News – Alex Anderson Writer

Thoughts on the Sandusky Trial

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Jun 172012

As I write this, the prosecution has finished presenting its case in the Jerry Sandusky trial and the defense is about to start. I find this case abhorrent. Jerry Sandusky was a popular coach and influential person in the Penn State system. He is accused of 51 counts of sexually molesting young boys that he met through his charity, Second Mile.

There are so many things in this case that I find repugnant. The first is that he targeted at-risk young boys under the guise of a charitable organization that was supposed to specifically help them. Reprehensible.

Another thing that I find despicable is that he used his power, position and money to entrap the boys. He gave them things they could never have afforded or had the opportunity to get without him. That kept them coming back to him. He used his power and influence to protect himself so that he would not be accused of criminal activity and the victims would have no voice. Disgusting!

News stations like CNN are reporting that one of the defense stratagems might be to claim that he has histrionic personality disorder, which causes people to act emotionally and dramatically so as to draw attention to them. Ridiculous. If that were true, he should have sought treatment. It’s also no excuse for that sort of behavior. The boys were still assaulted and molested.

Rutger’s Bullying Trial Sentencing

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May 212012

I watched part of the sentencing of Dharun Ravi who was convicted of spying on and intimidating his gay roommate, who then killed himself by jumping off New York’s George Washington Bridge. Ravi was also convicted of various other charges encompassing trying to cover up his crime and avoiding repercussions. See my earlier blog for my thoughts on the trial.

Unfortunately, I missed the hearing the Clementi statements. I joined the live broadcast when Dharun Ravi’s mother was speaking. “Dharun’s dreams have been shattered and he has been living in hell for the past twenty months…” she said. She also made various other statements about how Dharun has been victimized by the media and has suffered for it.

I can’t help but feel that Dharun being victimized by the media is karma. He victimized Tyler Clementi by using electronic media. Not once did she speak about Dharun feeling bad, guilty, remorseful, or even apologetic for what happened. She was more concerned about what happened to her son, not about what her son inflicted on another human being.

Ravi did not speak on his behalf. At the end, I was left with the feeling that he still truly believes that his actions were not criminal. I’m happy he got some jail time but am more pleased that the prosecutor is appealing for more jail time.

Rutgers Bullying Trial

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Mar 132012

I’ve been following this trial closely. The jury begins deliberating after today’s closing arguments. In a nutshell, Dharun Ravi is accused of spying on and intimidating his gay roommate, Tyler Clementi, who later killed himself by jumping off the George Washington Bridge.

I find the defense strategy of saying that Ravi was worried about his belongings being stolen or that he was just acting immaturely to be utterly ridiculous. While those things may be true, it’s clearly indicative of a bias.

I highly doubt that Ravi would have been concerned if his roommate were having a female guest over. Would he have tweeted about Clementi spending time with his girlfriend? Would he have tried to organize a “viewing party” if the encounter were heterosexual? I think NOT.

There is no excuse for what Ravi did except bias. If we remove all genders from the equation, one person doing that to another is wrong by all definitions. I hope the jury finds him guilty of everything with which he’s charged. There is no room for bias in today’s world.