Davis plea agreement shameful

To the Editor:

Last Friday, November 3, we witnessed a shocking miscarriage of justice at the Boundary County Courthouse. At the preliminary hearing in the case against Brian Davis, charged with aggravated felony battery, testimony was given by the 17-year-old victim and corroborated by another witness that Davis, at a campfire (known locally as a kegger) in the Katka area last July, made a remark to the effect that if your mother is a Muslim and your dad is a Catholic, that makes you a Jew, and you know what happens to Jews here, they burn." Both victim and witness testified that Davis then picked her up, held her over the fire and dropped her in. The doctor who treated her testified as to the severity of the burns from which she is only now recovering and still experiences pain. Photographs of the injuries were shown to the judge.

After the testimony, the victim's family and others who had followed the case closely were told by the prosecuting attorney to adjorn for a conference in another room. After that meeting, the prosecutor and defense attorney agreed to reduce the charge to a misdemeanor where Davis may be sentenced to make compensation only for existing medical bills and to serve two years unsupervised probation. The defendant was also told to apologize to the victim, which he did. We were told that the if the victim's family did not agree to these terms, the charges would be dismissed.

It is inexplicable that, after hearing the testimony, Judge Heise would suggest reducing charges and discount the severity of the crime. The statement by the defendant before the act of violence clearly indicates a motive of hate. But whether charged as a hate crime or felony battery, reducing the charges to a misdemeanor sends a signal that this community is OK with such behavior. It is an open secret here that "keggers" in recent years have become increasingly violent. We who love Boundary County do not want to see its good name sullied. We ask for an independent investigation into this case and the reasoning behind the recommendations.

Boundary County Human Rights Task Force