Coming into the fourth of July holiday – I am reminded of this time a year ago. My son, innocent of any deviant intent, had just been taken from me. He had just turned 22. A bit old to be a momma’s boy but he has always been immature for his age and he was just not yet ready to launch – through no fault of mine or his.
ICAC proactive stings target such individuals. Persons with emotional issues – slower to mature, PTSD, ADHD, on the autistic spectrum, clinically depressed. These people, for different reasons, are ripe targets for such stings. They are often limited in their social skills, inexperienced with black and white repercussions, and obviously emotionally impaired.
Last fourth of July was hard. I went to a rodeo that weekend with my friend Rick and his family. At the singing of the national anthem – I couldn’t stand let alone put my hand on my aching heart. A vet asked me why – I thanked him for his service but was unable to speak then about my pain – all I could do was cry. He was kind enough to understand there was a reason and left me be. That was my third post on this blog.
I’ve been blogging our journey ever since. The pain has been real and often intense, the stress unrelenting. The reality for those of us caught in this atrocity is dismal at best. The ICAC rules are hidden, the police and prosecution allowed to wield their power with no oversight or restraint. The public and legislation uninformed or unwilling to listen. Until it hits home to someone they know. And then it’s too late – you wont be heard. You are now involved and thus your opinion will be disregarded as biased to your loved one.
The victories are few and far between – but we’ve had one this week. A man, accused of being a child predator here in washington state, was acquitted by a jury of his peers. Very similar case to Jace.
So there is hope, still.
For me, I am holding my breath, again, as I wait on my sons indeterminate sentence board decision, which should be posted any day now. Everyone says they will let him out, yet… the last decision on my sons morality didn’t go so well. Fingers crossed.
Thank you for reading and supporting this cause.
The Lady Justice Myth 
Well this was Jace “Tail light situation from Justice for All”. If it were a cliff he would have walked right off it, never saw it coming; but it wasn’t it was our legal and judicial system tag teaming up against an innocent man. Where are the ethics boards, the decent people? It’s hard to imagine Atticus Finch in this role. Have we been fed lies about our system all along???
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Glad you’ve posted. I’ve been having many thoughts about the review and it’s outcome. SHAME on “pro-active” operations that wreak such havoc in the lives of those who were turned into being a perpetrator, caused to become a criminal because of the shoddy and cheap-shot methods used during such operations.
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