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HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL
Threads that seem at odds with each other
Legal trends started by Genarlow Wilson opinion
Dear Readers, Last
week, I started to
address the sad case
of Genarlow Wilson, a 17 year
-old young man sentenced to
10 years
without
parole, as
a mini
mum sen
tence, for
having
consen
sual oral
sex with
a 15-year
old girl.
Jim Rockefeller
The “Law” man
Changes made by the
Georgia legislature did not
apply to him which, today,
would make the same activ
ity a misdemeanor - a chasm
of difference.
The Georgia Supreme
Court, humanely, found
Wilson’s punishment “cruel
Growing interdependent team members
The best teams are
not filled with well
rounded people.
Teams are well-rounded
when
filled with
a variety
of very
capable
people,
each will
ing to
volunteer
his or her
unique
capabili
ties to
Dennis Hooper
Leaders Building
Leaders
accomplish the objectives of
the team.
Think of any successful
team. Is it composed of indi
viduals who all do the exact
same thing to the same level
of competency? Of course
not. An orchestra requires
more than violins! A foot
ball team would never be
successful with eleven wide
receivers on the field.
This past weekend, my
pastor asked me to read
the scripture relevant to
his sermon. The passage, 1
Corinthians 12, refers to the
various abilities provided by
the Holy Spirit to a congre
gation. An analogy is made
to our physical bodies: “The
eye can never say to the
hand, ‘I don’t need you.’”
So it is with your organi
zation. You have objectives
you want to accomplish with
Foot problems can be serious
Neuropathy is a condition
that makes it hard for indi
viduals to feel injuries or
sore spots.
Diabetes can damage
nerves in
your feet
and also
cause neu
ropathy.
Diabetes
changes
the blood
flow mak
ing the
process of
foot heal
ing a slow
Dr. Sarvepalli
Jokhai
The Foot Doctor
one.
Due to the slow healing
process, minor problems of
infection can quickly turn
NOTICE OF SURPLUS SALE
The Houston County Board of Education will conduct a surplus sale on November 19,
2007 from 1:00PM until 4:OOPM at 1701 Houston Lake Road, Perry, GA 31069. Items to
be sold include vehicles, furniture and other equipment and supply items. Items will be
for sale by written bid and/or by marked price. Property is as is, where is. There are no
warranties. There is no preview of sale. Property may be inspected only on the day of
sale during sale hours.
ANY AND ALL BIDS SHALL BE ON HOUSTON COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION
BID FORMS. ALL BIDS MUST BE RECEIVED AT SALE SITE, NOT LATER THAN 3:30
PM, November 19, 2007. LATE BIDS WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED.
THE HOUSTON COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION RESERVES THE RIGHT TO
REJECT ANY AND/OR ALL BIDS. FURTHER, THE BOARD RESERVES THE RIGHT
TO ACCEPT THE BID WHICH IN ITS OPINION IS IN THE BEST INTEREST OF THE
SCHOOL SYSTEM. THE BOARD ALSO RESERVES THE RIGHT TO WITHDRAW
ANY AND OR ALL PROPERTY FROM SALE. ALL SALES ARE FINAL. ITEMS SHALL
NOT BE REMOVED FROM BOARD OF EDUCATION PROPERTY UNTIL PAYMENT
IS RECEIVED BY THE BOARD. THE BUYER SHALL REMOVE PURCHASES FROM
BOARD PROPERTY NOT LATER THAN THE DAY OF SALE. BUYER SHALL BEAR
ALL COSTS FOR MOVING PROPERTY.
and unusual” and threw out
his conviction.
Additionally, I mentioned
that Judge Bryant Culpepper,
Jr. (Bibb County) had recoiled
from being forced to sentence
a man 25 years in prison,
without parole, for kidnap
ping his girlfriend and her
children (whom he did not
even place in the car) and
driving them to the inter
state, so he could leave town.
Culpepper used the same
reasoning applied by the
Supreme Court in the Wilson
case to find this sentence was
also “cruel and unusual.”
This week, I want to look
at the trend that might have
been started by the Wilson
opinion and the legal threads
that seem at odds with each
other.
In Wilson’s case, the per
verse issue was that the so
the individuals you have
available to you. And each
individual has a variety of
different capabilities.
When I work with leader
ship teams, we typically con
duct two different assess
ments. One of them deter
mines natural talents. These
aren’t talents like painting,
singing, or dancing. These
are naturally recurring pat
terns of thought, feeling, or
behavior that can be produc
tively applied.
You might characterize
these patterns as “person
ality traits,” and they are
likely not going to change,
no matter how much train
ing or feedback you provide
to the individual.
For example, let’s con
trast two ways of relating
to people. You may prefer
deep relationships with a
few close friends. You want
to Understand your friends’’*
feelings, goals, fears, arid
dreams, and you want
them to understand yours.
Someone else on your team
may prefer the challenge of
meeting a large number of
new people, learning their
names, and asking them a
few questions to find areas
of common interest.
Both talents have a place
in most organizations. Can
you see how your team would
be limited if every person
preferred one extreme or the
into major problems of infec
tion leading to the hospital.
Listed below are the signs
that foot problems can
include:
H Red spots, blisters,
corns, or calluses
Hi Drainage on your sock
fH Dry, cracked, or scaly
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called “Romeo and Juliet”
changes made in 2006 (to
provide for more lenient
treatment of consensual sex
ual activity and exploration
between teenagers) were not
made “retroactive” by the
Georgia Legislature. When
laws are made, they general
ly only apply “prospectively”
- or to case from that point
forward - and not “retroac
tive” to past sentences. This
is especially true for criminal
laws. Thus, a person convict
ed after a date a law is made
effective is treated different
ly, be it more or less harsh
ly, than those before. This
meant that Wilson had to
continue to serve his draco
nian sentence, even if today;
the same deeds would only
result in a misdemeanor.
The Georgia Supreme
Court could not let this dis
other? Each ability has value
for the team, and the great
est value occurs when each
person’s talent is applied in
an appropriate role.
The other assessment
we conduct measures the
degree of competency each
individual has in a variety of
leadership attributes, such
as listening, business acu
men, delegation, and con
flict management. No leader
has superb competency in
all of the attributes. Yet all
these skills are learnable.
Any individual can improve
these skills with the proper
education and practice.
So what does this all mean
for your leadership team?
First, as Jim Collins writes
in Good to Great, “get the
right people on the bus.”
Further, the “right person
has more to do with charac
ter traits and innate capa
f'biljties than with specific
knowledge, background, and
skills'?’
Then, with the right people
in the right roles, encourage
each to build their skills in
areas that you and they agree
will better equip them for
their roles. There is no rea
son to be theoretical about
this - research shows that
the best development occurs
right on the job. Which
existing strengths should be
enhanced to provide great
er satisfaction and results?
skin
Hi Thick, yellow, or
ingrown toenails
■ Slow-healing sores
HI A tingling, cold, or
burning sensation
Hi Numbness
| Red streaks or changes
in skin color
y FULL DIAGNOSTIC
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OPINION
tinction stand. It concluded
that this failure to fully “fix”
the problem - imprisoning
teenagers for at least 10
years for consensual sex -
created an unbearable ineq
uity, and was an affront to
our Constitution. However,
in doing so, the majority
found itself noting, paradoxi
cally, that while the legis
lature clearly felt this was
wrong, by the “Romeo and
Juliet” provisions the legisla
ture could be ignored for not
choosing to fix the problem
retroactively.
Why would judges do this,
e.g., overrule legislatures?
Because things have gotten
out of control. Starting with
the State of New York, led
by Gov.r Nelson Rockefeller,
legislatures throughout the
country have passed laws
requiring mandatory sen
And which limitations are
impeding current success?
These questions define the
predominant focus of any
development effort.
Your objective is an inter
dependent team, composed
of confident, capable play
ers. Each individual knows
the abilities and interests
of each other team member.
Individuals willingly vol
unteer for challenges they
know they can handle. The
other team members encour
age their stepping forward,
complimenting their willing
ness and achievements. Egos
exist, but they are stroked
by appreciative team mem
bers who put the success of
the team ahead of personal
pride.
Dennis Hooper helps lead
ers build leaders for the
future. Contact Dennis at
dhooper2@juno.com or at
478-988-0237.
Joseph Stephen Lomboy, MD
HAPPY THANKSGIVING
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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2007 ♦
tences, taking away judi
cial discretion to mete out
an appropriate sentence.
Recently, judges, even the
current conservative United
States Supreme Court, have
been “pushing back.” There
is a sense that legislatures
are passing politically popu
lar strict sentencing laws,
without regard for the indi
vidual.
Is this a good development,
judges challenging legisla
tures? Some would say not,
because it smacks of disre
garding the will of the peo
ple. Yet, the reality is that a
sentencing decision is a dif
ficult one requiring balance
and wisdom ... both of which
are lacking from mandatory
sentencing provisions.
We see the dark side of
nonjudicial robotic sentenc
ing with Wilson having his
Assessing Your
Leadership Skills
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life nearly ruined for youth
ful indiscretion; we also see
such a ham-handed result
in someone being sentenced
to 25 years in prison for tak
ing people in a car, merely to
have directions out-of-town.
In both of these instances, a
little judicial discretion can
go a long way towards achiev
ing a just result; something
our elected officials rarely
consider.
Local attorney Jim
Rockefeller owns the
Rockefeller Law Center and
is a former Houston County
Chief Assistant District
Attorney, and a former
Miami prosecutor. E-mail
confidential legal questions
to ajr@rockefellerlawcenter.
com. Visit www.rockefeller
lawcenter.com for Frequently
Asked Questions and Jim’s
blog, The Rockefeller Report.
F. Dennis Hooper
Certified
Leadership Development Coach
Building leaders and
organizations of excellence
(478) 988-0237
Am fm
i m
I ill JhH
BPlr
Marietta Lomboy. ANP. CWCN
Adult Nurse Practitioner
5A
543,18
dhooper2@juno.com
w
■ 55629’
56370