What do you think is suitable punishment for parents who let their 7-year-old balloon to 255 lb on a diet of potato chips and fries? And watched him die of heart failure? They’re about to decide that question in a Michigan court…
His name was Casper O’Brien. He was autistic, and so had never attended school. And he had only seen a doctor once in his life. He was also, by all accounts, a cheerful little boy who loved life. But all he would eat was chips and fries. And his parents let him do that. Until he had reached an almost unbelievable weight of 255 lb.
One morning last fall, his mother called 911, saying Casper was not breathing. First responders found the child ‘unresponsive’ and rushed him to hospital – where he was pronounced dead. An Autopsy revealed Casper had died of heart failure. Not only that, but a specific type of heart disease usually only found in much older people.
Investigators found the family had been ‘living in squalor’, ‘amid piles of trash’. Their home’s single bathroom was described as ‘out of commission’, the toilet jammed with excrement.
Parent arrested
Court records confirm, the parents were arrested last month and charged with second-degree murder, torture, and three counts of second-degree child abuse.
But the question immediately arises: Is that suitable censure for the ‘crime’? Or is it overkill, imposed by a system driven not by a desire to rehabilitate or restore, but simply by a desire for retribution?
Is it really murder?
The prosecution will probably argue that the death of Casper O’Brien was murder. Because the par-ents willfully allowed him to eat himself to death. But in ‘murder’, there’s always the question of intent. Whether it’s a ‘crime of passion’, committed on the spur of the moment, or a planned killing, cooked up and executed over time, murder requires proof that the killer intended to end a life.
From what I’ve read, it doesn’t appear that the O’Briens intended to kill their son. Maybe they just didn’t know any better than to let him eat what he wanted. And maybe they just didn’t know that he was in mortal danger from his weight. Maybe they are believers in a religion which teaches its follow-ers that God’s Will ultimately determines their fate – not what they do or don’t do here on Earth…
My take
It’s sometimes pointed out that even the most perfect ‘system’ can be bent out of shape by the mere-mortal, flawed humans who run it. The principles behind the US Justice System are codified, carved in stone. But ‘the system’ is interpreted and administered by people with feelings, opinions, values and ethics of their own. It’s only natural that the humans – the weak link in the System – will be influenc-ed by their personal beliefs. If they feel strongly enough about something like the Casper O’Brien saga, it follows that they might not necessarily be motivated, solely and purely, to apply ‘justice’ objectively…
My questions for you:
Do you believe the O’Briens intended to harm their child?
Do you believe the charges against Casper O’Brien’s parents are warranted under the circumstances?
If not…
Do you believe ‘murder’ should be ‘taken off the table’?
Or at least reduced to ‘manslaughter’, a crime defined as, ‘the unlawful killing of a human being without malice aforethought (the intent to kill or severely harm)’?
Muse on that!
And be glad that you won’t have to sit on the jury…
~ Maggie J.