To paraphrase, Sarah Palin: you know the difference between a pit bull and a Hockey Dad? A laser, apparently. In Boston, Joseph Cordes, 42, has been arrested for allegedly sitting in the stands with a laser that he was using to blind the goalie of his daughter’s opposing hockey team. His daughter was playing for Winthrop against Medway-Ashland in the Division 1 preliminary game when a parent spotted him with the laser. He has now been charged with disorderly conduct.
Cordes was asked to leave by an official at the game. Winthrop went on to win the game 3-1. Medway-Ashland demanded a replay of the game but league officials rejected the demand.
Cordes comes off as a male Wanda Holloway, the woman so obsessed with her middle school daughter’s cheerleading career that she tried to put out a hit on one of her daughter’s classmates as well as the cheerleader’s mother.
In this interview, Cordes says “I feel like a complete jerk. It was very stupid, completely immature for a 42-year-old man to be doing that.” Few arguments there.
Notably, an eighth grade goalie complained a year ago in a game against Winthrop that someone was flashing a laser pointer in her eyes.
In this case, witnesses have a video of Cordes pointing a laser in the eyes of Kathryn Hamer, the goalie for Medway/Ashland High School — shown here. Kathryn was temporarily blinded, which does raise a question of the charge. This seems to be a bit more than disorderly conduct. If he blinded Kathryn, it would appear a form of assault and in the very least endangering the girl who could have hurt herself in the midst of this very physical sport. The problem for the prosecutors is that the blindness was only lasting for a few second at a time. Kathryn described it as like looking into the sun.
The fact is that the greatest punishment for an act like this will be found in the court of public opinion. The tragedy is that his daughter is likely to face much of this criticism at school.
What do you think of the charge? Disorderly conduct probably falls about right in terms of potential sentencing. It allows for what is usually a short period of jail, though that is often waived in favor of probation. It does leave a criminal record. Cordes was previously arrested across the street from the hockey rink for breaking into a CVS and being caught with possession of heroin. Notably, he was sent for psychiatric evaluation at that time.
Source: Daily Mail
Mespo:
What would you do if some one did something like that to one of your children?
Shining a laser in the child’s eyes would certain support a felony assault charge; a judge or jury could certainly determine that he attempted to cause “serious physical injury” (that is, physical injury creating a substantial risk of protacted loss or impairment of any part of the body), although with no significant criminal history, he would almost certainly get probation. If he did, one condition would be no attendance or participation in any athletic activities involving his daughter.
What? You folks (almost wrote dolts!) don’t do body scans on all spectators? We routinely check all bags, but guess you do too.
PS to Blouise. We got nuts here too. A toy is a toy, right. It’s fuuuuunnnn!!!
Is this any different than an adult blinding a child as she our he was about to ride a bike into traffic? Hockey is dangerous sport, and while a child and their family know it is dangerous, they aren’t counting on this kid of drastic outside interference. Reckless endangerment is the least of it.
id707,
I read about that
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2055487/Air-disaster-fears-soar-louts-blind-pilots-15-laser-pens.html
Bron:
“This is a symptom of a society in decay. This wasnt immature it was immoral.”
********************
Come on Bron. This is not the beginning of the apocalypse. One event does not a trend make, or logically speaking it’s the fallacy of the lonely fact. That’s it is newsworthy speaks to its infrequency.
The guy apologized, seemed remorseful, and may have an emotional or mental problem. Morality requires a knowing choice, freely made and with full knowledge of the consequences. This guy might not have the capacity for those elements given his mental makeup. That said, if he was compos mentis, he should pay for the crime.
This guy reflects the “Winner take All” mentality and let me guess, he is a Republican and claims that he is a Christian in good standing with his God!
Just so you feel safe flying to Stockholm on a nighttime arrival, the cops have been chasing laser idiots who blind the pilots for 4 years without success. Where is Obama and his drones when you need them
These certainly qualify as terrorists endangering numerous flights.
And you folks have had your cherry taken, think again.
what has happened to congratulating the other team if they win and trying to do better next time you play them?
This is a symptom of a society in decay. This wasnt immature it was immoral. And the fact that this person [I use that loosely] would even think of such an action gives one cause to wonder.
At the minimum he should excluded from any pee wee hockey league games for at least a year during which time he should be in jail or doing community service to benefit the blind. Maybe if that jackass saw what the blind have to deal with, he could understand how important sight is to humans and how truly depraved it is to do what he did.
In any cases that involve the intentional harming of children, however slight that harm might be, I’m a “throw the book at ’em” kind of adult.
What a putz, to put it lightly. IANAL, but does reckless endangerment fit this? Whatever the case, it’s beyond the pale that this guy was willing to possibly permanently blind this little girl to give his daughter’s team an advantage in a game. And I’m certainly glad to hear that wasn’t the result, as the headline inferred. He better hope that girl’s father isn’t the vengeful type.
And I agree that the game should be replayed. Terrible decision not to do so.
What both Dredd and mespo said.
What Dredd said.
My opinion of a grown man who would mess with a little girl need not be spelled out.
I’m not even going to get into it, but this guy sounds like a serious jerk, probably repetitive, if not addictive. Really serious consequences could have resulted. Disorderly might be ok, but considering new technologies etc., assault would not be out of the question, and there is no reason to get all squishy and understanding about someone messing with kids.
Also, too, as above, yeah, real classy bunch involved.
I am with you on this one Mespo. The game needs to be replayed and this felon of a dad needs to sit in a jail cell for awhile. What a great role model?
There are parents everywhere that will do anything to get their kid in somewhere….. Like in Texas some will have you murdered if your daughter is a better cheerleader….. Sick people raising sick children…….
I found it interesting that the unethical and criminal tactic of Cordes won out when the sanctioning body failed to order the final period to be replayed. Why reward the interference of a cheater? While the kids from the winning team are probably blameless, they undoubtedly benefited from the malevolent actions of a fan and the integrity of the outcome was thus in doubt. A classy coach would concede the win.
Poor kids, his daughter and the opposing goalie. They both need victim counseling.
Even if there was not physical injury from the laser, the distraction might well have contributed to a situation where the goalie and/or other players (also on ice officials) might have been seriously injured, perhaps the man’s daughter. A charge of disorderly seems very light even if it was a single incident. Considering his past record you could reach other conclusions.
“What do you think of the charge?”
Adding assault and battery would not have been out of bounds. Perhaps a plea to disorderly after that.
This fellow is wacked. Gives new meaning to the Dylan lyrics “you just want to be on the side that’s winning” (Positively 4th Street).