BishopAccountability.org
	Ok, So Maybe Baker's 10-Year Sentence Doesn't Mean What We Think It Means By Rachel Powers District Weekly December 4, 2007 http://thedistrictweekly.com/daily/writing-shotgun/2007/12/04/ok-so-maybe-bakers-10-year-sentence-doesnt- mean-what-we-think-it-means/ Just to get some sense of how it balances out… As reported by Will Swaim, defrocked priest Michael Stephen Baker accepted a plea deal on Monday, exchanging the grudging acknowledgment of his abuse of two boys for a prison sentence of ten years and a $20k payout to one of the victims. We've all grown accustomed to the gross inadequacy of sentences for violent crimes, including sexual sadism practiced on children. But let's not get so used to it that we file the whole thing aways as "2 kids, 10 years." There were many, many other victims. And when it is all said and done, Baker may trolling the slums of Thailand before the decade is out. Baker is alleged to have abused more than 20 minors in 26 years, but the statute of limitations prevents the majority of these victims from seeing the criminal prosecution of their cases. So prosecutors were forced to focus on just four of those 26 years and two of those 20 children, resulting in the following charges: one count of oral copulation with a minor, one count of sexual penetration of an unconscious person with a foreign object, and three counts of sodomy of a minor. Cardinal Mahoney's $660 million settlement covers the actions of about 200 priests, averaging out to $3.3 million per offender; Baker, who sometimes smiles at his victims when he sees them in court, is thought to be responsible for as much as $40 million of the payout. And who knows how many children Baker abused after leaving the priesthood? His arrest while on the way home from a trip to Thailand, a notorious destination for pedophile sex tourists, is an ominous indicator. Ten years and $20k: not even in shooting distance of adequate. One more thing: according to the LA Times, "Because of good behavior and other jail-time credits, Baker, who has been behind bars for two years, is expected to serve at least three more years in prison."
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