Posted inOpinion from Community Voices

When leniency fails: The cost of ignoring repeat violence in Santa Cruz County courts

One year after she was attacked near her home close to Wilder Ranch, Amanda Timoney has lost faith in the justice system. Repeated judicial leniency toward her attacker has left her frustrated and afraid. It has also, she argues, allowed preventable harm to continue. She says the courts repeatedly released the same person despite a pattern of violent crimes. She emphasizes that homelessness is not a crime, but contends that public safety must take priority when someone repeatedly commits violence. Here, she calls for more judicial accountability.

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