But all Hamber got was the kid-glove treatment, so he was left free to commit more violent acts. And this time an innocent child paid for the court's leniency with her life.
Carefully note the last paragraph or so, where the former girlfriend of this "alleged" child killer filed for a restraining order against Hamber last year, but was denied for "lack of evidence." It's not clear whether this was the child's mother, but the fact that an order was filed for would certainly tell us something about the possible risks involved in leaving a child in Hamber's care. Had an order been granted, this might have been an even larger red flag.
But there's a slight problem. Maryland has the highest burden of proof for obtaining an order of protection in the entire country. So the girlfriend in question faced a monumental challenge in getting one.
What an an amazing coincidence that back in February, the Maryland Judiciary Committee rejected a bill that would have re-set the State's burden of proof for obtaining a protection order from "clear and convincing evidence" to "preponderance of evidence"--the same standard in place for the vast majority of other civil actions in Maryland. Note that Maryland is the only state in the Country that clings to this high standard of proof.
If Maryland had had a "normal" burden of proof, is it possible that this girlfriend might have obtained an order of protection? Is it possible that with this order on the books, Humber might have been denied access to this child, and that she might still be alive? I guess we'll never know.
Those who follow events in Maryland may recall that one witness that was at that Committee hearing was Dr. Amy Castillo, a mother who did everything she could to protect her three children, including getting a temporary protective order on Christmas 2006 after her husband, Mark, told her that "the worst thing he could do to me would be to kill the children and not me." But the mother was denied a final order of protection for "lack of evidence." So on March 29, 2008, Mark Castillo followed through on his threats and and drowned their three young children in a hotel bathtub.
Despite the clear and compelling evidence that victims of violence are not getting orders of protection--and that women and children were dying as a result--Committee members basically treated Dr. Castillo like dirt. And besides, her case was the exception--or so the public was told. We were assured that "serious" orders of protection were being granted anyway, and that only the "frivolous" ones filed by vengeful females were being denied. Even though the actual evidence didn't back up that bland and patronizing assertion at all. There were cases of obvious and proven danger where orders had been refused, but that didn't concern the Committee members much. Besides, it was quite clear that the committee was more concerned about some criminal being "falsely accused" than the lives of innocent people.
So here we have yet another case where someone was denied an order of protection, and later events basically prove that this person's concerns were correct. We have a Maryland judge who ruled that that there was "lack of evidence" for a restraining order, and once again a child dies.
How many more children will die, even as Maryland judges tell us there is "lack of evidence" for a restraining order?
http://investigativevoice.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3725:news-breif-police-charge-father-in-connection-with-death-of-2-year-old-girl&catid=25:the-project&Itemid=44NEWS BRIEF — Baltimore police charge father in connection with death of 2-year-old girl
Sunday, 18 April 2010 07:39
Baltimore police are investigating the death of a two-year-old girl after arresting her father and charging him with child abuse late Saturday evening.
Hamber called police to his East Baltimore home after his daughter was found unconscious in the bathtub Saturday evening. She was later pronounced dead at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Police discovered severe wounds on several parts of her body, possibly inflicted with a belt that Hamber told police he used to discipline her. Police are now investigating her death as a possible homicide.
An autopsy is scheduled for Sunday.
According to online court records, in 2009 Hamber’s girlfriend filed a restraining order against him. However, a city judge dismissed the case citing lack of evidence. Hamber was charged with second-degree assault and violation of probation in 2008. He was sentenced to 16 months' supervised probation.
Hamber is currently being held without bail at Central Booking. He is scheduled for an arraignment hearing May 15.
