All Teens in Florida YouTube Beating To Be Tried As Adults
The rumor has been bantered around for the past few days that the eight teens that were arrested Sunday in Polk County, Florida for their brutal attack on 16-year-old Victoria Lindsay might be tried as adults. And, even though only two of the teens are 18, it has been announced that all eight will indeed be tried as adults.
Finally, something in this case that makes sense!
All eight are charged with kidnapping and misdemeanor battery. The kidnapping charge alone could life in prison. There are those who feel kidnapping is a stretch, but even in the short video clip released by the Polk County Sheriff’s office I could see where Lindsay tried to leave through the front door and one of the girls blocked her way.
Three of the kids (Brittni Hardcastle, Brittany Mayes and Mercades Nichols, all 17) additionally face felony charges of witness tampering.
The other defendants are April Cooper, 14; Kayla Hassell, 15; Cara Murphy, 16; and Stephen Shumaker and Zachary Ashley, both 18.
Their first court appearance will be tomorrow in Bartow, Florida.
If all goes well, each of these little violence-laden jewels can kiss goodbye the rest of their teenage years, their college years, and at least their 20’s. Now, if only charged could be brought against the mother of one of these kids, who had the stones to claim that Lindsay had it coming.
Kids fight all of the time. The major difference here is the premeditated nature of the crime. They filmed it; they decided ahead of time (though some process of convoluted logic) that it would be OK as long as only one person hit Lindsay at a time or if she fought back.
Unfortunately, these kids already got some of what they wanted. Not only did their video of the beating go viral, as they had planned, they have made national headlines and become mini celebrities.
And, it does not look like remorse is even in the picture. When the kids were first arrested, reports say that they were upbeat, laughing, and joking. The MySpace profile for Mercades Nichols has finally been set to private, but she is online as I write this and has changed her tagline to read “FUCK YALL ID DO IT AGAIN!” (Please excuse the profanity. I am simply quoting Nichols.)
The local news websites are full of comments from people in the community. One person had what I feel might be the best solution for the whole YouTube / MySpace issue. Someone using the login name crumbsnatcher23 posted today, saying:
“… Maybe if myspace and youtube charge a simple fee, something that you actually have to enter Name, Address, and Credit card info. You probably wouldn’t have half as much of the problem you have with them now, including predators.”
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