With Enemies Like This, Who Needs Friends? (Part Two)

Another story from North Mississippi. Courtesy of the blog Folo (www.folo.us), I read this story on The Daily Mississippian about an astonishingly light sentence for a defendant accused of stabbing his victim in the back five times:

http://smc.olemiss.edu/?p=509

(The Folo story is here: http://www.folo.us/2009/02/06/i-cant-blame-scott-white-for-being-aggravated/)

As the Daily Mississippian reports:

The new Lafayette County Assistant District Attorney, Thomas C. Levidiotis, has cleared approximately 120 circuit court cases since he assumed his position on the first of this year. But in clearing so many cases at once, one former Lafayette County resident said a major mistake was made.

Scott White was a victim of a violent multiple stabbing in April 2007 by his neighbor, 29-year-old Jerami Tubbs of Aberdeen.

Mississippi does not have a law against attempted murder, so authorities arrested Tubbs on charges of aggravated assault. While assault charges could land a criminal in jail for 20 years, Tubbs worked out a deal which got him only one year of house arrest followed by four years of probation.

According to White, the District Attorney’s office didn’t inform him the deal was happening until after Tubbs pleaded guilty.

“As a result, the person who stabbed me, an unarmed man, in the back five times without provocation does not spend a day in jail for his crime, and I was deprived of my right under the law to express my concerns in court,” White said.

Oh yes, you remember correctly. I've talked about Mr. Levidiotis before:
http://jimcraigsworld.blogspot.com/2009/01/uncle-toms-courtroom.html

It seems that Uncle Tom gets fantastic results for criminal defendants -- when he's the attorney for the State of Mississippi??

Am I the only one who wonders if we don't know the whole story here? The Daily Mississippian tried to find out, but Lafayette County's newest public servant couldn't be bothered to be accountable. The paper reports:

Levidiotis declined to comment on his failure to inform White of the plea bargain by saying, “That does not fit my recollection, but I will not comment on something told to The Daily Mississippian about a case I have handled.”

He did point out that the defendant was sentenced for five years, but with four suspended, leaving one year to be served via house arrest.

Thanks. I feel safer now.