I. Legal Standard for Sentencing
Under the Georgia Criminal Code, the court shall award a fair sentence within the bounds of prescribed under the specific crime charged and therein convicted off (Justia 17, 2015). Courts, when imposing a sentence, shall take into consideration the extenuating and aggravating circumstances of the crime including the motive and purpose of the crime, past criminal record, personal and economic conditions, and behavior after the action. (Justia 17, 2015)
II. Incident
Uma Opee was found dead on the morning of October 19. Opee body was found behind an abandoned apartment building with her arms and legs tied with rope restrains and her mouth stuffed with clothing. She had been stabbed 13 times, which an autopsy proved was the cause of her death. There were no witnesses to her murder however, evidence found on her body, including skin particles; and at her apartment including blood, drugs, and the fact that he was sighted going into Opee’s apartment the night before her death, pointed to Dents as the perpetrator. A search of Dents’ apartment also revealed a journal with incriminating entries and over 300 photographs of Opee stapled to the wall. When police later tracked down Dents at a relative’s house, he was extremely irrational, almost crazy; claiming that the police were aliens and that he was God. Upon arrested and after further investigation Dents was charged with homicide, assault of an officer, burglary, kidnapping, and possession of uncontrolled substances, namely MDMA, cocaine, and methamphetamines. After trial, Dents was convicted on all counts except for burglary.
III. Background Information of Mr. Dents
There is little information about Stu Dents. There is no evidence of a criminal record or prior run-ins with the law. Journals found at his home which showed his extreme obsession with Opee, his former girlfriend, also included entries with extensive descriptions and references to aliens, God and the end of the world. Furthermore, upon arrest, police officer reported that Dents ranting about the end of the world, aliens, and that he was God. While it does not seem that any mental health evaluation was performed prior to trial, the facts suggest that Dents is indeed suffering from some form of mental illness.
IV. Sentence Proposal
Based on the information and facts of the case and conviction, there are two sentencing option that can be imposed against Mr. Dents, namely imprisonment under the maximum term allowed by the law or confinement under coercive measures of a medical character.
Under Georgia criminal law, a court has the authority to sentence a person up to life for felony murder (Justia 16, 2015). On the one hand, Dents murder of Opee’s murder satisfies several of the requirements for his sentence. In particular, her murder exhibited extreme violence, maliciousness, and involved kidnapping. In addition, the fact that the murder involved repeated stab strikes also shows the depravity of Dent’s mind in committing such a heinous act. By sentencing him to the maximum of life in prison, the court will accomplish two goals. First, it will provide retribution for the senseless and brutal murder of Opee. Second, it will incapacitate Dents for the maximum period of time allowed under the law, thereby relieving the community of ever having to worry that he will act against them again.
In the alternative, under Georgia’s criminal law, a court can also sentence an offender to coercive measures of a medical character, otherwise known as a civil commitment to a mental instruction (Justia 37, 2015). This is possible if the offender committed the crime in the condition of diminished capacity or if after the crime was perpetrated, the offender became mentally ill. In this case, it is clear that Dents has some mental health issues, if those issues were the reason for the murder or became fully recognizable after the murder, the court can take this under consideration in determining if she should be civilly committed. This sentence option would accomplish two goals. First is would incapacitate Dents and stop him from committing further crimes until or if he can be health issues can be resolved. Second, it will allow for the possibility that he can be rehabilitated (Kaci, 1998). If he is able to be rehabilitated, there is the possibility that he can be released and, while he can never repay Opee’s family for their loss, he can perhaps use this unfortunate case to make some other positive impact on or to society.
References
Justia. (Justia 16). (2015). Title 16: Georgia criminal code. Retrieved from http://law.justia.com/codes/georgis/2010/title-16/
Justia. (Justia 17). (2015). Title 16: Georgia criminal procedure code. Retrieved from http://law.justia.com/codes/georgis/2010/title-17/
Justia. (Justia 37). (2015). Title 37: Georgia mental health code. Retrieved from http://law.justia.com/codes/georgis/2010/title-37
Kaci, J.H. 1998. Criminal Procedure. Incline Village, NV: Copperhouse Publishing Company.
