Comments on: Gay Good Samaritan’s attackers finally sentenced

By: Marcia

Marcia — Sun, 29 May 2011 04:19:42 +0000

Did those children who were wandering around unsupervised belong to Little Lulu? Why weren’t the parents held responsible?

By: eugene

eugene — Fri, 27 May 2011 18:05:01 +0000

We lived on green st not far from Liberty Park.
I detest LDS, and the evil they perpetrate on us all. However, in my opinion the jury needs to get credit for making fools of the prosecutor and the DA. SLC is really liberal. Mayor Rocky Anderson is famous for getting in the face of the LDS and the state government.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocky_Anderson
there are of course screwed up people in SLC, but i was very surprised to learn that there are some very cool people there too.

By: Timothy Kincaid

Timothy Kincaid — Fri, 27 May 2011 17:49:32 +0000

Norris,

I doubt they would get much from the neighbors. However, at one point there was some discussion about a lawsuit against the city for wrongful prosecution.

I don’t know where that stands, or even if it is still a possibility, but when a jury returns after only 3 1/2 hours of deliberation and angrily accuses the police of incompetence and prosecutors of trying to jail someone who was doing good, you may well have a case.

By: Norris Nordin

Norris Nordin — Fri, 27 May 2011 01:55:43 +0000

In this incident, it is not only the party host and her guests who should be jailed (without suspended sentences), the district attorney and the police involved should be charged as well. Not that a jail sentence would be a learning exercise for any of them, for they are all likely functioning with IQ’s lower than their shoe sizes. I hope it will be possible for the “good Samaritan” neighbors to sue those who assaulted them for every cent they have!

By: DC

DC — Thu, 26 May 2011 15:43:43 +0000

I hope that Latu’s children will be able to recall these events when older. First she neglected them, pushing them outside and leaving them unattended so that she could get crazy with her guests. Next she and her guests go on to beat the only persons concerned with their welfare that evening to a pulp and try to kill them. I don’t wish any more harm on these children, I truly don’t. They will unfortunately have to deal with the accident of their birth someday – meaning they were dealt such a loathsome mother. She may be getting off easy now, but someday she may be haunted with her actions should her kids remember and realize what she is.

By: cowboy

cowboy — Wed, 25 May 2011 17:20:21 +0000

Not to defend the Salt Lake Police Department, but at shortly before there was a highly emotional episode where a predatory man lured a young girl into his apartment and did all sorts of horrible things and after days of futile searching they eventually found the little girl’s body in or near this man’s apartment.

It was interesting to witness how the police and the TV media manipulated this story. They said it was two gays that “kidnapped” the children. Kidnapped should never have been a word to describe the situation. It was a purposefully loaded emotionally-laden term.

It has taken years for the truth to get out and justice served.

One other thing: I have on good authority that when they booked DJ into jail the jailer refused to accept him and said he needed medical attention and insisted they take him (and his partner) to a hospital.

Why didn’t the police do that?

Were they predisposed in thinking a particular way when it involves gays? (That’s a rhetorical question.)

By: Regan DuCasse

Regan DuCasse — Wed, 25 May 2011 17:12:40 +0000

@Matt,
During the 1970′s, there was a sea change in the Mormon church to actively recruit people of color. There was a huge push in Samoa, citing the issues that seem to plague Pacific Islander areas of the world where missionaries have NEGATIVE influence after Colonialization: poverty and alcoholism.
Samoans started to become members of the Mormon church, but in a limited way.

Twenty years ago, a mob of Samoans beat a young black kid to death. He was the only child of a well known actress here in Hollywood.

Although Bell was well meaning and innocent, his first mistake was to have the child in his house. He should have gathered the children and TAKEN THEM HOME to their parents. I’m sure he felt safe in bringing the children into his home because he was probably good neighbors, and well known to this family.
No doubt he felt confident they wouldn’t have minded what he did.

The sad thing is, the bigotry that some people have surfaces with the more hairiest of triggers. That is to say, when you’re an outsider, you can’t trust in what way or when someone will use your difference against you. I have been through this personally. I know we all WANT to trust, and it’s a terrible burden not to.

But the willingness in which people want to take their distrust and anger to such extremes and harm you cannot be predicted. Sorry to say, the safest thing he HAD to do, was give the children directly to their parents, regardless of how drunk and loud they were.

My heart goes out to him. He was trying to do the right thing. It truly is heartrending how much people want to punish for doing what’s right.

By: cowboy

cowboy — Wed, 25 May 2011 16:31:16 +0000

Scott L: It was near Liberty Park where they used to live. I have some friends living in that area. They have told me the whole event was mishandled by the police from the get-go.

By: Richard Rush

Richard Rush — Wed, 25 May 2011 15:59:32 +0000

Scott L. said, “Hey, this is Utah we’re talking about . . .”

Right. With Utah being a de facto theocracy, I understand that
UTAH = Unbridled Theocracy Against Homosexuals.

By: Reed Boyer

Reed Boyer — Wed, 25 May 2011 15:28:54 +0000

The police and D.A. response set three three-word phrases off in my head:

Salt Lake City?

Location, location, location.

“It’s Chinatown, Jake.”