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http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2068148/Agassi-Odusina-Teen-rapper-spared-jail-pursue-music-career.html

Odusina admitted being in breach of an ASBO when he ‘aggressively threatened’ the mother earlier this year, after his sister had an affair with her husband Odusina approached the woman and her seven-year-old daughter neither of whom can be named for legal reasons, and told her to leave his 'sister alone’, a court heard Susan Hulme, prosecuting told Inner London Crown Court: 'He Inner London Crown Court: 'He pointed at where the victims lived and said 'I know where you live and if you don't leave her alone I will kill you and your two children'.'He then put his forefinger on the woman's head and the seven-year- old child forehead'The girl was so shocked at the aggressive approach that she cried.

What has the world come too?

This is somehow new?

That attitude has long applied to the hip-hop scene.

Or rather the "lots of money" scene in which hip-hop is a small subset.

Melissia wrote:This is somehow new?

That attitude has long applied to the hip-hop scene.

Or more specifically large amounts of its music which are full of "Feth the police" thematic variants...

I read the title of this thread as something completely different.


Anyway, reading what you posted, I figured this kid was 15 or 16.

He's 19. Still not too old to have the gak kicked out of him for being a little punk.

Are you fething gaking me? He threatened people but the courts didn't send him to jail so he could pursue his music career?

Hannah Stephenson, in mitigation, told the court her client had lost 'commercial opportunities' for his music since being imprisoned after the August attack.

So fething what? Too fething bad for him, he shouldn't've done it then, should he?

I've always had a dim view of the UK's criminal justice system (Not that ours is perfect by any stretch of the imagination), but damn.

Reading the article it sounds somewhat reasonable.

The US, and most of the comments are from folks living here, has a mindset of focusing on "punishment" versus focusing on preventing future crimes.

So the usual mindset for most would be: He threatens somebody, throw him in jail, if he does it again, throw him in jail again, repeat until he dies.

Looks like the mindest of the person handling the case was more along the line of:

He grew up in a bad social situation, so as part of his punishment he is placed under the supervision and custody of his manager and was ordered to stay away from his victim. Looks like the goal is for him to learn how to get a better handle on life to prevent stuff like this from happening in the future.

I favor a system that promotes reintegration into society instead of focusing on punishment, so I am likely biased there.

I just want someone to go to town on him with a blunt object.

If he can still do music after that, more power to him.

What are you people talking about?

After trouble between his sister and some lady, the rapper acted like a dickhole, and threatened the woman to leave his sister alone. I'm not condoning that, but you all seem to be acting like he actually did something a lot more than that.

This is the guy's first time before court, and like just about everyone else dragged before a court for something similar, he's copped a warning in the hope that the courts will scare the guy into acting straight in future. Sure, his promising rap career played a part in that, because he has something of substance to lose if he does something else stupid and cops jail time for it, but that's the same as any young medical student, or finance student or whoever else, they'd all be given a warning, told to focus on being productive in their careers and told this is their only warning.

sebster wrote:

After trouble between his sister and some lady, the rapper acted like a dickhole, and threatened the woman to leave his sister alone. I'm not condoning that, but you all seem to be acting like he actually did something a lot more than that.

Maybe it's just me, but I see a preeeeeetty big distinction between threatening a woman and threatening to kill a woman and her children.

d-usa wrote:

He grew up in a bad social situation, so as part of his punishment he is placed under the supervision and custody of his manager and was ordered to stay away from his victim. Looks like the goal is for him to learn how to get a better handle on life to prevent stuff like this from happening in the future.

I must've missed that bit somehow, and I do think prisons should do more to rehabilitate and reintegrate offenders, but I, ever the pessimist, firmly believe that if people don't suffer consequences for their actions, they will repeat them. But I do sincerely hope that the justice system would apply the same rules to everyone regardless of their potential fame and wealth.

EDIT: In fact, I did miss that. My dodgy wireless only loaded half the article.

Nerivant wrote:Maybe it's just me, but I see a preeeeeetty big distinction between threatening a woman and threatening to kill a woman and her children.

And what's that difference worth? How much jail time would you give this guy?

sebster wrote:

Nerivant wrote:Maybe it's just me, but I see a preeeeeetty big distinction between threatening a woman and threatening to kill a woman and her children.

And what's that difference worth? How much jail time would you give this guy?

30 years in maximum or a needle.
-10 years for threatening the woman's life
-20 years for threatening a child.

Alternatively, and more appropriately, taking him out with a rifle, like you would an animal with rabies, is the more humane method.

Im with Frazz, just shoot the punk, and leave him in a shallow grave. No patience for people like that

Shallow grave? A ditch not good enough?

Nerivant wrote:Maybe it's just me, but I see a preeeeeetty big distinction between threatening a woman and threatening to kill a woman and her children.

It's her fault for having a kid in the first place and being married to the guy his sister was having an affair with.

/obligatoryunseriousblamethevictim

n0t_u wrote:Shallow grave? A ditch not good enough?

The last thing you want is someone's drainage being blocked by a pile of trash.

The way I see it, if someone dies or is placed in a ditch dead, then its a shallow grave
So why not

I guess in a way it is an extremely shallow one.

Depends on your idea of what a ditch is. My brother the giant, has ditches big enough to put a car in. *shrug*

I'm saying any sort of indent in the ground really. They aren't buried so it's rather shallow.

All this talk of ditches and shallow graves...


It looks like his career...

...

... is stuck in a rut.

I guess you can say...

I dig it.

Have you ever heard of his music?

No?

That's probably because it's so underground.

His lyrics could be deep.

Deeper than his last album, "Six Feet Under?"

I thought the message to it was rather shallow.

My personal opinion on the matter is simple, he should be locked up. It doesn't set a very good example and he can then reflect on what he did.

I also think the death sentence should be re-introduced, stops over crowding of the prisons and stops the crimelords from still running the show.

n0t_u wrote:I thought the message to it was rather shallow.

You know, I heard a journalist dug up a lot of dirt on him.

First of all, let me say I know nothing of the UK law system, except that they wear wigs. That being said, I don't think the sentencing is that unreasonable, assuming he's a first-time offender. He got into an argument with someone, over an intensely emotional topic, and took it a bit too far. Nineteen year olds lose their cool sometimes. This kid spent some time in the clink, missed out on some commercial opportunities, and now he has been given the opportunity to stay out of trouble on his own, rather than spend the next 8 months in the slammer.

I suspect that the judge is a better judge of character than I, and likely would not have extended such a deal had she felt the kid was actually going to make good on his threat. Also, I'm not convinced that the judge spared him so he could pursue his career- that seems to be more of a media interpretation of the decision, rather than something the judge explicitly said.

I know my share of white middle classed kids from american suburbia who got similar second chances when they were hot-headed teens, and made mistakes with speeding, fighting, and/or controlled substances. One's gone on to get an M.D., another's a high school teacher. Both of them owe their livelihoods to white privilege granting them a second chance, rather than allowing a minor offense committed as a near-juvenile to create a criminal record that would have barred entry to higher education and professional careers for the rest of their lives.

I for one hope this kid learned something from the whole affair, and goes on to keep out of trouble and continue to develop his career.

Stormfather wrote:First of all, let me say I know nothing of the UK law system, except that they wear wigs. That being said, I don't think the sentencing is that unreasonable, assuming he's a first-time offender. He got into an argument with someone, over an intensely emotional topic, and took it a bit too far. Nineteen year olds lose their cool sometimes. This kid spent some time in the clink, missed out on some commercial opportunities, and now he has been given the opportunity to stay out of trouble on his own, rather than spend the next 8 months in the slammer.

I suspect that the judge is a better judge of character than I, and likely would not have extended such a deal had she felt the kid was actually going to make good on his threat. Also, I'm not convinced that the judge spared him so he could pursue his career- that seems to be more of a media interpretation of the decision, rather than something the judge explicitly said.

I know my share of white middle classed kids from american suburbia who got similar second chances when they were hot-headed teens, and made mistakes with speeding, fighting, and/or controlled substances. One's gone on to get an M.D., another's a high school teacher. Both of them owe their livelihoods to white privilege granting them a second chance, rather than allowing a minor offense committed as a near-juvenile to create a criminal record that would have barred entry to higher education and professional careers for the rest of their lives.

I for one hope this kid learned something from the whole affair, and goes on to keep out of trouble and continue to develop his career.

Did your middle classed kids threaten the life of a child too? If so you need to meet a better class of people and phone in the coordinates for the Arclight mission.