Chad Holley is the teenager who was beaten by four Houston police officers in March. These four officers went on to face misdemeanor charges and were subsequently fired from their jobs. These four officers dealt with contempt, ridicule and disgust by Houstonians during the trials.
Fast forward to several months later. The now 16-year-old Chad Holley stood before a jury as he was tried for the wrongdoings he committed in March on Tuesday. And it was these wrongdoings that were the center of attention in the courtroom this time around.
Holley was convicted of burglary. The teen, along with his friends, broke into a townhome and stole cash, jewelry and a musical keyboard.
Following the act, police chased the fleeing Holley briefly before cuffing him and beating him.
Now there is this much that most will agree on: the four police officers involved in the assault deserve the contempt, ridicule and disgust the community has expressed.
Under little circumstance should an officer ever feel the need to physically brutalize a suspect.
And under no circumstance should an officer feel that it is necessary to harm a minor — especially in a situation where the suspect is not immediately dangerous.
But Chad Holley, 15 at the time, committed a crime — a crime a person of his age should not even contemplate. And for that, a good beating was served.
Gone are the days when kids were taught by their parents who held discipline to a high standard. Gone are the days when kids were delivered a smack in the rear for their wrongdoing.
If a little old-school justice is what it takes to correct an individual with great potential, then a little old school justice is what should be performed.
We’re not saying Chad Holley got what he deserved, because he didn’t deserve to be treated so ruthlessly. But we think it’s safe to say that he would at least think twice now about burglarizing another townhome.
I have very little sympathy for the kid. He's lucky he just got a beating from the cops and that he didn't get his head blown off by the homeowner had he been caught in the act. Boo-hoo, police brutality! He's a criminal. As a minor, he will get off relatively easy from the burglary charges.
you are adolescent proto-fascist garbage and i hope your ugly kids get tased for no reason. hth
you are adolescent proto-fascist garbage. nothing deters a teen from a life of crime like being brutalized by the system!
Dear Cougar Editorial Board,
But but but but nothing. Either he deserved a beating or he didn't. Either justice can be served by a jury or it can be kicked into a kid on a street corner. Are you holding two positions contradictory positions or are you to cowardly to say what you mean?
If you beat the hell out of your children they might "think twice" about anything they do. I am sure Mr. Holley will "think twice about burglarizing another townhome". What do you recommend for Tom DeLay?
What do you mean by "a little old school justice"? Lynch mobs are old school justice but I haven't seen any of those "In a modern day and age".
Who do you think should decide who gets some "old school justice", Juries, police, judges, random people on the street?
Are your kids off limits? Don't say no straight off the bat. It might help them reach their full potential! Is Tom DeLay off limits? As you say some "old school justice" might help a person with great potential.
Gone are the days when people had the courage to say what they mean.
Wow, thank you Angela, I honestly mean that. You took the words right out of my mouth.
Pretty much there are no two ways going about this. Did the teen commit the crime or not? End of discussion.
Though it seems as if the Cougar also gets really sore if you disagree with what they think, hope you didn't receive the same misfortune as I did Angela. I couldn't seem to access the site today and yet low and behold after using a proxy I can access the website just fine. Hypocrites much Daily Cougar? You seem to forget that your little right to freedom of press also has a sibling called freedom of speech.
I am all for old school justice, however, I am not for being punished twice for the same offense. The youngster got a good old fashion beat down, plus put on probation by the court. If old fashion justice is the beating part, then why was he convicted and given probation?
It is not right to have your old fashion justice and a day in court too!!!!
So many errors in this opinion. First, this is not justice — the police did not act with any authority from the "state" to brutalize the boy. This is simply violence. They beat the boy not to "teach him a lesson" or to punish him for wrongdoing (that's not the place of the police; it's the place of the courts), but because they are thugs.
"And for that, a good beating was served." — what sense of justice could you possibly have that would justify this idea? His crime (and it was a crime) did not include violence against people, but property. And, catching him after the fact, the courts should serve the punishment. To assume that any thug in a uniform should "serve" justice is to admit that you have no confidence in the American judicial system, that you believe and endorse street violence and vigilantism, that you have no faith in the rule of law.
Further, you commit numerous fallacies by implying that spankings when young would prevent crime when older. Can you name any peer-reviewed study that shows such a connection? You can try anecdotal evidence, but anyone can offer anecdotal counter-evidence.
Finally, you prophecy somehow, knowing human nature as well as you do, that this boy will never commit a crime again? More likely he will hate cops for the rest of his life, mistrusting them or wanting vengeance in his heart for the brutality he received. More likely he will go into our Texas prison system — called "monster factories" — and come out a more hardened criminal. And when confronted by the police again, he's going to remember that violence begets violence.
This staff editorial is little more than an romantic belief in cowboy justice. The beliefs don't make our communities safer, they don't instill respect for the law, and they don't add anything to an intelligent conversation about adolescent crime.
"Under little circumstance should an officer ever feel the need to physically brutalize a suspect."
Oh, really. How about…
Under >no< circumstance should an officer ever brutalize an >unarmed< suspect.
This editorial board opinion expresses nothing more than the immaturitty of your board.
wow. the cougar is ridiculous.
a little good old-fashioned discipline never solved anything. because it's anything but good.
I don't care if it was four grown men or one grown man; the teen did not deserve to be beat down the way he was. Yes, punishment is deserved but the policemen went about it all wrong. Take the kid in and let him go through trial to see what is deserved. For the teen to already be "acting out" by doing the robbery, he obviously has something already going on and for these grown men, who hold authority, to ruthlessly beat him most likely made the damage worse mentally. Whatever the teen's problem was before, now we can add in trust issues not just for police but anyone who holds authority.
And you just exemplified why this is such an issue. Its people like you who champion the criminal and overlook the nature and seriousness of their crimes. Where is the justice for the victims? Sure this is not a particularly outrageous crime the teen committed but that doesn't mean he isn't guilty of committing the crime in the first place. What the police did wasn't right but that doesn't mean the teen won't have it any better in jail nor that he shouldn't be punished for the crime he committed.