Law and Order: Hamtramck

Tonio Dace, the 21 year old man responsible for the kidnapping mayhem that took place during the Metro Times Blowout in Hamtramck this past March, has been sentenced to 15 to 45 years in prison.


I would love to feel that "justice is served!" feeling, but instead I am left with a "this is as close to justice as we're gonna get, so I guess I'll take it" feeling. It's a frustration with society and the criminal justice system as a whole, not with this case specifically. To be sure, I believe that Dace should be put away for a long time. But by locking him up, he doesn't disappear. Even if we want to think he and the over 2 million other Americans behind bars are invisible and not our concern.


When Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said,"the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice," I think he meant a more "capital J" version of the word, not what passes for "justice" in our current judicial system. Crime brings out our most visceral emotions. It makes us feel indignant, afraid, angry and anxious. But when we use those same emotions to shape our punitive measures, we don't end up with "capital J" Justice: We end up with the highest incarceration rate in the world, deplorable conditions, the death penalty, systematic racial and economic disparity, and a recidivism rate so high we may as well put revolving doors on our jails and prisons.


The term "Department of Corrections" has lost all relevant meaning. We've privatized our prisons and slashed virtually any aspect of this quaint notion of "correcting" from our prison system. We want to see criminals "pay" for their crimes, and affording them any opportunity at rehabilitation strikes us as counterintuitive to punishment. Jobs programs? Continuing education? A library? The public response is often,"No! Let them rot." The problem of course, is they do rot. And soon they'll be out on the streets in your neighborhood again. With new skills - skills they've acquired, not through any kind of job training program, but from other more seasoned criminals. Now they're your neighbor and even more rotten than before. This doesn't even feel like "small j" justice to me. It feels like a giant sham and a dangerously broken system.


So yes, I want to experience that "justice is served" feeling. But I feel like we have a long, long way to go before that's really possible.


Update 7/2: ProPublica put together a great list of investigative reporting on U.S. prisons. Read some of this stuff.

Silence is gross

There's an online petition going around right now that you should sign regarding the horrifying kidnapping incident that took place during the Metro Times Blowout in Hamtramck. We really need to show Judge Paul Paruk that the crimes of Tonio Dace, the accused in this case, are still very much on our minds as a community, and that we want justice. Here's the link - please pass it along to your friends and family. 

I mentioned my disappointment about the Metro Times lack of response (no statement or even coverage) about this terrible crime that happened at their event in my previous post, but even then I held out hope that maybe they were waiting to put something in the physical print edition of this week's paper. Well, I just finished looking through it, and unless I'm blind there's nothing. What an absolute shame. They should be embarrassed. I've e mailed the editors and I hope they respond with some amazingly good explanation.

United we stand

Last year at Blowout, my two favorite bands were Cold Men Young and Waxgordon. So of course I said I thought they should combine forces. Because I like to tell bands what to do. But, unlike all the other times I try to tell bands what to do, they actually did. Here they are combining powers and killing it at this year's Blowout Pre-Party. You're welcome.

Panic in Hamtramck

As many people are already aware, this past weekend was the annual Metro Times Blowout. Like previous years, tons of local bands played, and tons of people came out to Hamtramck to hear some amazing live music. Unlike previous years, a group of women were carjacked, kidnapped, and sexually assaulted while leaving one of the venues. The details are all over the news. 


After terrorizing the women, the alleged attacker, who's name is Tonio Dace, was apprehended by police and the women released. But this does not set my mind at ease. I can barely think of something more horrible. It just so happens that I've been watching a lot of true crime shows lately, and while I am certainly no authority on the matter, I feel very comfortable commenting on this incident. It takes a special kind of assailant to brazenly and violently attack FOUR WOMEN at once. This is not a person I want to see out on the streets any time soon. Frankly, I'm hoping Mr. Dace has a long list of priors that will help make the case that his days as a free citizen are over.


But our justice system is far from perfect, and it really is up to us as citizens to speak out and make a difference. I know my first reaction was wondering what I could do - both in terms of this incident, and to help make Hamtramck a safer place. One of the things I am doing (and you should do) is write a letter to the judge in this case. Let him know how outraged you are by this incident and that the severity of the attack shows how dangerous this person is. This could help impact his sentencing. 


The Honorable Paul J. Paruk
31st District Court
3401 Evaline
Hamtramck, MI 48212


Another thing you can do is just be a good citizen. This is the SECOND kidnapping to happen in Hamtramck in about a week. Although they appear unrelated, it's really scary. I've talked to Hamtramck police officers on more than one occasion and each officer stressed the importance of calling in things you find suspicious. It's a lot easier to just ignore stuff and not get involved, but if something or someone seems off, trust your instincts. The worst thing that could happen is they send an officer to check things out and they don't find anything. Don't just assume somebody else is going to handle it. Think about what a difference it could have made in the lives of these women if somebody saw this guy hanging around ahead of time, thought he seemed suspicious and called the police.


Also, I have no information about this other than the Facebook page, but somebody is putting together a "Take Back the Night Hamtramck" event (or events?). This might be a good way to get involved/show support. Go check that out.


One more thing: I heard about this incident via a friend's Facebook status update. Alarmed, I immediately checked both the Metro Times AND Metro Times Blowout Facebook pages thinking there would be a statement and/or some links to news articles etc. Nothing. And unless I'm missing something, there's STILL been no statement issued by the Metro Times. I have to admit, this pisses me off. Especially since I am aware they e mailed the bands playing on Saturday to tell THEM about the situation. Why no public statement? I'm in no way saying I blame the Metro Times for this, but a statement sure would sure have been reassuring, not to mention an opportunity to express support/sympathy for the victims AND to advocate taking action. If they're afraid of culpability, isn't that what their lawyers are for? I seriously see this as a huge missed opportunity, and please somebody correct me if I've missed their statement. 


Be safe out there.