Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman told Newsmax on Tuesday about his outrage over a judge giving a man who sexually assaulted, kidnapped, and robbed a woman a 30-year sentence after a jury recommended 65 years.
Coleman announced he is appealing Jefferson Circuit Court Judge Tracy Davis' sentence for Christopher Thompson, 24, to the Kentucky Supreme Court.
The attorney general said the judge's sentence is an unlawful abuse of judicial discretion.
"What happened in that courtroom not only was disrespect for the court, but what happened in that courtroom was disrespect for the victim, for the victim's family, for the community that has been terrorized by this defendant," Coleman said on "Finnerty."
"I'm stunned by all of it," he added.
Coleman noted Thompson forced his way into the woman's vehicle, sexually abused her, made her drive to an ATM, and then sexually abused her again.
"It is every father's worst nightmare. We can never make that ... victim whole," Coleman said.
"Her life will be changed forever. Her family's life will be forever changed."
By appealing the judge's sentence, Coleman said he is seeking justice.
"What I'm seeking is for the jury's recommended sentence to be carried out," he said.
"That's what justice looks like here. We're going to fight for that because the judge abused her discretion," Coleman said.
"That's what we also saw in the court."
Coleman said he will always fight for the rule of law.
"My job is to support the men and women of law enforcement, to do the hard work of putting hands on those offenders to keep us safe," he said.
"What that says to the men and women of law enforcement when judges disregard the law to impose their own view outside of the bounds of the law, it says that those officers don't matter," Coleman added.
"It says that their efforts don't matter, and it makes us less safe."
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Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.
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