Montana Rejects Punishment for Stolen Valor
Several recent news articles state that a Montana judge has been overruled for requiring two men accused of Stolen Valor to participate in activities that were ultimately overruled by the Montana Supreme Court. The American Civil Liberties Union of Montana had called the conditions degrading and unconstitutional.
Montana Supreme Court rejects part of “stolen valor” sentencing for two men
By: Colter Anstaett Posted at 6:02 PM, Apr 15, 2021
GREAT FALLS — Greg Pinski, a former District Court judge in Great Falls, is sharing his reaction to the Montana Supreme Court’s decision to overturn a punishment he ordered for two men who lied about being military veterans..In 2019, Ryan Morris and Troy Nelson lied to Pinski about being veterans in an effort to get lesser sentences for crimes they committed and subsequently be enrolled in Veterans Treatment Court..Pinski ordered the men to do a number of things, including to stand at the Montana Veterans Memorial every Memorial Day while they’re under court supervision and wear a sign saying they lied and dishonored veterans..Pinski told MTN News on Thursday: “I was disappointed that the Attorney General’s Office didn’t fight to keep this parole and probation condition in place. There was legal support for it..He said he would not hesitate to make the same order again.
Montana High Court Cancels Condition on Stolen Valor Case
BY ASSOCIATED PRESS, April 15, 2021
GREAT FALLS — A former judge improperly punished two men who lied about their military service in court, the Montana Supreme Court ruled Wednesday.
Former Montana Eighth District Court Judge Greg Pinski had forced Ryan Patrick Morris and Troy Allan Nelson in 2019 to conduct a series of acts of apology in order to be eligible for parole.
In order for both to be eligible for parole, Pinski had mandated that every year during the three-year suspended sentences both men received, the two had to stand at the Montana Veterans Memorial for eight hours on each Memorial and Veterans Day wearing a sign that reads, “I am a liar. I am not a veteran. I stole valor. I have dishonored all veterans.”
The state high court struck down the sentencing condition on Wednesday.
Apparently, their dignity must be preserved over that of the veterans that actually had military service.
Here is the punishment that was handed out.
Category: None, Stolen Valor, Stolen Valor Act
Ahhhh… the obvious solution.
UNsuspend the suspended sentences,
and let the shitbird brothers serve their time… in PRISON.
Original crimes and sentencing story –
[Morris was originally charged in April 2017 for a burglary case, where court documents state he stole about $1,500 worth of items from his landlord’s garage.]
[Nelson was accused in January 2018 of forgery and elder abuse for spending money from his 86-year-old neighbor’s account and days later had six more charges added when it was discovered he used shared access to steal more than $14,000 of the woman’s money and burglarized her home…]
https://www.greatfallstribune.com/story/news/2019/08/23/two-sentenced-after-lying-judge-military-service/2095786001/
Two novels come to mind:
“The Red Badge of Courage”
and
“The Scarlet Letter”
Staples of high school education in my day, sentencing
these two valor thiefs to read both and write a book
report on what they learned would probably also be
seen as harsh, abusive punishment.
And those awful Pilgrims with their Pillory!
Between the topic-matter at hand and your make-menton-of – how ’bout ‘The Four Feathers’..? I mean, c’mon! Rejecting punishment for Stolen Valour? Fuck’n shameful…
Good for the Judge. Bad for Montana. I didn’t think their sentence was inappropriate at all. At least they weren’t using their toothbrushs to clean the courthouse johns and urinals.
I vote for them cleaning the women’s john with their tongues…tape them to a push broom head down and use their tongues as mops….
Anyone who ever worked as a janitor knows how nasty the women’s john can get…
Or, bury them up to their necks and use them as piss tubes next to a homeless camp…
“bury them up to their necks and use them as piss tubes”
With a Hanoi Jane sticker stapled to their foreheads to insure accuracy./s
Clean Phildo’s asshole.
He could teach them and then they could practice on him!
That would take a lot of licking Green Thumb. But, as you said, Phildo is a pro at two-hole licking so he could have them up to pro-level in no time.
The MT AG Austin Knusden always can be seen around Veteran’s organizations, AD and NG folks, their families, etc. He always has stated he is pro-military.
I guess this might prove otherwise? With the election over, maybe he has a new banner.
I wonder if he could have put forth more juice.
Pisses me off.
Would the MT AG have jurisdiction or influence over the MT Supreme Court?
I don’t know the answer to this – my knee-jerk instinct tells me they may be separate.
They are, but its a lot smaller state than many think.
He would have some juice, for sure.
It’s bad enough when dirtbags have no respect for the law…or the sacrifices that REAL Veterans have made. IMO it is even worse when Judges have no respect for appropriate punishments meted out by other Judges. One of the reasons there is so much crime and repeat criminals. “…let the punishment fit the crime.”
Took a short dinner break. Leftover fried yardbird, mac n cheese, collard greens with ham hock, Johnny cakes, and the house wine…sweet iced tea. Back to the work detail…and the writing of the checks there of.
Oh! Holding a sign ONE F***ING DAY A YEAR is “degrading and unconstitutional”?!?
Remind me, because clearly I’m the retarded one, but didn’t our Revolutionary Forefathers tar and feather tax collectors BEFORE they shot up the government’s enforcers?
No, seriously, THIS is too far, embarrassing the turds hurts their feefees so no-go.
Unf**kingbelievable. Shame on those ‘officers of the court’.
Clowns.
We really need to go back to offering people the option of joining the service or going to prison. You want to pretend to be a vet? Go earn the title.
Actually, the more I think about, the person that “vetted” them and recommended them for Vet Court to include their mentors should be fucking fired.