Sticks of Fire: a Tampa blog

This is a mess. Society’s double standard is at the forefront here. As you talk with your coworkers, my guess is that there is a little bit of giggling and eye rolling. Hell, when she was first arrested, I reduced it to a snicker.

Debra LaFave was 23 years old at the time. There is no telling what she was thinking at the time, but most people I know make some bad decisions at that age. Most immature choices, however, do not result in a trial or prison time. If she is found guilty, she will be incarcerated for at least 10 years, probably longer. And it will be in a real prison with very bad people. But here’s the thing: If it were a male teacher and a female student, there would be overwhelming outrage, and the guy would be on his way to being buried under the jail already.

The trial will be a circus. I’m sure Court TV will be in town (they love stuff like this), and the national news shows will be keeping the nation updated with all the titillating details. But at the end of the day, according to the law, an adult raped a child. LaFave’s attorney may try to use an insanity defense, but this is just the first step in an attempt to reach some sort of settlement.