I don't know how many of you know this, but last year, my cousin's then soon-to-be-ex wife (They are officially divorced now) filed false charges of attempted murder against my cousin. Well, I am pleased to report that those charges were dropped and my cousin filed a plea bargain, admitting that he was guilty of shoving a PB&J sandwich inside her mouth and strangling her.
Now, I know you're probably thinking that my cousin's a monster. Well, you're wrong. Those of you who think that have no idea what kind of a person he is, and you don't know the full story.
Here's what went down. For an unknown amount of time, my cousin's soon-to-be-ex wife (Jerrie) had abused him: phyiscally and emotionally. For around four and a half months, she forced him to eat nothing but peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, causing him to lose roughly 30 pounds. She would actually punish him if he tried to eat anything else. She stole money from him and sold his precious Civil War memorabilia (Some valued at high prices. We're talking thousands!) for very little, seeing to it that he was virtually broke. Not only that, but she attempted to kill him and she was physicaly abusive. For instance, if they were going to travel somewhere, she would wait until he was climbing into the pick-up and press her foot down on the accellerator, knocking him down. She kept him a prisoner in his own home, intimidating him, stealing from him, manipulating him, and -- I believe -- planning on killing him.
After a fight, my cousin snapped. (Keep in mind that he is a kind-hearted, even-tempered individual who had never done this before and will never do this again.) Emotions running high, he stormed into Jerrie's bedroom (She saw to it that they didn't even sleep in the same bedroom.), latched on to her throat and jammed a PB&J sandwich into her mouth. She called the police and informed them that he had tried to murder her, neglecting to mention one very important fact: he's deaf and blind. Just imagine what would have happened if the police -- not knowing about my cousin's disabilities -- had barked orders at him and he had not heard what they were saying. They could have shot and killed him if he had moved when they told him not to. (I believe Jerrie was actually hoping for this.) So even though he should have spent only one day in jail, Steve (my cousin) ended up spending 28 days. They took away his cane and his hearing aid, even though he needed both items to move around and to hear what was being said.
Now, we move on to a little over a year later. The trial was set for today, and Steve had numerous supporters, consisting of family, friends, and community members. Jerrie -- surprise, surprise! -- failed to show up.
But here's the real surprise: the D.A. was forced to admit that he really didn't have a case. There was no evidence to support Jerrie's claim that Steve had attempted to murder her. All he did was latch on to her throat and force her to eat a PB&J sandwich. Being a man of strong character, Steve admitted that he was wrong for snapping and doing what he did; he took responsibility for his actions; and he apologized. Not only that, but he announced that he has actually forgiven Jerrie for what she did to him. She clearly has mental problems, and we all hope that she gets the help she needs.
So in the end, Steve was sentenced to 20 days in jail (He served 28, so he does not have to serve any more time.) and he has been ordered to pay a $500 fine, along with over $60 for something. (I can't remember what.)
Once again, let me state -- for the record -- that Steve is not known for this kind of behavior. I am not saying that what he did was right. However, I think we should all put ourselves in his shoes. How would you react if someone pushed you to the breaking point? We all have our limits, and Steve had reached his. The fact that he had put up with it for so long amazes me, and I still have a lot of respect for him.
(BTW: Sorry if I sounded a bit harsh to some people. Just want to convince you that you should not always judge a book by its cover. This is a lesson that was learned well, in this case. Jerrie had us all fooled into believing that she was a good person, who loved Steve and wanted nothing more than to spend her life with him. But we came to learn that she is an evil woman with evil intentions. She clearly targeted Steve because of his disabilities, viewing him as an easy target. Thankfully, she did not win. Hopefully, she'll get the help she needs.)