Man sentenced to 20 days in jail for pulling a gun on a pregnant woman smoking

[Caroljo]

I get why the guy is in jail, but I also get why he did what he did. Those who smoke while pregnant need something done to them because not only are they putting their own life in danger, they are dragging the life of an innocent child into their mess too and to me, that is wrong too!

God bless you always!!!

Holly

P.S. If you are not willing to give up the cigarettes for your kids, don't have kids period then.

If you've never smoked, and gotten addicted to it, you don't need to comment. It pisses me off, because I know that smoking is bad for you health, but when I started smoking I didn't really know this. It's now compared to being addicted to cocaine. I know it is...I've tried everything to quit. People who have never gone through this have no idea what they're talking about. Some people are able to quit easily.....others (like me) have a hard addiction and need more help than we can afford to get. Back in 1971 when I had my first child, I smoked, I drank, may not have been good, but he's now 42 yrs old and doesn't smoke, and is a certified electrician. So what do you want have done to me because of this?

Hey, I think anyone that can give up cigs and alcohol during pregnancies should, can't hurt and might help. Drink like a fish and your child will pay the price.

Truth is with cigs, not so clear cut. Even less than if you have more than 3 alcohol drinks per day, evidence of which is still sketchy, at best.

Many women smoking and drinking during pregancies in US is sketchy to say the least but from 1945-1965 both were quite prevalent. Shockingly, (maybe not), not a huge perceived uptick in problems for children born to these mothers.

Nevertheless, with commonsense and the surgeons generals, why give anyone an opportunity to blame your behavior for your problem child. Plenty of reasons to drink will follow their birth.

In 1971 when my son was born, there was still cigarette commercials on tv. We didn't have people pounding it in our heads how bad all this was for pregnant women. In the 1990's, it was proven that the cigarette companies added many new chemicals to the cigarettes which made them much harder to quit, made them more addicting. I didn't know about this until maybe 5 or 6 yrs ago. I'm not trying to make excuses...I'm just telling you the way it was.

 

[Caroljo]

I get why the guy is in jail, but I also get why he did what he did. Those who smoke while pregnant need something done to them because not only are they putting their own life in danger, they are dragging the life of an innocent child into their mess too and to me, that is wrong too!

God bless you always!!!

Holly

P.S. If you are not willing to give up the cigarettes for your kids, don't have kids period then.

If you've never smoked, and gotten addicted to it, you don't need to comment. It pisses me off, because I know that smoking is bad for you health, but when I started smoking I didn't really know this. It's now compared to being addicted to cocaine. I know it is...I've tried everything to quit. People who have never gone through this have no idea what they're talking about. Some people are able to quit easily.....others (like me) have a hard addiction and need more help than we can afford to get. Back in 1971 when I had my first child, I smoked, I drank, may not have been good, but he's now 42 yrs old and doesn't smoke, and is a certified electrician. So what do you want have done to me because of this?

You can quit, I know you can. My parents smoked for many years until one time, the taxes on the smokes were raised so high, they decided not to pay them anymore and quit. My mother quit smoking 13 years before she got lung cancer. My father and all my siblings have quit. Unfortunately for me, it was too late for me. I may have lung cancer. I have a spot on my lungs which they are watching and I have pulmonary problems. I can't even go up into the mountains anymore because I can't breath up there, and I'm the one who never smoked. Now do you really want to continue to harm your child that way? Your grandchildren? What do I want have done to you? I want you to quit smoking so you won't harm the people around you further. I want you to quit smoking so your son won't have to go through the grief of watching you die like my siblings and I did of my mother and our aunts. I want you to quit smoking for those who love you. Forget about yourself for a change and think about them. I know addictions hard, I'm addicted to food and there is no cold turkey for that. Food is necessary for survival. At the very least, when you do smoke, do so outside and not near anyone who doesn't smoke. For a long time my parents didn't understand why I would bring my children and stay in their home overnight but the smell was just so bad. After they quit, they were surprised how many times we all visited them. It was much more pleasant after they quit.

I appreciate what you're saying Sheila....and thank you for the encouragement!!! Maybe I need you to coach me . I never smoke in the house, or around my grandkids (or any other kids!). I think I get so defensive because I really do want to quit, and it's so damn hard for me....i think what makes it that way is because I enjoy doing it! And I use it as a crutch to handle all the crap that goes on in our lives....

 

[Caroljo]

What a travesty of justice!

This self appointed guardian of political correctness should have been charged and convicted of a much more serious crime which carries a substantial penalty.
No doubt the light sentence will and should be appealed.

Had the woman been sufficiently traumatized, no doubt she could also have suffered a miscarriage and the gun taunting idiot could possibly have been charged with manslaughter.

Okay, so we're back to unborn children being people again? So abortion should be outlawed, right?

I'm so confused. Is the child a child or a fetus? How can it be a child only if the mother wants it and just a fetus if she doesn't?

I agree....I'm being told i don't care for my child because I smoked. By the same people that say it's not a child until it's born....

I'll admit I was wrong to smoke when I was pregnant, but back in the early 70's, we didn't have this stuff crammed down our throats of how bad it was, we didn't know!! If I was younger and knew what I knew now, it wouldn't have happened. But now I'm being bashed for what I did 40+ years ago when these things were not known!

 

[koshergrl]

Actually, the imprisonment would be to make sure she didn't smoke while pregnant and damage the child. If she's imprisoned, not need for the abortion. She needs to make up her mind if she wants the child or not and if she does, she needs to do everything she can to give that child his/her best chance. Smoking while pregnant is the opposite of that.

So...if she decides to kill it...yay.
But if she subjects it to nicotine...even though there's no evidence that any but the most dedicated and random smoking mothers have inflicted damage upon their babies...that should be puishable by prison.

What if she just jabbed herself in the stomach?

How is it that you can reconcile the absolute freedom to butcher, torture and kill her unborn child...with the restrictions you want to place on a woman for smoking a cigarette while pregnant?

People are nuts.

It's the laws of today's society. Yeah, they are nuts, but that's the way it is. Outlaw abortion and I'll say, just put her in jail, or some sort of guarded facility, until the baby is born to protect the unborn child. Since abortion is legal, she has that choice.

The laws are nuts because you are..you don't even understand how insane your assertion that abortion is okay, but smoking should net a pregnant woman prison.

 

[Caroljo]

after she refused to stop smoking. Talk about a self righteous cuntbag nicotine nazi. I'm sure the bullet would be healthier than the cigarette? I guess this is bound to happen when it is government policy to shame and disgrace people from conducting legal activities.

Armed man gets 20 days for threatening pregnant smoker | Crime | The Bellingham Herald

My parents smoked, my siblings all smoked, I was the only one in the family that never smoked. I now have pulmonary problems. My mother and two aunts died of lung cancer. I can certainly understand his feelings on the subject. If he scared her into quitting, it may have been worth the 20 days in jail, but I doubt the woman cares about the kid as much as she does about herself. Today we KNOW that smoke causes harm to the fetus.

Exactly....TODAY we know, and that girl knew....but it wasn't the guys place to do what he did. Because TODAY this girl knew what the risks were...it proves she didn't care.

 

[skye]

What a travesty of justice!

This self appointed guardian of political correctness should have been charged and convicted of a much more serious crime which carries a substantial penalty.
No doubt the light sentence will and should be appealed.

Had the woman been sufficiently traumatized, no doubt she could also have suffered a miscarriage and the gun taunting idiot could possibly have been charged with manslaughter.

Okay, so we're back to unborn children being people again? So abortion should be outlawed, right?

I'm so confused. Is the child a child or a fetus? How can it be a child only if the mother wants it and just a fetus if she doesn't?

Huh?

Where did I said anything about fetus or abortion or anything like that?

That topic does not interest me at all. ....sorry but it doesn't.

I just said that it's wrong for a person to wave a gun on your face if you are smoking...pregnant, not pregnant, whatever.

I smoke and I would not appreciate that being done to me.

 

[Caroljo]

If you get pregnant and want to deliver a healthy baby, you should not be smoking. That woman is a stupid cow who doesn't deserve to be a mother. I wonder if her baby was born early, and underweight?

^^^^^This, coming from someone that believes you should be able to abort up until the "fetus" is born. Someone that says it's the woman's body and she should be able to do what she wants with it. I agree the woman was stupid because today you can't say you didn't know it was bad for you, and your child. But I can't get past you saying this but yet saying a woman should have a "choice" with her own body.

 

[koshergrl]

That's her right...it's her right to kill a perfectly healthy baby at any stage in her pregnancy for any reason...therefore it is her right to subject it to nicotine. If a baby isn't a baby until birth (or sometime thereafter), it doesn't matter.

 

[Againsheila]

If you've never smoked, and gotten addicted to it, you don't need to comment. It pisses me off, because I know that smoking is bad for you health, but when I started smoking I didn't really know this. It's now compared to being addicted to cocaine. I know it is...I've tried everything to quit. People who have never gone through this have no idea what they're talking about. Some people are able to quit easily.....others (like me) have a hard addiction and need more help than we can afford to get. Back in 1971 when I had my first child, I smoked, I drank, may not have been good, but he's now 42 yrs old and doesn't smoke, and is a certified electrician. So what do you want have done to me because of this?

Nothing.
However, if your son has any illness of the lung, you are responsible because you chose your selfish addiction over his well being.
You made the informed choice.
Quitting smoking is easy.

He was born in 1971....back then we were NOT INFORMED of anything dangerous with cigarettes....back then we still had cigarette commercials! Quitting smoking is not easy for most people, depends on how long they've smoked. Some people get more addicted than others. You can't say it's easy for everyone!

Wrong...they already knew back in 1964..

The Reports of the Surgeon General: The 1964 Report on Smoking and Health

 

[Caroljo]

Nothing.
However, if your son has any illness of the lung, you are responsible because you chose your selfish addiction over his well being.
You made the informed choice.
Quitting smoking is easy.

He was born in 1971....back then we were NOT INFORMED of anything dangerous with cigarettes....back then we still had cigarette commercials! Quitting smoking is not easy for most people, depends on how long they've smoked. Some people get more addicted than others. You can't say it's easy for everyone!

Wrong...they already knew back in 1964..

The Reports of the Surgeon General: The 1964 Report on Smoking and Health

They may have known...but did they really inform the public? I also have to correct myself, the last cigarette commercial aired in Dec 1970. I had my son in August 1971....so most of my life I saw these ads. I had just turned 18 2 months before having my son, how many 17 or 18 yr olds do you know that pay attention to warnings (which there were none of then)

 

[C_Clayton_Jones]

Actually, the imprisonment would be to make sure she didn't smoke while pregnant and damage the child. If she's imprisoned, not need for the abortion. She needs to make up her mind if she wants the child or not and if she does, she needs to do everything she can to give that child his/her best chance. Smoking while pregnant is the opposite of that.

So...if she decides to kill it...yay.
But if she subjects it to nicotine...even though there's no evidence that any but the most dedicated and random smoking mothers have inflicted damage upon their babies...that should be puishable by prison.

What if she just jabbed herself in the stomach?

How is it that you can reconcile the absolute freedom to butcher, torture and kill her unborn child...with the restrictions you want to place on a woman for smoking a cigarette while pregnant?

People are nuts.

It's the laws of today's society. Yeah, they are nuts, but that's the way it is. Outlaw abortion and I'll say, just put her in jail, or some sort of guarded facility, until the baby is born to protect the unborn child. Since abortion is legal, she has that choice.

Put her in jail for smoking while pregnant?

Would she be entitled to due process or a trial or will she simply be summarily imprisoned?

And what will be done with the child once born, since it can’t be given to the mother? Foster care? Adoption? Are you prepared for the expense of administering that?

This is actually a wonderful post.

In a few sentences you’ve successfully documented the authoritarianism of the right and the contempt conservatives have for the rule of law. You’ve documented how indeed conservatives care more about children before they’re born as opposed to after. You’ve demonstrated the irrational extremism of those opposed to privacy rights. And you’ve demonstrated the inconsistent, untenable position conservatives have taken with regard to privacy rights.

Well done.

 

[Againsheila]

He was born in 1971....back then we were NOT INFORMED of anything dangerous with cigarettes....back then we still had cigarette commercials! Quitting smoking is not easy for most people, depends on how long they've smoked. Some people get more addicted than others. You can't say it's easy for everyone!

Wrong...they already knew back in 1964..

The Reports of the Surgeon General: The 1964 Report on Smoking and Health

They may have known...but did they really inform the public? I also have to correct myself, the last cigarette commercial aired in Dec 1970. I had my son in August 1971....so most of my life I saw these ads. I had just turned 18 2 months before having my son, how many 17 or 18 yr olds do you know that pay attention to warnings (which there were none of then)

Oh, there were a lot of kids who started smoking in the 70's. Some as young as 12 or 13. I told you, my 4 brothers and sisters smoked, but they already knew they were dangerous, kids just didn't care. And yes, they informed the public. The Cancer warning went on the packs before the 70's. You claimed to have not been informed, you were, you just ignored it, as did so many others. Now people like me are paying the price.

 

[Againsheila]

So...if she decides to kill it...yay.
But if she subjects it to nicotine...even though there's no evidence that any but the most dedicated and random smoking mothers have inflicted damage upon their babies...that should be puishable by prison.

What if she just jabbed herself in the stomach?

How is it that you can reconcile the absolute freedom to butcher, torture and kill her unborn child...with the restrictions you want to place on a woman for smoking a cigarette while pregnant?

People are nuts.

It's the laws of today's society. Yeah, they are nuts, but that's the way it is. Outlaw abortion and I'll say, just put her in jail, or some sort of guarded facility, until the baby is born to protect the unborn child. Since abortion is legal, she has that choice.

Put her in jail for smoking while pregnant?

Would she be entitled to due process or a trial or will she simply be summarily imprisoned?

And what will be done with the child once born, since it can’t be given to the mother? Foster care? Adoption? Are you prepared for the expense of administering that?

This is actually a wonderful post.

In a few sentences you’ve successfully documented the authoritarianism of the right and the contempt conservatives have for the rule of law. You’ve documented how indeed conservatives care more about children before they’re born as opposed to after. You’ve demonstrated the irrational extremism of those opposed to privacy rights. And you’ve demonstrated the inconsistent, untenable position conservatives have taken with regard to privacy rights.

Well done.

Isn't it funny how the conservatives call me a liberal? I'm attacked for saying that she should get an abortion if she doesn't care about the kid and I'm attacked for saying she should be locked up for the good of the child. The truth is, I'm a moderate. It's her choice, if she wants the child she stops smoking or goes in a facility where she can't smoke until the baby is born, if she doesn't want the child, she aborts the child. Her choice. Why do you think she should get to poison the child before it's born? Do you think that's fair to the child?

 

[Zona]

Some people in here think this thug type mentality and lifestyle is acceptable!

 

[Zona]

That's her right...it's her right to kill a perfectly healthy baby at any stage in her pregnancy for any reason...therefore it is her right to subject it to nicotine. If a baby isn't a baby until birth (or sometime thereafter), it doesn't matter.

What a dumb thing to say.

 

[R.C. Christian]

I believe that was sarcasm.

 

[JOSweetHeart]

The more that I think about it, the more that I side with that man. When words do not work, what other option is there but to get off of your back end and take some action? That is what is done by a parent towards their children when they do not listen to what their parents tell them. Talk is a cheap thing anyways, isn't it? So if you have to go any further, why not, when there is no other way?

God bless you and that man and the unborn baby always!!!

Holly

P.S. Yeah some may say that it wasn't the man's place to get involved in what really wasn't his business. Well if everyone had that frame of mind, how many acts of rape, robbery, murder, etc. would then go uninterrupted? A baby's life was in danger because of that girl and what the man was doing was trying to save it in the only way that he thought would actually work. To me, he should be commended for trying to save the life of a child.

 

[Luissa]

The more that I think about it, the more that I side with that man. When words do not work, what other option is there but to get off of your back end and take some action? That is what is done by a parent towards their children when they do not listen to what their parents tell them. Talk is a cheap thing anyways, isn't it? So if you have to go any further, why not, when there is no other way?

God bless you and that man and the unborn baby always!!!

Holly

P.S. Yeah some may say that it wasn't the man's place to get involved in what really wasn't his business. Well if everyone had that frame of mind, how many acts of rape, robbery, murder, etc. would then go uninterrupted? A baby's life was in danger because of that girl and what the man was doing was trying to save it in the only way that he thought would actually work. To me, he should be commended for trying to save the life of a child.

You side with the man who pulled a gun illegally on someone?

Nice!

 

[Againsheila]

The more that I think about it, the more that I side with that man. When words do not work, what other option is there but to get off of your back end and take some action? That is what is done by a parent towards their children when they do not listen to what their parents tell them. Talk is a cheap thing anyways, isn't it? So if you have to go any further, why not, when there is no other way?

God bless you and that man and the unborn baby always!!!

Holly

P.S. Yeah some may say that it wasn't the man's place to get involved in what really wasn't his business. Well if everyone had that frame of mind, how many acts of rape, robbery, murder, etc. would then go uninterrupted? A baby's life was in danger because of that girl and what the man was doing was trying to save it in the only way that he thought would actually work. To me, he should be commended for trying to save the life of a child.

You side with the man who pulled a gun illegally on someone?

Nice!

You side with a woman poisoning her baby? Nice!

 

[Pop23]

The more that I think about it, the more that I side with that man. When words do not work, what other option is there but to get off of your back end and take some action? That is what is done by a parent towards their children when they do not listen to what their parents tell them. Talk is a cheap thing anyways, isn't it? So if you have to go any further, why not, when there is no other way?

God bless you and that man and the unborn baby always!!!

Holly

P.S. Yeah some may say that it wasn't the man's place to get involved in what really wasn't his business. Well if everyone had that frame of mind, how many acts of rape, robbery, murder, etc. would then go uninterrupted? A baby's life was in danger because of that girl and what the man was doing was trying to save it in the only way that he thought would actually work. To me, he should be commended for trying to save the life of a child.

Rape, robbery and lighting up a cigarette?

Those of you that hated "it takes a village"

You've become the villagers