Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, October 19, 1994 TAG: 9411170057
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: TOWSON, MD. LENGTH: Medium
A man who shot his wife to death after catching her in bed with a lover drew 18 months in prison from a sympathetic judge. Women's activists see it as a license to kill.
``This case explodes the myth that there is justice for domestic violence victims in Maryland,'' said Carol Alexander of the House of Ruth shelter for battered women. ``He's sanctioned and approved an execution.''
Circuit Judge Robert E. Cahill said he was reluctant to give any jail time at all to 36-year-old Kenneth Peacock, who killed his wife hours after finding her in bed with another man. He could have received 25 years in prison.
``I seriously wonder how many men married five, four years would have the strength to walk away without inflicting some corporal punishment,'' Cahill said Monday. ``I am forced to impose a sentence ... only because I think I must do it to make the system honest.''
Sandra Peacock, 31, was shot in the head with a hunting rifle Feb.9 after her husband arrived home unexpectedly during a snowstorm. Her lover was not hurt.
The judge's comments dominated Baltimore-area radio talk shows Tuesday.
``This is 1994, and we have a judge who excuses a man who gets so jealous that he murders his wife,'' said Judith A. Wolfer, a lawyer active in domestic violence issues.
Kim Gandy, executive vice president of the Washington-based National Organization for Women, said, ``It's outrageous, and at the same time, it's not an uncommon treatment of women who are victims of male violence. The sentencing reflects the judge's attitude toward this woman, that she was [her husband's] property, that he had the right to be judge, jury and executioner.''
The judge did not immediately return calls for comment.
Susan Carol Elgin, a member of the state bar association's committee on gender equality, said she was not aware of any past complaints against Cahill. Committee members will discuss Cahill's sentence and comments today, she said.
Prosecutors also drew criticism for letting Peacock plead guilty to manslaughter and recommending a sentence of three to eight years. He had originally been charged with murder.
Prosecutor Ann Brobst said the deal was discussed with the victim's family beforehand, and no one objected. ``Given all the facts and circumstances of the case, I don't think a first-degree murder conviction would have been an easy one to achieve,'' she said.
Monday's sentence also stirred memories of a case last year in which another judge placed a rapist on probation, saying the victim had ``facilitated'' the attack by passing out on the man's bed. Under pressure from the bar association, Judge Thomas J. Bollinger agreed to sensitivity training.
Wolfer called on Cahill to do the same.
by CNB