Chicago Sun Times
CHICAGO — We’re loath to second-guess the decision of Judge John J. Fleming to let a thug of a cop, Anthony Abbate, walk away without doing prison time.
Fleming works in the Cook County Criminal Courts Building, where every day he must decide the fate of the worst of the worst -- killers and rapists and armed robbers -- so maybe the going punishment in his grim world for beating up a woman is only a couple of years probation.
As the judge pointed out, Abbate had no prior record, and the bartender he beat and kicked, Karolina Obrycka, escaped serious physical injury, if only by luck.
Obrycka is now an emotional mess, of course. She is unable to work, afraid to leave her house and afraid of cops. But those aren’t the kind of injuries you can photograph and mark “Exhibit A” and prove in court. Those are the kind of injuries that just ruin your life.
What we will second-guess is Fleming’s bizarre view that a stiffer penalty for Abbate would have done nothing to discourage future brutes from beating up women -- in a bar, on the street or right at home.
Before sentencing Abbate to probation, the judge said Tuesday, “If I believed sentencing Anthony Abbate to prison would stop people from getting drunk and hitting people, I’d give him the maximum sentence. But I don’t believe that is the case.”
What does Fleming believe tough sentences and prisons are for? The first reason civilized societies put violent criminals behind bars is to protect the public. But the obvious second reason is to send a loud and clear warning to others:
Do the crime and you’ll do the time.
If ever a loud and clear message were needed, it is that violence against women will not go unpunished. A woman is battered every 15 seconds in the United States, according to Amnesty International USA.
The only good news in this sorry affair is that Police Supt. Jody Weis is moving to have Abbate fired. We’re all for it -- Abbate should never be allowed to disgrace the uniform of the Chicago Police again. He not only beat up Obrycka, but according to evidence presented Tuesday, he beat up two other people earlier in the day.
Go to suntimes.com/news/commentary and watch the now-famous surveillance video. See how Abbate throws Obrycka around like a rag doll.
Does anybody want to get stopped for a traffic ticket by this guy on a dark street at midnight?
Copyright 2009 Chicago Sun-Times, Inc.