Justified or Excessive?

[axebahia]

Man Gets Life for Sucking Boys' Toes

Former Youth Supervisor Gets Life Sentence for Sucking Boys' Toes

 

The Associated Press

 

SANTA ANA, Calif. July 11 —

The former supervisor of a Newport Beach youth program was sentenced Friday to life in prison on 25 counts of lewd conduct and assault for sucking the toes of 20 boys.

 

Trenton Veches, 32, will be eligible for parole in 15 years.

 

At his trial, Veches' lawyer said his actions with boys 6 to 10 years old were "horseplay." But the prosecutor said Veches "clearly befriended these children, manipulated them and he sexually molested them."

 

Veches' mother, Joyce Ormes, said the sentence was too harsh.

 

"I don't know how he can spend life in prison for this when there was no sexual contact with the genitals, things like that," she said.

 

"Clearly Mr. Veches posed a danger to the children of our community and he needed to be in prison," prosecutor Sheila Hanson said.

 

Veches was arrested in April 2002 after a co-worker reported seeing him sucking a boy's toes.

[Guest Gringo]

Murderers get off scott free and toe suckers get life? Child sexual abuse is probably the hottest button in America today, and I certainly don't condone such behavior, but IMHO, the penalty is over the top!

[+ Lucky]

When you factor in the number of toes versus the number of years, maybe it is not so excessive, at least on a per toe basis. Hadn't they already told the guy to toe the line?!