THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, February 15, 1997 TAG: 9702150240
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY PAUL SOUTH, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: MANTEO LENGTH: 117 lines
A judge in Goldsboro sentenced two men for sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl, then made comments that have enraged residents and led some to ask for his ouster.
The judge's words drew fire after a report in The Coastland Times said he had expressed admiration for the men because they had ``made it in the world without a father.''
Superior Court Judge Paul M. Wright, 48, of Goldsboro said Friday that his remarks were taken out of context and did not reflect his view of their deeds.
``I was not in any way commenting on the facts of this case, which were very appalling,'' said Wright, whose 1st Judicial District includes the Outer Banks.
The men, Joseph William Millen, 27, of Clinton and Shannon Michael Woods, 19, of Nags Head, originally were charged with felonious first-degree rape in connection with an incident on Feb. 4, 1996.
Woods and Millen were alleged to have performed sexual acts simultaneously with the girl.
Because she was unwilling to testify, prosecutors agreed to a plea bargain. Millen and Woods pleaded guilty this month to misdemeanor sexual assault.
The girl never filed charges. After an investigation by Social Services and police, the state did. Both men received suspended sentences and no jail time, under the state's structured sentencing law.
Court transcripts show that Judge Wright questioned Woods and Millen about their family backgrounds with defense attorneys Randy Jones and Kris Felthousen also commenting:
Wright: Where are these young men's fathers? That is something they can't do anything about, but . . .
Woods: I have never met my father, sir, before.
Wright: Is he living?
Woods: I have no clue.
Jones: Your honor, he does have three younger siblings, two brothers and a sister.
Wright: All right. Well, he's got a lot on him then. How about the other young man? Where is his father?
Millen: I don't have a clue. Raised by a single parent all my life. Got another little brother in the Army, just got home from Bosnia.
Wright: So you gentlemen both look after your younger brothers and sisters then?
Millen: Basically.
Later, after sentencing, with the 12-year-old girl and her mother in the room along with the mothers of the two defendants, Wright had this exchange with each of the defendants, transcripts show:
Wright: Everybody go along with this? Mr. Woods, you go along with it?
Woods: Yes sir.
Wright: All right. I hope I never see you again. Admire you for making it through the world without a father like this. All right.
Then Wright addressed Millen.
Wright: All right. Agree to that, gentlemen? Mr. Millen?
Millen: Yes sir.
Wright: All right. Admire you for making your way through life like you have now.
The story touched off a firestorm.
``I was raised to believe you respected women and kids above all else,'' said Paul Charron, 34, of Manteo. ``When you read that a judge - our last line of defense - says this . . . I just put myself in the shoes of that child. This is just wrong.''
Beth Storie, also of Manteo, expressed outrage.
``It's just despicable,'' Storie said. ``It just shows an absolute lack of knowledge with a matter dealing with a 12-year-old child. He's obviously so biased against women - in this case girls. It's scary for this to happen in the case of someone so unprotected by the justice system.''
Wright, whose annual salary is $93,528, said he in no way was lauding the defendants for their actions related to the sexual assault.
``I was not commending them for the crime they committed,'' Wright said Friday. ``Absolutely not! I was just trying to encourage them and their mothers.''
Also, in a prepared statement, Wright said, ``I am totally disgusted and appalled by these types of cases. However, I do not determine what people are charged with nor do I determine what charges they are allowed to plead guilty to. Many district attorneys, where a victim did not want to prosecute, would have just dismissed this case.''
Storie and Charron said they plan to organize marches at the courthouse the next time Wright hears cases in the county.
``Rape used to be a capital offense,'' Charron said. ``When did it become an admirable offense? It just ticks me off that someone can say something like that. In this little town, it's like being slapped by the real world.''
Storie said Wright should be removed from the bench.
``That would be the goal if it meant he would never hear cases again in our community,'' Storie said. ``We want to begin our petition effort next week.''
Mary Gillen of Kitty Hawk has contacted the Judicial Standards Commission and national media.
The commission, made up of lawyers, business people and lay people, has the authority to receive and take action in complaints regarding a judge's conduct or qualifications, said Deborah Carrington, the commission's executive secretary.
This is not the first time Wright, a 12-year veteran of Superior Court, has been in hot water. In 1985, North Carolina's Judicial Standards Commission censured Wright for making what it found were improper financial contributions to the 1984 U.S. Senate campaign of now-Gov. James B. Hunt Jr. and of former state Attorney General Rufus Edmisten. The North Carolina Supreme Court upheld the commission action.
``I think he sends a very bad signal,'' Gillen said. ``It's hard enough for anyone to file charges in any crime. But it's especially hard for women in sex crimes. I think when he sits there and praises people who do things like these defendants did, it's wrong.''
Attorney Jones and the prosecutor, Assistant District Attorney Robert Trivette, were contacted in connection with last week's incident, but declined comment.
In his statement Wright commented, ``In all due respect, I think my remark was taken unfortunately out of context. Let me make one thing perfectly clear: I was not in any way commenting on the facts of this case, which were very appalling. After the plea and judgment was entered, I was simply echoing the defense attorney's comments about their clients, that in general it was difficult for any individual to go through life successfully without a father.'' ILLUSTRATION: Superior Court Judge Paul M. Wright praised the men
for ``making it through the world without a father.''