Mushroom-picking couple's prison term reduced to 5 years

[webfact]

Mushroom-picking couple's prison term reduced to 5 years

By Chayanit Itthipongmaetee, Staff Reporter

 

Daeng Sirisorn and Udom Sirisorn are escorted by officers into a courtroom Tuesday morning in Kalasin province.

 

KALASIN — A middle-aged couple appealing harsh punishment for picking mushrooms from a protected forest had their sentences reduced by 10 years by the Supreme Court on Tuesday.

 

Udom Sirisorn and Daeng Sirisorn, 54 and 51 respectively, were handed down reduced sentences of five years by a court in Kalasin province, seven years after they were first convicted of illegal logging there.

 

Full story:  http://www.khaosodenglish.com/news/crimecourtscalamity/courts/2017/05/02/mushroom-picking-couples-prison-term-reduced-5-years/

 

-- © Copyright Khaosod English 2017-05-02

[PremiumLane]

Could comment about the disparities between how the poor and rich are served 'justice', but why bother

[KhunBENQ]

1 minute ago, PremiumLane said:

Could comment about the disparities between how the poor and rich are served 'justice', but why bother

It's part of the reconciliation efforts

[mtls2005]

Mushroom picking classified as "illegal logging". Gotta love rule-by-law.

 

Someone in the judicial system: prosecutor or judge should have nipped this in the bud, but these commoners need to be made an example of I guess.

 

Five years (from fifteen) still seems overly harsh? Were they wearing some illegal red-shirts, or in possession of the wrong type of red bowl? 

[ezzra]

Just as well they weren't selling drugs or stealing and cheating people,

or even, god forbid, worse, kill people while driving, they'd get 2-3 years

in the slammer for sure....that's if you are not a hi-so person....

[pookiki]

They should have originally received a suspended sentence of six months -- at the most.  A small fine would have been the better alternative.

[jaltsc]

"A middle-aged couple appealing harsh punishment for picking mushrooms from a protected forest..."

 

Of course, dumping plastic and other trash in the same forest, or other national parks and refuges...Mai Pen Rai.

 

Too bad they couldn't have afforded a high end sports car. Then they could have murdered a police officer, after dragging him for a few hundred meters under the car, and never have been arrested or having to show up for court. 

 

Thai justice....Oxymoron. 

[z42]

Deplorable.. the article doesn't say that they're in jail although one could infer that they are now.. Very lousy reporting here..

The only good outcome would be that these poor people get compensation in the millions, extensive state assistance and grovelling apologies from those who stitched them up so disgustingly in the first instance...

What a truly dreadful case this is

[Bluespunk]

33 minutes ago, webfact said:

after they were first convicted of illegal logging there.

So were they logging or picking mushrooms?

[JohnThailandJohn]

Police were after illegal loggers in the area and they all fled when police arrived. This couple fled too but were found because the police found their motorcycle at the scene. The couple then stated they were just there to pick mushrooms. They then say they plead guilty to the charge of illegal logging on advice of their lawyer who they say told them they would not receive any jail time if they confessed. They had also confessed when they were questioned by police but they said they thought police were questioning them about picking mushrooms not logging.

[nikmar]

All good for Thailand's image of course.

[robblok]

44 minutes ago, mtls2005 said:

Mushroom picking classified as "illegal logging". Gotta love rule-by-law.

 

Someone in the judicial system: prosecutor or judge should have nipped this in the bud, but these commoners need to be made an example of I guess.

 

Five years (from fifteen) still seems overly harsh? Were they wearing some illegal red-shirts, or in possession of the wrong type of red bowl? 

Nice to bring in politics.. but when they were arrested the red-shirts were (not yet) a big thing. So its rubbish to start about that. 

 

However I do agree with you that its a crazy sentence.. even 5 years is far to harsh for picking mushrooms. 

[robblok]

9 minutes ago, JohnThailandJohn said:

Police were after illegal loggers in the area and they all fled when police arrived. This couple fled too but were found because the police found their motorcycle at the scene. The couple then stated they were just there to pick mushrooms. They then say they plead guilty to the charge of illegal logging on advice of their lawyer who they say told them they would not receive any jail time if they confessed. They had also confessed when they were questioned by police but they said they thought police were questioning them about picking mushrooms not logging.

So there is more to this story then just being sentenced for mushroom picking.. they confessed to logging... 

 

Bit strange.. why confess to logging if your picking mushrooms.. 

I doubt they were logging.. (how to transport wood on a m/c) though they could just work for someone.. anyway crazy sentence if it was really about mushroom picking.

[webfact]

Supreme Court jails elderly couple for deforestation 
By The Nation

 

KALASIN: -- The Supreme Court on Tuesday sentenced an elderly couple from Kalasin province to five years in prison for deforestation.

 

Udom and Deang Sirisorn were convicted of encroaching on 72 rai (12 hectares) of Dong Ranang national forest, where they engaged in deforestation.

 

They cut down more than 1,000 valuable trees and illegally possessed restricted timber.

 

The couple claimed they merely collected wild mushrooms in the forest.

 

In 2011, the Criminal Court sentenced them to 30 years in prison for the offences.

 

The Appeals Court subsequently reduced the sentences to 15 years.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/news/breakingnews/30313998

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2017-05-02

[wprime]

59 minutes ago, PremiumLane said:

Could comment about the disparities between how the poor and rich are served 'justice', but why bother

Now now,  don't go there. We all know everyone is equal in the eyes of the law. Thai justice is available for purchase by both rich and poor.

[JohnThailandJohn]

4 minutes ago, robblok said:

So there is more to this story then just being sentenced for mushroom picking.. they confessed to logging... 

 

Bit strange.. why confess to logging if your picking mushrooms.. 

I doubt they were logging.. (how to transport wood on a m/c) though they could just work for someone.. anyway crazy sentence if it was really about mushroom picking.

 

Crazy sentence too even if they were working for a logger but point was there is more to the story. I suspect they were working for loggers and chose not to give up info on who was running the operation. 

 

Edit: then again maybe they suspected them of running the operation.

[pookiki]

4 minutes ago, robblok said:

So there is more to this story then just being sentenced for mushroom picking.. they confessed to logging... 

 

Bit strange.. why confess to logging if your picking mushrooms.. 

I doubt they were logging.. (how to transport wood on a m/c) though they could just work for someone.. anyway crazy sentence if it was really about mushroom picking.

Because the followed the advice of their lawyer!  What do you do if you are trapped in a room with a bear and a lawyer and have a gun with two bullets?  Shoot the lawyer twice!

[robblok]

Just now, JohnThailandJohn said:

 

Crazy sentence too even if they were working for a logger but point was there is more to the story. I suspect they were working for loggers and chose not to give up info on who was running the operation. 

That is also an option that they were indeed logging and working for an other who they did not want to give up. So yes I believe there is more to the story too. In general there is always more to stories then what is reported

[robblok]

Just now, pookiki said:

Because the followed the advice of their lawyer!  What do you do if you are trapped in a room with a bear and a lawyer and have a gun with two bullets?  Shoot the lawyer twice!

 

Yes they did follow the advice of the lawyer.. but even before they confessed to the police.. Maybe they thought up the mushroom picking story. I have no idea.. but as I said if its really about just mushroom picking.. far to hars and crazy. 

[pookiki]

We will never know what happened since there are no transcripts of court hearings in Thailand.  However, it seems very strange that an elderly couple would have the wherewithal of encroaching on such a large tract of land.  Probably in the wrong place at the wrong time.

[Wallander4]

Repeat offender rapist can drive taxi and continue to rape but take some mushrooms then ... Talk about a country going backwards and in a deathspiral

[pookiki]

2 minutes ago, Wallander4 said:

Repeat offender rapist can drive taxi and continue to rape but take some mushrooms then ... Talk about a country going backwards and in a deathspiral

Maybe the judge ate some of the evidence!

[robblok]

2 minutes ago, pookiki said:

We will never know what happened since there are no transcripts of court hearings in Thailand.  However, it seems very strange that an elderly couple would have the wherewithal of encroaching on such a large tract of land.  Probably in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Could be a case of wrong time wrong place.. or they could have been hired by a logger. We will never know but if its for just mushroom picking its far to harsh a sentence. But Its not uncommon for people to lie about their crimes.  I also wont put it past the police to force a confession out of people to cover up their own failings.

 

So.. I would really not know. 

[Denim]

42 minutes ago, Bluespunk said:

So were they logging or picking mushrooms?

Well.....there are mushrooms and there are mushrooms.

 

 

[AGareth2]

I wish the UK tabloids would print this story instead of Sex in Pattaya or the Red Bull heir

[sanemax]

10 minutes ago, JohnThailandJohn said:

Police were after illegal loggers in the area and they all fled when police arrived. This couple fled too but were found because the police found their motorcycle at the scene. The couple then stated they were just there to pick mushrooms. They then say they plead guilty to the charge of illegal logging on advice of their lawyer who they say told them they would not receive any jail time if they confessed. They had also confessed when they were questioned by police but they said they thought police were questioning them about picking mushrooms not logging.

It needs to be established whether they were part of the logging group, or just two people picking mushrooms who were caught up in this .

   That should be easy to establish .

Was the forest close to their home ?

Illegal loggers tend to go far from home to cut trees down

Mushroom pickers pick locally .

I have a feeling that there were illegal loggers in the forest , they all fled when the Police came , the two mushroom pickers didnt flee , because they were not part of the gang .

   The Police found the motorbike and waited for someone to pick it up , the pickers arrived back with their mushrooms and were arrested for illegal logging

  If they were part of the logging gang, they would have told the Police who the other members were .

   

   

[pookiki]

4 minutes ago, Denim said:

Well.....there are mushrooms and there are mushrooms.

 

 

True

 

 

[sandemara]

51 minutes ago, Bluespunk said:

So were they logging or picking mushrooms?

Just very big mushrooms. It's not easy for city police without adequate forensic training to tell the difference.

[pookiki]

21 minutes ago, robblok said:

Could be a case of wrong time wrong place.. or they could have been hired by a logger. We will never know but if its for just mushroom picking its far to harsh a sentence. But Its not uncommon for people to lie about their crimes.  I also wont put it past the police to force a confession out of people to cover up their own failings.

 

So.. I would really not know. 

No tree hugging today?  I thought all encroachers had to be drawn and quartered?

[robblok]

1 minute ago, pookiki said:

No tree hugging today?  I thought all encroachers had to be drawn and quartered?

If proven I am all for harsh justice.. especially the kind that cut down trees for money in a nature reserve.. However, I am not sure these guys are guilty of that.. and if guilty I am sure they are not the one in charge. But yes if guilty then a harsh punishment should be given. But Thailand is a joke sometimes rape.. 2x and your still out quite fast.. then this (if guilty) is harsh in comparison.