Monday, August 04, 2008

Everyone's Public

WTF?? Here are the last two paragraphs in a news story about the anthrax attack guy who killed himself:

In the past year, the FBI has turned its attention to Ivins, whom a therapist said had a history of homicidal and sociopathic behavior. Social worker Jean C. Duley won a protective order against Ivins on July 24 after telling a judge the scientist was a homicidal sociopath.

Duley, 45, also has a minor criminal record, according to court records. She pleaded guilty in April to driving under the influence and was fined $500 and placed on probation for nearly a year. In October 2006, she pleaded guilty to reckless driving and was fined $580. A 1992 charge of possessing drug paraphernalia was dismissed.

How in god's name is it relevant that the woman this dude was stalking had a DUI, or that she got busted for having a pipe or something sixteen years ago? I'm continually amazed at how easily anyone can become a public figure overnight. Apparently, all you've got to do now is to be stalked by a homicidal chemist and they'll start printing your arrest record across the country. It might have been better for her to have just put up with the stalking. Now she's got the media after her.

2 comments:

Broadway Carl said...

I understand your point, but it goes to credibility as she is supposedly the key witness in this whole thing. I haven't been reading too much on this, but I caught this story on Countdown and the point Olbermann and his guest, investigative journalist Gerald Posner, were trying to make was that it's easy to blame a dead guy for the anthrax attacks if you paint him as a homocidal nut. But if your main witness has a sketchy past herself, then it gives one pause.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036677/#26015772

Doctor Biobrain said...

Sketchy past? Because she had paraphernalia charges dropped against her sixteen years ago? Even drunk driving is hardly the deal breaker when it comes to credibility. I could understand if she had a history of fraud or something, but one DUI only means she had poor judgment one night, not that she's unreliable or dishonest.

People shouldn't be publicly harrassed for reporting stalking or rape or that kind of thing. I know nothing about this woman but fail to see how she has credibility problems.