Torn Curtains

I try to avoid getting into tawdry gossip around here, but I thought the Chris Brown "sentence" in his domestic violence case for beating up Rhianna was inexplicably weak: no jail time, a few years' probation and 180 hours of community service. Not only that, Rhianna (the victim!) had no idea that a deal was in place, and showed up in court ready to testify against him. We've all heard how hard it is to get DV victims to testify against their abusers. Now, in the most high profile DV case in years, where the victim stands ready to testify, she's kept in the dark and then sent home. How's supposed to encourage more victims to come forward?

I'm sorry, but if Brown had simply walked up to a woman on the street and started whaling on her, he would have gone to jail, simple as that (and faced a civil claim for battery). Instead, he beats up his girlfriend and it's probation + community service. Yeah Yeah, I get it. "He had no prior criminal record." Uh, so what? If there was ever a time to make an example of somebody, it was here. Instead, the system blinked and looked the othe way.