9-1-07
Thirty-year-old Jonathon Edington, a lawyer from Bridgeport,
Connecticut, was sentenced Friday to 12 years in prison for
first-degree manslaughter, after stabbing to death an elderly man in his bedroom.

It started when Jonathin’s wife told him she thought a neighbor,
68-year-old Barry James, had molested their two-year-old  daughter.  Jonathin broke into James house later that night and
stabbed him multiple times. Fairfield police investigated the
molestation allegation, and could not find any evidence to
substantiate the claim.

Superior Court Judge Richard F. Comerford Jr. said at the
sentencing that “It’s a Shakespearean tragedy brought into the
real world.”  We might use a few stronger words…outright
stupidity, a cold-blooded murder, and a poor excuse for taking
someones life. While we can empathize with a parents strong
desire to protect their child, this is a perfect example of what can
happen when people lose perspective of reality.  At the child’s
age, even if a molestation had occurred, under the circumstances it was highly unlikely to cause any lasting damage.

Mr. Edington’s response to the situation, however, is sure to.
Not only did he take a life and devastate another family, but he
severely damaged his own daughter in the process. In fact, if
you examine the long-term effects of father absence, or the
strain of single parenting, or the emotional turmoil children
endure from having a parent in prison, it is all either equally
damaging or more damaging to children than the vast majority
of  sexual  abuse  cases.  (See ‘Child Maltreatment, A Cross Comparison’ http://www.keepyourchildsafe.org/maltreatment-book/child-maltreatment-information.html) Barry James may or may not have molested his daughter, but Jonathon Edington, through his actions, most certainly did.