Tracy, CA girl found in submerged luggage may have been raped (Sunday school teacher charged)

[Liberal_in_LA]

**This case is smashing all kinds of sterotypes***

http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/04/14/california.slain.girl/

Police: Child found in submerged luggage may have been raped

(CNN) -- A Sunday school teacher accused of killing a Tracy, California girl may also have raped the 8-year-old, authorities say..

Melissa Huckaby, expected to be arraigned Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET in the death of Sandra Cantu, will face additional charges, including rape, police told CNN.

"When she was booked, she was booked on charges of kidnapping and murder," Tracy Police Sgt. Tony Sheneman said on "Larry King Live" on Monday night. "And we're informed by the district attorney that she'll be charged with abduction, murder, rape with a foreign object and lewd and lascivious acts with a child."

Sandra's body was found April 6, stuffed into a suitcase and submerged in a pond at a dairy farm. Huckaby, also of Tracy, California, was arrested on April 10 after questioning by police.

[hlthe2b]

1. Uggh... Just when you thought this could not be more horrible

"smashing stereotypes"--indeed. The parents of this poor little girl may never recover, knowing this. RIP, little one...

[Liberal_in_LA]

2. other news said the family became 'enraged' with news of the rape, mother had to be sedated when

told of the death. Now she's more upset.

[aikoaiko]

28. A mother being more upset that her daughter' death was preceded by more suffering than she knew

Does that really surprise you?

[Liberal_in_LA]

32. no.

[ima_sinnic]

3. but no evidence that she might be covering up for a (male) rapist?

somehow I've believed that was what was happening--not sure how that would work, but I have to give the police the benefit of the doubt here, that they are convinced, horribly, that she is the one, since I know nothing at all about the case.

[elehhhhna]

21. Why was she hospitalized w/ internal bleeding after the child's disappearance?

Heard that this a.m. on the news.

[Wetzelbill]

4. Honestly it never crossed my mind for a second

that a woman would have killed that little girl. I'm shocked. I haven't been paying much attention to the case, this is the first I heard of a female suspect being arrested.

[acmavm]

5. Wow! Guilty until proven guilty. The new American legal system.

Tried and convicted in the media and on DU.

We can save money now. We don't need the courts anymore.

[Wetzelbill]

6. I don't think anybody here said that she for sure did it

It's shocking enough that a little girl is dead, was found in this woman's luggage and that she's been arrested for the murder and the police say they have no other suspect. That's not convicting anybody it's just where the case is right now and all the info we have on it.

[cali]

7. that's such a tired and bogus complaint.

she'll be tried and convicted or not, in the legal system. And people have always and will always discuss heinous cases.

[Berry Cool]

8. They're going to have to put this trial someplace where it hasn't received much publicity

(good luck) and find 12 jurors who will at least claim to not know much about it or to be able to judge the state's case against this woman with an open mind as to whether she is guilty or not. Let's hope they can do that.

I expect if she gets a good defense team but is convicted, her team will appeal 16 ways come Sunday and one of the reasons will be excessive pretrial publicity that supposedly convicted her before she was tried.

[Name removed]

11. Deleted sub-thread

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[QueenOfCalifornia]

20. Agreed.

Glad you said it.

[rug]

9. Imagine if she was a pirate too.

[Tripper11]

10. Oooo, too soon!?!?!

:hi:

[Bucky]

15. There's probably not a statute of limitations on the tastelessness of child murder jokes

[MissDeeds]

19. My thoughts too

A child was murdered and may have been sexually assaulted. Parents are grieving, and some here are making sick jokes. Pathetic.

[Name removed]

12. Deleted message

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[H2O Man]

16. "Innocent until proven guilty"

applies to the process that the Constitution attempts to insure, within the context of court proceedings. It does not apply to people reaching a conclusion outside of the court proceedings, including before a trial happens.

The jury selection, of course, involves a process where those who already have a firm opinion on the matter of guilt or innocence are eliminated from the jury pool. But even among those who are willing and able to decide a case objectively, to see if the prosecution can prove a defendant's guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, common sense suggests that the majority of people arrested and brought to trial are generally guilty. The overwhelming majority of people may know of cases where someone who was convicted of a crime was later found to be innocent, but far fewer know of such an incident that has taken place involving someone they know personally. That can be compared to both the number of people who do know someone who was correctly convicted, or someone who has violated some area of the law (speed limits, etc) and never was caught.

The legal system has flaws, ranging from incorrect convictions, to different treatment of members of different economic groups, to laws that are at very least questionable. But there isn't an issue when it comes to people who are not part of the court process having an opinion on a specific case, before it goes to trial.

[acmavm]

17. I understand that people have opinions. I am that smart. In fact,

I have a few myself.

But anymore all court cases with of any notoriety are tried in the press way before they get into a courtroom. Many times skewing the verdict, i.e. the McMartin mess in California OR the case of the (still unknown after many attempts at pinning the blame) Anthrax Killer.

[H2O Man]

18. I was simply

responding to something that you posted. It was not correct. It has nothing to do with if you are "that smart." Likewise, the ability or inability to admit to an error is not always a reflection on intelligence.

There are valid concerns with some of the preoccupation with high-profile cases, though the system has a couple in-place manner of dealing with those issues as they impact the right to a fair trial.

[Wetzelbill]

33. yeah

remind me not to argue with you ever. :)

[Liberal_in_LA]

24. huh? Who says she's guilty? article say she's 'charged'

[acmavm]

25. Look downthread. That's what this kind of reporting does...

<snip>

Sick sick sick.....whether it was her and/or other people, they all need to be executed
I am not usually a death penalty type person, but all these poor children being killed lately has changed my mind.

<snip>

A sick sick woman. Should be locked up forever.
I can only imagine that something is so wrong with this monster that she can't be fixed. Let her be fed, let her be clothed, and let her be forgotten forever in some small cell.

[Liberal_in_LA]

29. I assume there is an implied "if she's guilting' with posts like that

[acmavm]

30. Right.

[lumberjack_jeff]

26. I suspect there's a lot more to the story than we know.

I suspect she had an accomplice.

[acmavm]

27. Really? And?

[lumberjack_jeff]

31. And... watch the news at eleven?

I'm sorry, I thought this was a discussion board. Did I inadvertently log on to a prophesy board?

[carlyhippy]

13. Sick sick sick.....whether it was her and/or other people, they all need to be executed

I am not usually a death penalty type person, but all these poor children being killed lately has changed my mind.

[Bucky]

14. A sick sick woman. Should be locked up forever.

I can only imagine that something is so wrong with this monster that she can't be fixed. Let her be fed, let her be clothed, and let her be forgotten forever in some small cell.

[Odin2005]

22. Words fail me...

:cry:

[nonconformist]

23. Horrible.

This case just gets more shocking by the day.

Poor little Sandra. May her family find peace someday.