us/blog/2006/01/sixty_days.html
I don’t know if Judge Cashman is right or wrong with his sentence. Reading several articles about it I don’t see anything to suggest that the judge is saying that sexual abuse of a child is acceptable or that perpetrators don’t deserve to be punished. He is talking about the corrosive effect of harboring anger. He is attempting to focus on doing something to help the survivor. He is also shinning a light on the dearth of options that exist for dealing with such perpetrators and the ineffectiveness of them.
This is not what we tend to like to hear. Consequently everyone is angry. It reminds me of the situation when I began to deal with my memories of my abuse. No one wanted me to remember. No one liked what I had to say and there was a lot of anger.
Let’s say that there was a national resolution that anyone convicted of a child sex crime would be executed immediately. Huge penalty. It doesn’t seem like huge penalties are very effective as deterrents, however, so I don’t think we can assume the incidence of abuse will change. I suspect that the number reported would plummet because the penalty was so huge.
Let’s say instead that anyone convicted would be sentenced to 60 days in jail, court mandated treatment and perpetual monitoring for the rest of their life. Again, I don’t think the incidence of abuse is going to change but I think the number of reported cases would climb because REPORTING it become easier to do.
Now, if we set aside our desire to slake OUR feelings of anger and rage, what’s likely to result in more survivors being able to move into getting help dealing with what happened to them? I think it’s the case that the easier it is to be reported. Making it easier to report is going to make it easier for people to break the silence. And the sooner more people are going to get into therapy or other help. And the sooner that happens the fewer of them grow up to express that anger and confusion as a continuation of the cycle of violence and abuse.
Clearly perps and predators need to be identified and monitored. They can not go back to being just another citizen, in my opinion. Judge Cashman may or may not be right in this particular case but he is right about the damage of harboring anger and bitterness as well as the fact that we have no good system for dealing with abuse perps.
You know what would probably be the most effective approach to dealing with pedophiles and sexual abuse perps? If the state sentenced the perp as Judge Cashman did, they become registered sex offenders, and the difference between what the perp would have cost as an incarcerated prisoner is contributed to a fund for survivors. That would be about $20-30k a year for say ten years going into such a fund (it costs $40-50k a year to house a prisoner). Part of the perp’s wages could be garnished to apply to that. The result would turn into one of the best funded programs around with resources to help survivors and increase awareness. It may not satisfy the immediate, visceral lust for vengeance but I can tell you from personal experience that vengeance doesn’t aid healing from the wounds of abuse.