Crime: Nixzmary Brown Gets Justice?

Photo from Newsday

Cesar Rodriguez, the stepfather of Nixzmary Brown has been sentenced to 26 years in jail for his role in her death. Was justice done?

We blogged this case extensively when the trial began. Abdurrahman Mian, Nixzmary Brown's biological father, apparently abandoned the little girl to the tender mercies of her mother. In his defense, he probably had no idea that her mother and stepfather would kill her.

But — doesn't every man who has unprotected sex with a fertile woman have a responsibility to ensure that the resulting child, if any, be raised properly? He might not have been able to ensure that the child had an ideal upbringing, but he could at least have contributed financially to ensure that she was not starved and hungry and beaten to death.

Reproduction is the responsibility of those who engage in reproductive activities. In other words, if you're gonna play, you're gonna pay. If you don't want children, or don't want to have them with your current partner, have a vasectomy (it's reversible and your nutz won't turn green and fall off) or wear a condom AT ALL TIMES. Don't rely on your lover to use contraception. Regardless of whether your partner is a sex worker or a saint or if you love her forever, make sure you use protection. And if you don't, get ready to pay for the next eighteen or twenty years. Kids ain't cheap.

And there's no reason why the taxpayer should pay for your pecadilloes. And absolutely no reason why the kid, who never asked to be here in the first place, and wouldn't be if you hadn't been doing the horizontal samba with their other parent, should have to pay — especially when the cost is so steep.

From the article, a particularly heartbreaking quote:

At one point, the prosector also relayed a story. She said that Nixzmary's brother, Javier, when told of his stepfather's conviction, said, "I hope that he is frail and weak when he gets out of prison so that he can't hurt any other children."

Javier's biological father is taking custody of his child. He claims that he would have taken him from the start, but Javier's (and Nixzmary's) mother, Nixzaliz Santiago, who will be tried later this year for the killing of Nixzmary Brown, kept his son from him.

Regrettably, Abdurrahman Mian, Nixzmary's father, wants control of her "estate," which could be a sum of several million dollars, based on lawsuits filed against the city of New York for its failure to protect Nixzmary Brown from her mother and stepfather.

We believe Cesar Rodriguez should be jailed for life. Based on his current sentence, he will be young enough to be a danger to other children when released. Especially if he gets time off for good behaviour. Also, we believe that the kind of person who would beat a child to death is a danger to society, because they lack the normal internal inhibitions against disproportionate force against the helpless.

Most people who kill direct their aggression towards a single individual. This is why serial killers and mass murderers fascinate people — because they are so uncommon. (Although mass murderers are certainly becoming more common.)

And, despite the travails of raising children, most people do not abuse their children. Many people don't know how to parent their children. But only in recent times has childbearing been an option. And where women and their families have access to contraception and sex education, most children are wanted children, and their parents do their best to raise them with love and care.

Which is why stories like Nixzmary Brown's are so heartrending. How do we keep this sort of thing from happening? Society can never sufficiently police abusive parents.

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