Outrage leads to action
Community members plan protest of Shawnee County judge
10:51 p.m. Wednesday, June 13, 2007
The victim's parents want the judge to step down immediately and they hope the community will continue to stand behind them as they demand justice.
When Mike and Tina first heard the sentence they couldn't believe it.
“We were thoroughly disgusted,” Mike said.
49 News has made the decision not to use the parent’s last name for fear of identifying the victim.
A jury found Orlando Paul Cicneros guilty on 17 counts.
"17 felony counts of rape and all these horrible charges against a minor and they walk free,” Mike said.
Their child was raped and sodomized...
“Our daughter didn't get any justice and she's still just 14. She's just a girl,” said her mother, Tina.
Judge Matthew Dowd sentenced Cicneros to just three years- of probation.
“For the judge to say three years probation, it's like, we were floored. Why would he do that?” Tina asked.
Members of the community couldn't believe it either. Monica Breedy didn't know Mike and Tina, or their daughter, but she was outraged. She has two small children of her own.
"As a parent I want to know the community I'm choosing to raise my children in is going to be safe,” Brede said.
So, Breede is organizing a protest of Judge Dowd's actions.
“I think it's very important for the community to know they can take action and make a point,” Breede added.
And Mike and Tina say they won't stop until they finally get justice for their little girl.
“I'm not gonna give up. I'm going to see this through until the end,” Mike said.
Mike and Tina are waiting for an appeal in the case. They hope it will lead to a longer sentence for Cisneros, and in the meantime, they hope the pressure will lead to Judge Matthew Dowds' resignation.
Comments
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Jun. 14, 2007 at 9:14 a.m. (Suggest removal)Lettie28 (anonymous)
When my boyfriend saw this story on the news last night he said, "That guy (Cisneros) was just hired at my work!" When my boyfriend confronted his boss about this she replied, "I'm not running a daycare" Maybe not, but quite a few men at Pallets Plus have children. And I have always been welcome to bring my children in anytime so they can see their dad at work. I am outraged that Pallets Plus did nothing to warn me about a convicted child sex offender's presence at their workplace. With an open door policy to the families of thier employees, I feel Pallets Plus had a responsibitly to either change their policy or inform the employees and thier familes of the potential danger children could be in by visiting Pallets Plus. Personally, I am quite disgusted that any company would hire a man like Cisneros. But, Pallets Plus has a history of hiring of convicted felons. I agree that the judge needs to step down. I'm sure he could get hired at Pallets Plus. Thank you for airing this story and for giving me the information I need to keep my children safe.
Jun. 14, 2007 at 5:34 p.m. (Suggest removal)parkay (anonymous)
Judge Dowd is mentally and morally unfit for the Shawnee County bench. After he retires in 2008, he can still fill in and judge many criminal court cases as a retired senior judge. He will then continue to turn more rapists and pedophiles loose on your community and your children. Get Dowd off the bench permanently - now. The Kansas House can impeach Dowd in January, if there is no sooner remedy. While they're at it, they can impeach Judge Theis, too.
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