Say Anything Blog

A look at our judicial system at work…

Recent Arizona cases of child abuse resulting in death have caused many to question the ability of Child Protective Services. What I do not see people criticizing is the court rulings of these cases.

In the Brandon Williams case, lawmakers are alarmed that despite reports in fall 2006 indicating CPS investigators and the Attorney General’s Office had concerns about Marsh’s ability to care for her son, Brandon remained in the home because CPS officials say they didn’t have enough evidence or authority to seek a removal.

The mother and son later disappeared. With CPS unable to locate the family, or even file a missing-persons report, police didn’t find the family until March.

A week later, Brandon was rushed to the hospital, where he died. Marsh and her roommate, Flower Tompson, are charged with murder.

Tompson called 911 on March 21, 2007, after Brandon stopped breathing. Resuscitation efforts failed, and the boy died at Northwest Medical Center.

Paramedics who went to Marsh’s North Side home called the Pima County Sheriff’s Department because they saw marks on his wrists, ankles and feet that indicated he had been tied up and burned.

An autopsy revealed the child died of a skull fracture and had large amounts of the sleeping medication in his system.

Marsh testified Tompson convinced her that satanic cults were out to kill her and her son, and that Tompson knew the best way to deal with Brandon, even when it involved physical abuse.
Although Marsh told detectives she had tied Brandon to his bed and dipped his feet in hot water to quell his temper tantrums, she told jurors Tompson did those things because he had been disrespectful toward Tompson.

She testified they both drugged the boy to help him sleep, but it was Tompson’s idea.

On the night he died, Marsh said, Tompson took the boy into another room and she heard Tompson yelling at the child. When the boy started struggling for breath later that night, Marsh admitted, she did nothing to seek help for him for hours.

“She, by her own admission, gave the child 12 Tylenol PM pills,” says Pima County Bureau Chief Rick Kastigar.

In other articles, Marsh admitted to regularly giving her son 6 Tylenol PMs twice a day to control him. She also claimed that the fracture was caused by Tompson slamming his head against the bathroom wall. It is also believed some of the marks on his wrists were from being tied up and burn marks were caused by being set on an oven.

Both Tompson and Marsh were sentenced to 10 years each for negligent homicide and child abuse. According to commentary, the sentencing guidelines for Marsh were probation up to 11.5 years.

In order to get my head around this, I did a little research. Here’s a brief look at the
2008 Federal Sentencing Guideline Manual:

First Degree Murder
Base Offense Level: 43 (approximately 30 years to life)

Offenses Involving Premeditated Killing—In the case of premeditated killing, life imprisonment is the appropriate sentence if a sentence of death is not imposed

Felony Murder—If the defendant did not cause the death intentionally or knowingly, a downward departure may be warranted.

Second Degree Murder
Base Offense Level: 38 (approximately 20-25 years)

Upward Departure Provision.—If the defendant’s conduct was exceptionally heinous, cruel, brutal, or degrading to the victim, an upward departure may be warranted

Involuntary Manslaughter
Base Offense Level:
    12, if the offense involved criminally negligent conduct.

“Criminally negligent” means conduct that involves a gross deviation from the standard of care that a reasonable person would exercise under the circumstances, but which is not reckless.

    18, if the offense involved reckless conduct; or
    22, if the offense involved the reckless operation of a means of transportation

“Reckless” means a situation in which the defendant was aware of the risk created by his conduct and the risk was of such a nature and degree that to disregard that risk constituted a gross deviation from the standard of care that a reasonable person would exercise in such a situation.

Aggravated Assault
Base Offense Level: 14

Kidnapping, Abduction, Unlawful Restraint
Base Offense Level: 32

Stalking or Domestic Violence
Base Offense Level: 18

The last three were just for a little more perspective. They are cases that do not result in death, yet the sentencing is harsher than negligent homicide. I feel like I’m missing something here, because it seems like the life of a child is worth less than the life of an adult.

Links:

Base Offense Level Chart
http://www.rtmark.com/busted/

Articles regarding the case of Brandon Williams:
http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/258250
http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/local/96853.php
http://www.thought-criminal.org/2007/07/19/new-questions-arise-on-cps-ties-to-slain-children