Religion vs smoke alarms

[loCAtek]

Hunting ain't the same as turf wars...

[Scooter]

They don't believe in trafficking cocaine and meth, either, but that doesn't stop a few from doing it.

[loCAtek]

Let's not over-generalize then?

[Scooter]

And remind me who it was that did that, again?

[Sean]

For want of a sense of humour the joke was lost...

Seriously lo, don't you understand jokes? Or did you find it offensive because you're Amish?

[MajGenl.Meade]

Hey I saw that first one! "Cinatit" wasn't it?

[Sean]

Nope, Cinatit is the mantra of anyone who has watched a Jenny Agutter movie.

[MajGenl.Meade]

Nah, that was "Suuqe" I think?

[Sue U]

Four arrested, other sought for assault of Amish bishop in Holmes
Published: October 11, 2011 12:00AM
By CHRISTINE L. PRATT

Staff Writer

MILLERSBURG -- Four arrested, one released and two more now sought. The investigation continues in last week's assault of an Amish bishop whose beard was cut in retaliation for his role in overruling the decision of another church leader.

Arrested Friday, but released after it appeared he was not directly involved in the incident, was Lester F. Miller, 37, of 1632 County Road 58, Bergholz, according to Holmes County Sheriff Timothy W. Zimmerly.

Still in custody, with bond set at $250,000 cash or surety, are Lester S. Mullet, 26, of 522 Bush Creek Township Road 54, Hammondsville; Johnny S. Mullet, 38, of 362 Springfield Road 280, Bergholz; and Levi F. Miller, 53, County Road 53, Bergholz. Both Mullets are the sons of Sam Mullet, the apparent head of their church. Sam Mullet, while leading an Amish church group in Fredericktown, shunned two families and cast them out of the church. The families disagreed with his decision, prompting the formation of a committee of bishops from across the state who reviewed the decision made by Mullet, according to Zimmerly, who notes the bishops disagreed with Mullet's decision to shun the families.

The arrest warrants, signed by Holmes County Municipal Court Judge Jane Irving, charge each of the men with aggravated burglary and kidnapping. Both charges carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.

As to Levi Miller, Zimmerly said, "There was a misunderstanding on his identity on the part of the (hired) driver of the vehicle." Although Levi Miller admitted to traveling to Holmes County and was among the 24 men who rode in a livestock trailer, he did not enter the residence.

The three who remain in custody are expected to appear today in a Jefferson County court on the matter of extradition to Holmes County, Zimmerly said.

During Friday night interrogations at the Jefferson County Jail, "they pretty much admitted to everything," said Zimmerly, noting they removed the victim's beard "to humiliate him."

The three men, plus two others, reportedly knocked on the door of an Amish home along Saltcreek Township Road 606, just north of Mount Hope, around 9 p.m., according to Zimmerly, who said, they told the resident they were there "to discuss church business with him and his father."

The visitors waited outside while the man got dressed, and they accompanied him to a nearby house where his father lived, said Zimmerly, noting they all entered the residence, sat down and engaged briefly in idle chit-chat until one of the men stood up and announced, "We're here for Sam Mullet, in retaliation for the church shunning them."

The intruders pushed and shoved both men, as well as another man, who descended from an upstairs living area, and used scissors and hair clippers to remove the elder man's beard and a portion of his hair.

In addition to the five men who entered the home, an additional 24 men, also believed to be followers of Mullet, were waiting in a horse trailer attached to the pickup truck, Zimmerly said.

Similar incidents involving hair removal as a form of retaliation among members of the community have taken place in Jefferson, Trumbull and Carroll counties. The Carroll County incident, which occurred only hours after the group left Holmes County, is the only other one in which a formal incident report was filed with law enforcement, Jefferson County Sheriff Fred Abdalla said.

Despite rumors and reports a 13-year-old girl had her hair cut and may have been raped, Zimmerly said, both claims are false. The girl was in the main house when the visitors arrived, but went to the grandfather "dawdy" house after hearing a commotion.

When she entered the home, "they grabbed her, threw her across the room and into a chair," said Zimmerly, noting the brief physical contact was the extend of the assault on the teen.

Reporter Christine L. Pratt can be reached at 330-674-5676 or cpratt@the-daily-record.com.

http://www.the-daily-record.com/local%2 ... -in-holmes

Nothing is ever black and white.

[MajGenl.Meade]

Wow! Could have been worse. At least they didn't give him a mullet

What goes clip clop clip clop snip snip clip clop clip clop.....?

[BoSoxGal]

Mitt Romney taking a break from boarding school polo to harass a gay classmate?

[oldr_n_wsr]

I wonder if the building inspector checked to see if the R-value of the insulation was up to code?
And I doubt very much if an outhouse is "up to code" for disposing of human waste.

I'm sure there are plenty of other construction code violations that could be found also


I say leave 'em alone.

[Big RR]

As long as their community is separate from the rest of the area and a fire would not pose a threat to other (non-Amish) homes, i agree; let them live as they choose. Of course, if they build near a town which might be threatened by a fire, then the analysis would be difference, as it is in requiring them to put readily visible markers on their dark carriages when they use public roads.

[Lord Jim]

Big RR's position seems pretty reasonable to me....

[BoSoxGal]

So the State owes no duty of care to the minor children of religious zealots?

[Crackpot]

Can the state force a blood transfusion to the child of a JW?

[Scooter]

Yes, and has done so on many occasions.

[Lord Jim]

So the State owes no duty of care to the minor children of religious zealots?

Can anyone find where someone said something remotely like that? I'm not having any luck....


Neither religious freedom, nor parental rights are absolute. But neither is the right of the state to override those rights whenever and wherever it sees fit.

Risks have to be weighed against the rights to justify the state's intervention.

There's a world of difference in terms of risk present in the case of a child who's appendix is about to burst, for example, versus living in a house with no smoke alarm.

A better question might be, "Is there no limit to the power of the state to use the care of minor children as a justification for infringing on the First Amendment?"

[oldr_n_wsr]

So anything a parent does (or doesn't do) that the "state" deems unsafe for their children they have a right to intervene? And who exactly makes the decision on what is unsafe?

What about mandating seatbelts and child seats (and maybe airbags too?) in the buggies?

The nanny state needs to stop somewhere.

[Scooter]

Typically, a substantial risk of serious harm to the child must exist in order for the state to step in and assume care for the child (that is the language used in this jurisdiction, and the standard is similar elsewhere). Inhabiting a wooden structure that uses open flame for cooking and heating, that does not have any smoke detection devices, is something that I think could reasonably be seen as posing a substantial risk of serious harm. That being said, I don't know if that is the rationale being used in this case to insist on the installation of smoke alarms, or whether it's simply a matter of saying "the building code says so, and therefore you must".