My condolences to the family of Jodi Sanderholm and the people of Ark City.  I can only pray that I never lose a precious loved one to a predator the likes of the killer that took your child.  I stumbled across Jodi’s story very much by accident, and find myself compelled to write.  I am not from the area.  I have no local interest in writing.  I see the tragedy and suffering, the confusion and questioning in the wake of this tragedy. 

AND I see that other thing that often makes me ponder…..The pointed finger.  I suppose it’s natural.  I have seen people blame the police.  I understand that they let Mr. Suspect go because he complained of chest pains.  Perhaps a life would have been saved had Mr. Suspect been immediately incarcerated.  I find that Mr. Suspect also has a lengthy criminal history.  It is conceivable that he could have been imprisoned for one of his multiple previous crimes.  Maybe we could even say that that should be expected. 

The City of Arkansas City is, in no way, different than many other communities that lose their innocence.  It is indeed a rude wakeup call.  A family numb and shattered for generations.  How could this have happened?  Who is to blame? How can we prevent this from happening again?  The questions, then the pointed finger. 

I have seen very few fingers point to where the blame should be squarely place though.  The obvious.  Mr. Suspect.  Let’s not forget that it is HE who took this promising young life.  It is HE who made a decision to murder a young woman, to rip her from your midst.  It is he who laughs in the face of your community, your norms, your expected code of behavior. It is HE who should be destroyed, left broken, bleeding, and forgoten. 

I don’t expect that most of you who post in this forum truly understand the type of being that Mr. Suspect represents.  He is, pure and simple, a cancer.  He is not alone.  There are many more among us.  Maybe you don’t see them.  Or if you do see them, you simply choose to ignore them.  Many of us, in our sheltered lives, do not wish to believe that there are those among us capable of such violence, such destruction, such hate. 

THEY ARE THERE! And we are there also.  The path converges more than you will ever wish to know.  And we (remember where we are) allow it to happen.  THEY surround you and thrive in every burg and city in our land.  THEY come in the night, stealing our security.  THEY disregard your sanctity, pedaling filth, defiling your children and mocking you and you way of life.

Had Mr. Suspect been taken to the jail the night he was arrested for “impersonating an officer” he most certainly would have been given a court appointed attorney (at your cost btw).  He most certainly would have had his medical bills paid for by the Police Department (a greedy attorney would have seen to this).  This is common practice.  I would venture to say that the officer who had his hands on Mr. Suspect knew, that night, that it was only a ploy by Mr. Suspect to stay out of jail.  I would venture to say, also, that this was not the first time he or she had seen this.  And knew that department policy dictated that Mr. Suspect be “un arrested” and given medical treatment.  If this officer had been on the force long enough he or she might even recall having been sued at some time for not allowing some other malingerer to escape. 

Mr. Suspect would surely not ever be incarcerated previously for such petty crimes.  A court appointed attorney and an overburdened judicial system would have seen to that.  It is a sad, yet true, cliché that that Mr. Suspect has had, and will now have, more rights that Ms. Sanderholm.  He will be afforded a “competent” legal team who will sap thousands, if not millions, of dollars from the court system.  They will perhaps claim that Mr. Suspect was mentally ill, or that the evidence should be thrown to the wayside because of an obscene technicality from and obscure, time worn case.  The attorneys, and our BROKEN system of “JUSTICE”, will prevail.  Mr. Suspect with mock us again, laugh in our face. 

And the fingers will again point.  Here, and there, yet none will find the mark. 

Rest assured Mr. Suspect.  Should you, or you cohorts, decide to take the life of my precious child some day…….You should pray for a long stay in the correctional facility of your choice, as a good prison husband. 

And as for the broken legal system, and our nation of lawyers…..Some day the good people of this land will calmly make a stand, by force of arms or otherwise, to stop you and the cancer that envelopes us all. 


More lawyers is not the answer...Perhapes NONE would be just about right! 

rebelLT