Justice in Georgia

I just read about the latest in a case study in American injustice. In June, according to the New York Times, a Georgia judge has ordered the release of Genarlow Wilson, the teenager (now 20-something) who has been serving a ten year sentence for having consensual oral sex with a fifteen-year old. At the time, Wilson was seventeen. Because of a legal loophole, designed for adult sexual predators, Wilson was convicted of a felony by a jury shocked to learn of the minimum sentence of 11 years. Had Wilson engaged in intercourse with the girl, he would have been charged with a misdemeanor. After the conviction, Georgia passed a law reducing actions like Wilson’s a misdemeanor; however, it could not apply to him retroactively. I’m pleased to see that justice has finally prevailed in this case. There was a great cover story about the dilemma of children and teenagers convicted of sexual crimes in the New York Times Magazine this summer.
For a perspective on a similar subject, check out William Saletan’s article on Slate yesterday. He discusses the way to encourage teens to postpone sex through education, in order to reduce the national abortion rate.