Instead of sending a drug offender to prison, a judge took off his belt and had the 18-year-old's grandmother give him a whipping.
"I think he'll kind of remember what to do on probation," Circuit Judge Frank Eppes said Friday, a day after he imposed the sentence.Youth advocates chastised the 72-year-old judge for teaching that violence is the answer, but some who are fighting for tougher punishment for criminals supported his decision.
"I think the country is open to any innovative approach to resolving the juvenile crime problem," said Jim Grego, a founder of Citizens Against Violent Crime.
Before Jamel Washington pleaded guilty Thursday to possession of crack cocaine, he said he would fail a drug test because he had smoked marijuana.
"I said, `Grandmama, don't you think he needs a whipping?' " Eppes recalled. "She said he needed one and ought to have a whipping."
Eppes supplied the belt and went into his office with a courtroom deputy, Washington and 63-year-old Victoria Washington Ellis.
Ten to 12 loud smacks could be heard, said Bruce Durant, a prosecutor in the courtroom. Eppes said there were no more than five strokes.