Tuesday, December 11, 2012

My only Weberman comment

Inadvertently deleted this post. Its recreated below with the only comments I could save.

As you may have noticed, I've not said much of anything about the Weberman trial. This is because I think this case is unremarkable. Men, unfortunately, are arrested and convicted for crimes such as this all the time. Kolko's arrest was something new under the sun. This wasn't. Call me jaded, but I can't make a big blogging commotion every time a Jewish person stands trial. Even the allegations about community cover-ups, or witness intimidation, or rabbis saying stupid things were old hat. Seen that, done that. Ho hum.

 Which brings me to my one little comment. I keep hearing people say that poor Mister Weberman was convicted "without a stitch of evidence." Excuse me? He may have been convicted without a stitch of scientific evidence, but his victim was on the stand for four days. Everything she said counts as evidence. And the jury accepted that evidence and found it credible.

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  • Hamas does a lot of chesed in Gaza too...
  • tesyaa 10 minutes ago
    The reason Weberman's case is a big deal is not just because of the high profile but because the Satmar machine got something that was coming to it.  Maybe, just maybe this will give Joe Hynes to confidence to do what's needed, as opposed to merely what's needed to get votes.
    Addendum - I'm tired of hearing the defenders of Satmar talking about their great chessed, particularly how every kosher meal in the big NY hospitals is provided by Satmar.  (A) not true; (B) irrelevant.  While I can't speak for truly sick people, since the times I've stayed overnight in the NY hospitals have not been times of dire medical crisis, I'd gladly do without their chessed and get my own hospital meals (or eat food without hashgacha) if the tradeoff were no more molesters would get swept under the rug.
    I know I'm setting up a false dichotomy, but really, I am SO sick of hearing the kosher-meals-chessed excuse for this segment of society.  There's no excuse for what they've done.
  • Biblioteca 16 minutes ago
    I wonder if you agree with Rabbi Fink's comments.  I found them to play a bit too much into this notion of "no evidence".
    "First, the sobering news. I was not at the trial, but I did not read anything that indicated that there was any physical evidence or corroborating witness testimony. It’s scary that Weberman was convicted on these facts. Innocent or guilty, there were very few facts with which to nail him. On the one hand this might mean that innocent people can be convicted of these crimes. I am not saying the Weberman is innocent. I think he lost his chezkas kashrus a long time ago. But it is possible that similar facts could be asserted falsely. That is a little scary because it might cause a reprisal of rabbinic and lay reluctance to pursue these cases in court."
  • Biblioteca 18 minutes ago
    I think the case is a big deal and I hope there are more perpetrators brought to trial and convicted.  I also hope it leads to some positive change.
    That said, your comment is a good one.  Some people seem to think the only kind of evidence is multiple, independent eyewitnesses reporting how they walked in on the abuse while it was simultaneously being videotaped just after the guy left his DNA evidence which was immediately collected and matched 100% to the perpetrator with the odds of it coming from another person 1 in 100 billion.  Absent that the trial is a sham, it's a kangaroo court, and the judge, DA, and jury are antisemites.


  • I think the case is a big deal and I hope there are more perpetrators brought to trial and convicted.  I also hope it leads to some positive change.
    Yes, yes

  • Azi Grae 31 minutes ago
    Its very remarkable. Its the first high profile conviction of a Charedi community leader for sexual abuse. 


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