Post by WaTcHeR on Jun 20, 2006 16:48:32 GMT -5
06.20.2006 - She's the typical 14-year-old, looking forward to ice cream, her makeup bag and Mom's home cooking, and dreading school.
What wasn't so typical was the last 12 days spent as the youngest inmate in the Summit County Jail.
But the teen's stay behind bars, triggered by a judge when she ran away instead of testifying against her alleged molester, ended Monday, just in time for dinner.
As she left the jail to a waiting throng of media, the eighth-grader from Norton Middle School -- dressed in jeans and a T-shirt reading she's ``So Not a Princess'' -- embraced her mom, two young siblings and her lawyer.
``It's something I never want to do again,'' the girl said when asked by reporters about her experience. ``It's crappy.''
She won her freedom when the Ohio 9th District Court of Appeals ruled Monday that her incarceration without a hearing, plus her detention in an adult jail, violated the law.
The decision to free her was written by appellate Judge Lynn Slaby, who said case law was so clear, no further hearings were necessary to reach a decision. Slaby said the girl was being illegally held in an adult jail and should have been given a hearing before she was sent to jail.
Prosecutors said they were not surprised by the ruling. Nonetheless, they had asked the appeals court to allow another hearing that would have extended her jail stay.
``The fact that the (juvenile) is being held in an adult facility by itself renders her detention unlawful,'' Slaby wrote.
The girl was ordered to jail May 10 as a material witness by Common Pleas Judge James Murphy. When she was not accepted at the juvenile detention center because another judge said incarceration would be illegal, Murphy placed her in the county jail.
The girl was isolated from adult inmates and essentially held in isolation 23 hours a day. She had limited phone use and prosecutors chose who could speak to her.
The girl's mother supported the incarceration, claiming the teen was a chronic runaway who used alcohol and drugs in the company of men.
Akron attorney Eddie Sipplen, who volunteered to represent the teen, said he hopes the family can begin to heal and that the girl can receive some help.
``The confinement was starting to wear on her. You could tell it in her face,'' he said. ``By no means does this mean it's over for (her). She must now deal with the trauma of being isolated in an adult jail for almost two weeks.''
The teen said she spent most days watching television, reading, doing homework and drawing.She said she was treated well in jail.
She said she hoped to buy some ice cream Monday night and enjoy her time at home. She cringed when her mother said she would be in school today.
``I felt so alone for a while,'' she said. ``I missed my family.... It was just a dumb mistake.''
Prosecutors said they learned something as well.
``We are not surprised by the decision,'' said Assistant Prosecutor Phil Bogdanoff. ``It was a very unique issue. The next time we have one of these cases, we'll be more familiar with the procedures.''
The girl's mother said she supported Murphy's decision to jail her daughter.
But, ``if it was illegal and she's coming home, I'm supporting that also,'' the 31-year-old said. ``I hope she's learned her lesson. But I will be there for her, support her and love her.''
Prosecutors and the girl's mother hope the teen will not run away and will testify at the trial of Galo Sanchez-Pesantes, 20, the man accused of having sex with her last January. His trial is May 31.
What wasn't so typical was the last 12 days spent as the youngest inmate in the Summit County Jail.
But the teen's stay behind bars, triggered by a judge when she ran away instead of testifying against her alleged molester, ended Monday, just in time for dinner.
As she left the jail to a waiting throng of media, the eighth-grader from Norton Middle School -- dressed in jeans and a T-shirt reading she's ``So Not a Princess'' -- embraced her mom, two young siblings and her lawyer.
``It's something I never want to do again,'' the girl said when asked by reporters about her experience. ``It's crappy.''
She won her freedom when the Ohio 9th District Court of Appeals ruled Monday that her incarceration without a hearing, plus her detention in an adult jail, violated the law.
The decision to free her was written by appellate Judge Lynn Slaby, who said case law was so clear, no further hearings were necessary to reach a decision. Slaby said the girl was being illegally held in an adult jail and should have been given a hearing before she was sent to jail.
Prosecutors said they were not surprised by the ruling. Nonetheless, they had asked the appeals court to allow another hearing that would have extended her jail stay.
``The fact that the (juvenile) is being held in an adult facility by itself renders her detention unlawful,'' Slaby wrote.
The girl was ordered to jail May 10 as a material witness by Common Pleas Judge James Murphy. When she was not accepted at the juvenile detention center because another judge said incarceration would be illegal, Murphy placed her in the county jail.
The girl was isolated from adult inmates and essentially held in isolation 23 hours a day. She had limited phone use and prosecutors chose who could speak to her.
The girl's mother supported the incarceration, claiming the teen was a chronic runaway who used alcohol and drugs in the company of men.
Akron attorney Eddie Sipplen, who volunteered to represent the teen, said he hopes the family can begin to heal and that the girl can receive some help.
``The confinement was starting to wear on her. You could tell it in her face,'' he said. ``By no means does this mean it's over for (her). She must now deal with the trauma of being isolated in an adult jail for almost two weeks.''
The teen said she spent most days watching television, reading, doing homework and drawing.She said she was treated well in jail.
She said she hoped to buy some ice cream Monday night and enjoy her time at home. She cringed when her mother said she would be in school today.
``I felt so alone for a while,'' she said. ``I missed my family.... It was just a dumb mistake.''
Prosecutors said they learned something as well.
``We are not surprised by the decision,'' said Assistant Prosecutor Phil Bogdanoff. ``It was a very unique issue. The next time we have one of these cases, we'll be more familiar with the procedures.''
The girl's mother said she supported Murphy's decision to jail her daughter.
But, ``if it was illegal and she's coming home, I'm supporting that also,'' the 31-year-old said. ``I hope she's learned her lesson. But I will be there for her, support her and love her.''
Prosecutors and the girl's mother hope the teen will not run away and will testify at the trial of Galo Sanchez-Pesantes, 20, the man accused of having sex with her last January. His trial is May 31.