American man arrested in Pattaya for U.S. assault charges

[chilli42]

If they are shipping him back to the US for a spanking it must have been quite a serious assault (and for him to skip out of the country).

[Acharn]

About time, should be more of it. If one hasn't done anyting wrong then nothing to fear. it should also be applied to many of those who clearly come here to hide and attempt to prevent their being punished for their crimes in their home country.

"If one hasn't done anyting [sic] then nothing to fear." Kind of depends what you consider "wrong." In the current U.S. Code, the Federal law, there are anything from 2,500 to 6,500 actions defined a felonies. In general, a felony is any act for which you can be imprisoned for more than one year. Since the 1970s, American lawmakers have multiplied felonies and imposed harsh mandatory sentences until you do not know whether you are committing a crime. Prosecutors love this situation. If somebody is arrested for a minor offense they can pile charges on until you are at risk of decades in prison if you demand a trial and lose. Then they insist that you plead guilty to any charge they please for a lesser sentence. For example, suppose a friend has tickets to a game you really want to watch. You call in to work and take a day off because you're sick, and go to the game with your friend. You've just committed a "scheme or artifice to defraud." In Little Rock, Arkansas, it is illegal for a man and a woman to flirt with each other on the streets. If a cop issues a ticket, and if you don't go to court on the appointed day, they will issue a warrant, just like with this fellow in Pattaya. You may very well not even know about the warrant. He apparently did not. I think many countries which claim to be bastions of freedom are not. After all America has over two million people in prison.

[Jimdandy]

I'm surprised someone would be deported for an assualt charge.

I'm not.

[Acharn]

If they are shipping him back to the US for a spanking it must have been quite a serious assault (and for him to skip out of the country).

I suspect it was a minor offense but that he missed a court appointment and they automatically issued a warrant. He might very well have believed he had taken care of the matter and never known about the warrant. New York City alone has 650,000 warrants outstanding at any given time.

Edited November 30, 2015 by Acharn

[Gandtee]

Thanks for giving your time Mr Yank, to you I do not wish to thank, you are wanted back home so fly away, go back there and please do stay

So you're a poet and don't know it. Turn your arse and I'll toe it!

[CMBob]

I suspect it was a minor offense but that he missed a court appointment and they automatically issued a warrant. He might very well have believed he had taken care of the matter and never known about the warrant. New York City alone has 650,000 warrants outstanding at any given time.

Not within the realm of any reasonable possibility. Any form of misdemeanor assault would not have been enforceable (one couldn't be extradited for it) across even state borders in the US and no misdemeanor assault charge would have ever been entered on a national (FBI) database. There's no doubt that any "assault" charge that was on the FBI (and likely Interpol) database involved a charge at the felony level. I have no clue whatsoever if this guy is guilty of anything but the charge is certainly no minor one.

[Ukraine]

About time, should be more of it. If one hasn't done anyting wrong then nothing to fear. it should also be applied to many of those who clearly come here to hide and attempt to prevent their being punished for their crimes in their home country.

Yes, unfortunately it is true.

There are many thousands of foreign criminals coming to Thailand every year for hiding, probably they never visit Immigration Office in Thailand and prefer to keep low profile.

Every time I meet a new farang in Thailand I assume that he or she may be one of them.

You never know.

It's better to be on the safe side and be very selective while making new farang friends in Thailand.

[connda]

I'm surprised someone would be deported for an assualt charge.

Now, would Thailand request that a Thai citizen be extradited from the US to Thailand on an 'assault charge'. Given the fact that assault will get you a whooping 500 THB fine, probably not until Hell freezes over.

I've got to assume the US will pay Thailand for the care, feeding, and extradition of this dude. I can't see them going through the hassle if they aren't compensated.

Too bad the dude didn't do his 'assaulting' in Thailand. 500 THB fine and the US citizen he assaulted couldn't do a thing because the 'crime' is out of the jurisdiction of the US. The individual who was assaulted couldn't even file for civil damages in a US court. So for any US citizen who gets into a scrape with another US citizen, do it in Thailand.

Doing anything remotely 'criminal' in the US seems to get you tossed into the clink. Seeing that the US prison system is privately owned nowadays, the courts go out of their way to throw people into jail. The US has 5% of the world's population and 20% of the world's prison population. Crime does pay! That is, if you're a stockholder in company that runs US prisons. I wonder how much this 'assault' extradition will cost US taxpayers. Silly move imho.

[kiniyow]

Just how hard would it be to File a trumped up charge by a ticked off Woman in the USA?

[me313]

The comments here indicate what types of assumptions people have about crimes like assault (which could be anything from a fist fight altercation to a domestic violence situation) based on their own prejudice, which is sexism in this example: people assume, according to some comments I've read above, that "assault" must have meant that this man must hit a female (on the bottom, his ex-wife or something) and she trumped up charges and with her greedy lawyer is seeking revenge in some petty situation where this man is more like the victim of a trumped up charge from some disgruntled female. What a tale has been woven out of the simple word "assault", with white male waiting in dock for extradition the real victim, these commentators imply. Considering the prompt and swift manner in which this case has been handled by Thai authorities, it suggests a serious injury, and a felony charge. There is no indication of the degree of the charge (1st Degree, 2nd Degree, etc).

People seem to think that if a female is involved as victim of assault, she must be lying, it must have been some disgruntled woman who wanted revenge, and the man was just doing his thing and made a mistake or acted a bit too aggressively, he solved the situation by just going over to Thailand to live in Paradise after a bad situation with some female who he hit on the bottom or something not very serious like that.

More likely, the way the legal system really operates in the US, it was a white male with some financial clout who suffered the assault, with US police, the US Embassy, and Thai police all working together to extradite this man. If the victim of assault had been a female, and the situation was something like domestic violence, considering what I studied in Criminal Justice at my university, statistics of how dv cases are handled by the Law in the US, not much more would have happened if the woman had filed an assault charge from rape, domestic violence or any such "sex"-related altercation. Yet, the comments imply that the males are victims in such situations and the women, with their thieving lawyers, are out for the hard-earned money of these poor, white males who have run away to live in Thailand. There appears to be a general consensus that white males are not guilty if they assault women and the women who file charges are just b******s out to get revenge and money.

You can say "This is Thailand" or you can say "This is America", doesn't matter.

Edited November 30, 2015 by me313

[NanLaew]

Just how hard would it be to File a trumped up charge by a ticked off Woman in the USA?

Oh yes, if it's possible, it simply MUST be a woman.

[tom21]

Just how hard would it be to File a trumped up charge by a ticked off Woman in the USA?

Oh yes, if it's possible, it simply MUST be a woman.

your splitting hairs it could a accusation from anyone.

not sure how long hi passport is valid for but if there is a warrant out on a person I am sure they would not renew it or would they

[Jim walker]

Well done Thailand not behind time to get rid of all these undesirables hiding out in Pattaya and other Thai holiday tourist locations.

[dotpoom]

I'm surprised someone would be deported for an assualt charge.

agreed

There are different types of assaults committed against men and women...I am not suggesting anything as I have no knowledge what-so-ever about this case.....just saying?

[Si Thea01]

About time, should be more of it. If one hasn't done anyting wrong then nothing to fear. it should also be applied to many of those who clearly come here to hide and attempt to prevent their being punished for their crimes in their home country.

"If one hasn't done anyting [sic] then nothing to fear." Kind of depends what you consider "wrong." In the current U.S. Code, the Federal law, there are anything from 2,500 to 6,500 actions defined a felonies. In general, a felony is any act for which you can be imprisoned for more than one year. Since the 1970s, American lawmakers have multiplied felonies and imposed harsh mandatory sentences until you do not know whether you are committing a crime. Prosecutors love this situation. If somebody is arrested for a minor offense they can pile charges on until you are at risk of decades in prison if you demand a trial and lose. Then they insist that you plead guilty to any charge they please for a lesser sentence. For example, suppose a friend has tickets to a game you really want to watch. You call in to work and take a day off because you're sick, and go to the game with your friend. You've just committed a "scheme or artifice to defraud." In Little Rock, Arkansas, it is illegal for a man and a woman to flirt with each other on the streets. If a cop issues a ticket, and if you don't go to court on the appointed day, they will issue a warrant, just like with this fellow in Pattaya. You may very well not even know about the warrant. He apparently did not. I think many countries which claim to be bastions of freedom are not. After all America has over two million people in prison.

Thanks for the insight.

[Sheryl]

In US law, though details vary a bit by state, felony assault generally means serious bodily injury resulted.

The type of "assault" that some posters seem to assume this was would be a misdemeanor only and would not get him on any wanted list much less deported.

[NoshowJones]

Anyone who didn't know already, when you go for an extension they CHECK YOU OUT!

Only Americans?

[NoshowJones]

I'm surprised someone would be deported for an assualt charge.

Maybe depending on how bad the assault was, the kind of assault, and who against. A woman, a kid??

[NoshowJones]

I'm surprised someone would be deported for an assualt charge.

You mean he just slapped a girl's bottom and they want to deport him? Sheesh! These Thai people, so tough.

Or is it the case that you neither know what he did nor the US definition of assault?

I suspect the latter.

In any case, like any coward, he ran away and refused to accept responsibility for his actions.

Maybe he was innocent. If he was charged as the report says, then he wasn't convicted.

[roblam]

Just how exactly do they gain access to these arrest warrants and background information in real time? Interesting how they can look you up at county or state level oceans away. This is unlikely to be an Interpol red notice. Surely some form of direct access to the police database in the U.S.

Edited November 30, 2015 by roblam

[NoshowJones]

Good work. Now how about some home grown justice in Thailand for all the assaults that are so commonplace?

Yes, and in most courts there will be about six Thais waiting or their punishment.

[Alration]

Just how exactly do they gain access to these arrest warrants and background information in real time? Interesting how they can look you up at county or state level oceans away. This is unlikely to be an Interpol red notice. Surely some form of direct access to the police database in the U.S.

Perhaps the US authorities simply informed their Thai counterparts.

[balo]

We don't need more criminals in Pattaya , we have enough of them here already .

[mpyre]

About time, should be more of it. If one hasn't done anyting wrong then nothing to fear. it should also be applied to many of those who clearly come here to hide and attempt to prevent their being punished for their crimes in their home country.

"If one hasn't done anyting [sic] then nothing to fear." Kind of depends what you consider "wrong." In the current U.S. Code, the Federal law, there are anything from 2,500 to 6,500 actions defined a felonies. In general, a felony is any act for which you can be imprisoned for more than one year. Since the 1970s, American lawmakers have multiplied felonies and imposed harsh mandatory sentences until you do not know whether you are committing a crime. Prosecutors love this situation. If somebody is arrested for a minor offense they can pile charges on until you are at risk of decades in prison if you demand a trial and lose. Then they insist that you plead guilty to any charge they please for a lesser sentence. For example, suppose a friend has tickets to a game you really want to watch. You call in to work and take a day off because you're sick, and go to the game with your friend. You've just committed a "scheme or artifice to defraud." In Little Rock, Arkansas, it is illegal for a man and a woman to flirt with each other on the streets. If a cop issues a ticket, and if you don't go to court on the appointed day, they will issue a warrant, just like with this fellow in Pattaya. You may very well not even know about the warrant. He apparently did not. I think many countries which claim to be bastions of freedom are not. After all America has over two million people in prison.

There are several books written about this exact phenomenon...America is becoming a police state, as noted by these authors.

"Three Felonies A Day: How the Feds Target the Innocent" June 7, 2011

by Harvey Silverglate (Author), Alan M. Dershowitz (Foreword)

[mpyre]

The comments here indicate what types of assumptions people have about crimes like assault (which could be anything from a fist fight altercation to a domestic violence situation) based on their own prejudice, which is sexism in this example: people assume, according to some comments I've read above, that "assault" must have meant that this man must hit a female (on the bottom, his ex-wife or something) and she trumped up charges and with her greedy lawyer is seeking revenge in some petty situation where this man is more like the victim of a trumped up charge from some disgruntled female. What a tale has been woven out of the simple word "assault", with white male waiting in dock for extradition the real victim, these commentators imply. Considering the prompt and swift manner in which this case has been handled by Thai authorities, it suggests a serious injury, and a felony charge. There is no indication of the degree of the charge (1st Degree, 2nd Degree, etc).

People seem to think that if a female is involved as victim of assault, she must be lying, it must have been some disgruntled woman who wanted revenge, and the man was just doing his thing and made a mistake or acted a bit too aggressively, he solved the situation by just going over to Thailand to live in Paradise after a bad situation with some female who he hit on the bottom or something not very serious like that.

More likely, the way the legal system really operates in the US, it was a white male with some financial clout who suffered the assault, with US police, the US Embassy, and Thai police all working together to extradite this man. If the victim of assault had been a female, and the situation was something like domestic violence, considering what I studied in Criminal Justice at my university, statistics of how dv cases are handled by the Law in the US, not much more would have happened if the woman had filed an assault charge from rape, domestic violence or any such "sex"-related altercation. Yet, the comments imply that the males are victims in such situations and the women, with their thieving lawyers, are out for the hard-earned money of these poor, white males who have run away to live in Thailand. There appears to be a general consensus that white males are not guilty if they assault women and the women who file charges are just b******s out to get revenge and money.

You can say "This is Thailand" or you can say "This is America", doesn't matter.

555!

Edited November 30, 2015 by mpyre

[razer]

Man, I hope I don't have any unpaid traffic tickets. I recon the bad guys can still get in and out of the country on a fake passport plus cash and they don't even have to do a 90 day report.

[KhunBENQ]

I'm surprised someone would be deported for an assualt charge.

Previously they would not have. Now under the army, things have changed.

If there is a warrant why should Thailand have an interest to keep him?

They deport UN acknowledged political refugees back to China.

[Sutty]

What's the statute of limitation on murder in UK

[todlad]

I'm surprised someone would be deported for an assualt charge.

You mean he just slapped a girl's bottom and they want to deport him? Sheesh! These Thai people, so tough.

Or is it the case that you neither know what he did nor the US definition of assault?

I suspect the latter.

In any case, like any coward, he ran away and refused to accept responsibility for his actions.

Maybe he was innocent. If he was charged as the report says, then he wasn't convicted.

Oh I see. So the poor Yank has no idea he has been accused of having smacked someone and so left the country completely unaware. In that case, there is clearly no charge to answer is there? What are the Thai and American authorities thinking of?

I would love to see the criminal/legal system where you come from, it must be a real riot.

[NoshowJones]

I'm surprised someone would be deported for an assualt charge.

You mean he just slapped a girl's bottom and they want to deport him? Sheesh! These Thai people, so tough.

Or is it the case that you neither know what he did nor the US definition of assault?

I suspect the latter.

In any case, like any coward, he ran away and refused to accept responsibility for his actions.

Maybe he was innocent. If he was charged as the report says, then he wasn't convicted.

Oh I see. So the poor Yank has no idea he has been accused of having smacked someone and so left the country completely unaware. In that case, there is clearly no charge to answer is there? What are the Thai and American authorities thinking of?

I would love to see the criminal/legal system where you come from, it must be a real riot.

It sure is. In the UK, you can be jailed if you assault somebody you catch burgling your property.

In America, you just shoot them, that is what I call real justice.