Youth involved in drug death should face trial as an adult

Youth involved in drug death should face trial as an adult
EDITOR:
I am Paul Graham II's father. I read your Dec. 6 article about the upcoming Phibbs trail.
Walter Phibbs committed three adult crimes that caused the fourth adult crime, the death of my son.
The state of Ohio has a list of guidelines on determining whether to try a juvenile as an adult. Juvenile Court Judge Theresa Dellick found the only one that didn't apply to Phibbs. He has no prior arrests. Neither did the two juveniles who shot up Columbine High School.
Judge Dellick feels that Phibbs can be rehabilitated at the Juvenile Justice Center. Judge Dellick also states periodically that she doesn't have enough money to house the prisoners now at the Juvenile Justice Center. If she can't afford to house them, how can she afford the extra money to rehabilitate them? By trying Phibbs as a juvenile, Judge Dellick cannot guarantee how long she can hold him, regardless of the added expense of rehabilitation.
The police determined that Phibbs had given my son the morphine that he stole from his mother, the morphine she takes three times a day for chronic pain. The videotape confession probably gave him away.
Phibbs attorney admits to the charges of theft of drugs and trafficking in drugs in an attempt to keep two witnesses off the stand and hope for a deal in dropping the charges of corrupting another with drugs and involuntary manslaughter. His attorney says those two "charges are a stretch." I disagree; so do other attorneys. If you traffic in drugs that tends to corrupt another with drugs and if that person dies from those drugs, you have had a hand in that person's death. I do believe those are part of the mandatory instructions a judge is to give to a jury.
Judge Dellick announced her ruling on trying Phibbs as a juvenile late in the day Dec. 3 and set the trial date for Dec. 12, giving the prosecutor's office only six working days to issue subpoenas for witnesses, etc. That isn't much time, seeing as how the prosecutors office didn't know which court the trial would be held in or by whose rule.
The Rev. PAUL GRAHAM
Boardman
There's another side to being trampled for the holidays
EDITOR:
It is unfortunate that the shopper was trampled at a Wal-Mart on "Black Friday," but let's put things into perspective before we launch an attack on Wal-Mart.
It seems that this shopper has filed many claims of injuries before. If she was prone to accidents and seizures, why in the world would she put herself in that situation in the first place?
This is like me having an auto accident in my Cavalier that I have owned for some years and blaming General Motors. It is like smoking my whole life and blaming the cigarette companies for my cancer. It is like my stupidity in putting hot coffee on my lap in the car and it spilling and blaming McDonald's. It is like my blaming my weight on all the companies who make candy, donuts, cakes, etc.
Let's think about how everyone's greed takes over this time of year. When we are suppose to be nice, the meanness comes out in people. Everyone is looking for a bargain when they should be thinking how to improve themselves and give their families their best gift of all, themselves.
We need to stop blaming everyone else for our own mistakes. We need to take responsibility for our own actions. Have a peaceful holiday.
PAT ZOCCALI
Warren
On moving Brother Cal
EDITOR:
Regarding the Cal Thomas column of Dec. 4, "Keeping Christ in Christmas."
When will The Vindicator finally decide to move Cal's comments from the editorial section to the Saturday religion pages? What does Cal have to do, submit a new picture of himself standing at a pulpit thumping a bible?
AL BLAZO
Youngstown