'The deal of the century'
Prosecutors should be ashamed and the public should be outraged that Trenton teacher Sylvester Jones was offered a special form of probation yesterday for having a sexual relationship with one of his teenage students.
As prosecutors described it as the "deal of the century," they should have taken pause at their own words.
Why is Jones "getting off" with a slap on the wrist?
Let's dispel some misconceptions about this case and cases like it.
The girl was 17, practically an adult, right? Well, the girl was 16 when prosecutors allege that Jones started an inappropriate relationship with her. The law is the law, first of all, and statutary rape laws are on the books because CHILDREN CAN'T "CONSENT" to sex. They are too young to make that decision, especially when it involves an adult who should know better.
But more importantly, she was HIS STUDENT. He was in a position of authority over her, and to take advantage of that relationship is immoral and illegal and NEVER OK.
The fact that special probation - designed for first-time offenders who make an error in judgment unlikely to ever happen again and that hasn't had too much victim impact - was applied in this case is mind-boggling considering the factors above and that Jones was charged in this case and then allegedly caught having sexual contact with the girl in a public park while on probation!
Does that sound like someone who made a one-time error in judgment?
Does that sound like the kind of judgment we want to tell our children, parents and the public that it's OK to exhibit as a teacher in the public school system? That's what we're saying by not meting out a proper punishment in this case.
And a proper punishment would be Sylvester Jones behind bars.
As prosecutors described it as the "deal of the century," they should have taken pause at their own words.
Why is Jones "getting off" with a slap on the wrist?
Let's dispel some misconceptions about this case and cases like it.
The girl was 17, practically an adult, right? Well, the girl was 16 when prosecutors allege that Jones started an inappropriate relationship with her. The law is the law, first of all, and statutary rape laws are on the books because CHILDREN CAN'T "CONSENT" to sex. They are too young to make that decision, especially when it involves an adult who should know better.
But more importantly, she was HIS STUDENT. He was in a position of authority over her, and to take advantage of that relationship is immoral and illegal and NEVER OK.
The fact that special probation - designed for first-time offenders who make an error in judgment unlikely to ever happen again and that hasn't had too much victim impact - was applied in this case is mind-boggling considering the factors above and that Jones was charged in this case and then allegedly caught having sexual contact with the girl in a public park while on probation!
Does that sound like someone who made a one-time error in judgment?
Does that sound like the kind of judgment we want to tell our children, parents and the public that it's OK to exhibit as a teacher in the public school system? That's what we're saying by not meting out a proper punishment in this case.
And a proper punishment would be Sylvester Jones behind bars.
Labels: Sylvester Jones, Trenton School Department
posted by Trentonian Editor at
9:02 AM
2 Comments:
As an employee of the district, I cannot express the indifferent state of affairs that go on in the Trenton School District. The rape scandal was a perfrect example. The district was well aware of his relationship with the young lady and supposedly were in the process of filing tenure charges against him. This process was in its second year of coming to fruition, while they continued to pay his salary. Only, when he took his illegal activities to Pennsylvania, was something done. The state should take a very close look at the administrative games being played with our children's education. For example, one administrator found culpable in the Sherman Ave Scandal, is getting promoted. The smoke has cleared and it is business as usual on City Hall Steps. Several council members have used this platform as an introduction into their political positioning. Furiously promising to get to the bottom of this, to what extent? Palmer promoted some of them to their seats, while at the same time insuring they obtain a position in the district,i.e board attorney. His strangle hold on the council has served him well. Over the last year, the game has somewhat changed, after all Palmer's eye is focused on Hillary's prize. If possible,he will leave all of this behind and advance on the backs of the students and the cities poorer communities. The school district has long been a place where little ego's resulted in big problems for our students. As this school year prepares to open,and Palmer,council,teachers, and
district administrators promise our students a great education, let the games begin.
If this had happened in a suburban school district, this teacher would be punished severely. Such instances are not new. School districts should be treated the same, no matter how rich or poor the area is. Skewed views about inner city people should not influence punishments of crime.
By the way, I don't live in the city but I feel all people should be treated equally. How can we expect people to follow our laws if the justice for not following them depends on who you are and where the crime took place. Punishment in this case was not enough and was not equal to other similar cases.
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