Mike Leake Arrested for Shoplifting

[mgwiz22]

Premature?

It certainly sounds like he is guilty and has a problem however the guy should still have the chance to present his side of the story before we all jump to conclusions.

[amcg]

It certainly sounds like he is guilty and has a problem however the guy should still have the chance to present his side of the story before we all jump to conclusions.

Your point is valid but the fact that his agent/club PR guy hasn't been out saying "this was just a silly bet among friends" or similar speaks volumes.

[Bodhizefa]

Your point is valid but the fact that his agent/club PR guy hasn't been out saying "this was just a silly bet among friends" or similar speaks volumes.

That's what I was initially hoping for -- some kind of prank gone awry. It would have been misguided and immature, obviously, but that's the kind of thing Leake could probably still get away with at his age. But if it turns out he was just going in and stealing stuff for himself, then that's really really weird.

[DJBeasties]

Amateur psychology on RotoJunkie always amuses me to no end.

That said, it's obvious that he's suffering from father issues stemming from an inability to connect with male role models which results in an addiction to cough drops and cheap t-shirts.

Yeah and to expand on that, you can tell from his mug shot that his remorse is disingenious and the enjoyment of pushing boundries supercedes that of personal responsibility which is indictive of his relationship with adults during his adolescent years.

[DJBeasties]

I can't speak for other judges. We don't get any type of training or guidance in how to handle these situations. In fairness, I would have to say that having actual trials...the guilty or not guilty part...is really the easiest. You have to rule on legal issues, but that's the sort of thing you learn and become able to do in pressure situations without too much problem. The really difficult part is sentencing. Someone pleads guilty or is found guilty at trial. The judge has complete discretion on the punishment to be imposed. I typically treat youthful offenders differently than older adults. Our ballplayer is only 23, and has most likely lived a somewhat sheltered life due to his skills. I tend to be more interested in getting young people back on the right track than hammering them, especially in the cases of first offenders.

There are a lot of cases in which I have pretty standard penalties...things like speeding, no insurance, etc. But things like drug possession, theft, domestic violence, battery...to be fair, you have to know as much as possible about the defendant and, when there is one, the victim. One size punishment doesn't fit all.

I used to have a victim impact person who would assist by determining just that...the victim impact. Now I don't. Often I'll ask the prosecutor for a recommendation. I tend to see eye to eye with some of the prosecutors who have tried cases before me, but not with others.

Very seldom do I go home worried whether I made the right call on guilty or not guilty. Fairly often I go home wondering if the punishment I handed out was the best disposition, keeping in mind all of the judicial and societal purposes to be served by punishment in the criminal justice system.

This week will be a busy one. Tomorrow, I'll have probably 75 defendants come in and enter pleas of guilty, and I'll have to sentence them. That many cases in one day doesn't leave very much time for dithering. Wednesday will be civil cases. I have one docket with lawyers, and another that will be pro se litigants. Thursday I have to go over to the next county to cover for another judge. There will be criminal trials, civil cases and felony hearings. Friday will be paperwork day.

You're welcome to accompany me as the guest of the Court. I promise you will see some interesting things.

I wish I lived near you because I would take that offer.

[Hornsby]

Amateur psychology on RotoJunkie always amuses me to no end.

That said, it's obvious that he's suffering from father issues stemming from an inability to connect with male role models which results in an addiction to cough drops and cheap t-shirts.

And simple minds never fail to sadden me...you're usually better than that Chris.

[Hornsby]

Whatever you think I'm better than, I assure you that you are most certainly wrong.

Not true...so give me your best REAL guess as to what happened then, since mine was dismissed out of hand.

[DJBeasties]

I was just kidding too Hornsby. I actually hadn't even read your post at the time and was just piggy-backing off of ElD jokingly. No idea what happened but it's dumb if he did it.

[Lucky]

And that's why I tried to couch things in terms of "if it turns out he did it". I can't make any assumptions other than the presumption of innocence.

[ThatRogue]

Not true...so give me your best REAL guess as to what happened then, since mine was dismissed out of hand.

How can we? He's a guy. He's young. He allegedly stole approximately $60 worth of t-shirts and was caught on tape. As none of us seem to know very much about Leake, guessing anything beyond those facts would be a purely speculative mental exercise. Doesn't it makes more sense to wait and see what information is forthcoming, and then evaluate that information?

(I did find Lucky's perspective on how he would proceed extremely interesting, however, as it gives us some insight into how an actual judge would handle a similar case...assuming the facts bore out the thief's guilt. I also find the information on Hornsby's relative interesting, and would be fascinated to understand why he used this particular cry for help, as well as how things are proceeding in his life, now. However, Leake could be a kleptomaniac who finally got caught...or a person with entitlement issues. He could have a substance addiction, or a criminal bent. I'm not sure any of these are more likely than the others, so any "guess" is kind of a wasted effort, in my opinion.)

[minnehan]

I have no idea. I'd guess it was just a misunderstanding. We'll see.

The Cincy radio station said he is caught on video removing the security tags from the t-shirts which would require some sort of tool and forethought. It would be interesting to see if the "misunderstanding" spin is explained if indeed it's his defense. The WLW radio show had several shoplifting experts call in to say in similar cases its usually caused from low self esteem issues and how they want to be caught. As has been pointed out already, Leake certainly didn't "need" to shoplift the t-shirts for monitary or clothing needs. Leake would have known Macy's has state-of-the-art security cameras covering every inch of the store, so outside of some sort of hazing prank, his actions have to be a cry for help.

I'd bet Leake will not make his start on Thursday. Further down the road, his status with the Reds is up in the air at this point.

minnehan

[Hammer]

How about the kid wanted stuff without paying for it??????

[Midnight Otter]

I bet someone on the Nationals hypnotized him into doing it.

[Gregg]

How about the kid wanted stuff without paying for it??????

+1

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[ThatRogue]

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