Bad Parenting: Your infant, yes infant, tokes a bong; new meaning to “potty training”
“Youthful indiscretion” at 18 months?
Not content with waiting until her child hits her rebellious teen years and succumbs to peer pressure to make her own bad decisions, a really bad Montana mother fast-forwarded the process by 15 years and got her 18-month-old baby daughter high by placing a marijuana bong in the infant’s mouth. She did this on several occasions.
We know this because her case was being reviewed by a U.S. appeals court. The court ruled that the mom, Jessica Durham, was properly convicted but should not have to spend five years in jail. If there was ever a crime that deserved 5 years in jail, wouldn’t this be it? The courts disagreed and said that federal law calls for two years jail for this type of “potty training.”
The judge’ comments read like something out of The Onion:
“Ms. Durham allegedly remarked that smoking improved Michala’s appetite and left Michala lethargic and mellow - a manner she found consistent with her own experience smoking marijuana.”
Hungry and lethargic? How about giggling uncontrollably and a desire to wear baggy pants? How about watching “Napoleon Dynamite” over-and-over-and-over? Did they watch the “Wizard of Oz” together but to the music of Pink Floyd’s “Dark Side of the Moon”? (If this reference confuses you, click here).
Besides the physical abuse aspect of the case, think about the uncomfortable position this child will be in any time she needs to answer questions about past drug use (say on an employment application or perhaps a presidential race). “Yes, but I didn’t inhale” or “I was young, really young.”
h/t: Patterico and How Appealing
tags: napolean dynamite jessica durham michala durham bad parenting
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September 25th, 2006 at 3:23 am
: This case has inspired a predictable flurry of internet activity. There’s a more-detailed description of the one day trial in a Billings paper. See article here. Some bloggers express frustration at the reduction of the five year sentence. See post here. Others seemed shocked by the “whopping” five year sentence originally imposed. See post here. Steven Kalar, Senior Litigator N.D. Cal. FPD. Website available at www.ndcalfpd.org .
September 26th, 2006 at 12:12 pm
[…] end to frown upon medicating children into submission. Independent Sources wonders how the child will answer questions regarding drug use on future job a […]