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Mitt Romney’s Willie Horton - How a Liberal Massachusetts Judge Appointed by Romney Has Imperiled Romney’s Presidential Aspirations

There are two striking similarities between Michael Dukakis and Mitt Romney. Both are former Massachusetts Governors and both have a very ugly murder case that haunts them. For Dukakis, the Willie Horton murder case was the issue that derailed his campaign and cost him the election. Over the course of the 1988 campaign questions of Dukakis’ competence, character, and judgement arose and, not dealt with effectively finally overwhelmed him. The Willie Horton case in particular demonstrated to the country the falsity of the “Massachusetts Miracle” tourism and economic growth marketing campaign and the ugly and high cost of liberal “justice” in that state. There were multiple problems with former Governer Dukakis which in totality proved to the electorate his unfitness for the presidency. The most devastating issue was the release of Willie Horton, and his subsequent crimes while enjoying the freedom granted him by a liberal Massachusetts civil society completely adrift then as it is now. Mitt Romney, currently enjoying high poll numbers and a recent (but premature) endorsement from The National Review has his own ugly judicial situation to explain to the American people. The case of Daniel Tavares, a vicious murderer released early by a forgiving liberal Massachusetts judge appointed by former governor Mitt Romney now gets little attention except in Massachusetts and Oregon. Reasonable people in Massachusetts wonder how such a despicable and dangerous person as Tavares could be released into their midst- the people of Oregon in their shock and grief wonder the same things. Who is responsible for Daniel Tavares’ return to society? Does the confused incompetent liberal judge in Massachusetts share responsibility with Tavares for the cruel and savage double murder he committed in Washington state shortly after his release? Most importantly for Mitt Romney, should the attention of the people of the United States be focused on this horrible and possibly avoidable tragedy will they hold Mitt Romney responsible for showing poor judgement in appointing this particular liberal judge to the bench in Massachusetts? Is the murderer alone responsible for his vicious crimes in Washington state, or is the judge who released him, and the governor who appointed the short-sighted liberal judge, and the system that fosters and encourages such dangerous absurdity also responsible?

A Murderer Released - A Massachusetts/Washington State/American Tragedy

Few media outlets are covering this importamt story. This in itself is a mystery. The Boston Herald is following this story closely, as is the Boston Globe. The facts of this very ugly case are these:

• Daniel T. Tavares was sentenced in June, 1992 to 17-20 years in prison for savagely killing his own mother.

“He was a vicious kid. A lot of mistakes were made with Daniel Tavares,” said retired Somerset Detective John D. O’Neil, who obtained a videotaped confession from Tavares just hours after he killed his mother, Ann Marie Tavares, in 1991. “Someone stabs his mother 26 times. It doesn’t get more vicious than that. You have to think about him getting out again, and then he did,” O’Neil said. Link

• Despite a history of violence in prison, and at least one assault on a prison guard, Tavares went before Romney-appointed judge Kathe Tuttman to request his release due to having served the lower end of his sentence on the original crime.

• Assault charges were filed against Tavares for the prison assault on June 11, 2007 three days before he was to be released from prison. Judge Martha Brennan ordered him held on 100,000 bail.

• Romney-appointed judge Kathe Tuttman canceled the 100,000 bail and released Tavares on personal recognizance.

• Tuttman stated from the bench that she did not believe Tavares to be a flight risk. The vicious killer is freed on his own recognizance on July 16, 2007 despite his assault on a prison guard and the vicious murder of his mother over ten years before, and the pending legal action on the assault case. Clearly not rehabilitated, just released.

“It’s difficult to believe he was able to get away,” said Timothy Connolly, a spokesman for Worcester District Attorney Joseph Early Jr.  Connolly said Early was notified by the state police that Tavares was able to buy a plane ticket and fly across the country despite two open warrants for his arrest. Link

• After his release from a forgiving and clearly wrong Massachusetts judicial system, Tavares made his way across the country to the Pacific coast and Graham, Washington in Pierce County.

• November 17, 2007, Tavares walks to the residence of his neighbors a newlywed couple, Brian Mauck, 30, and Beverly Mauck, 28. Tavares shoots and kills both Brian and Beverly Mauck.

Now facing the possibility of a capital murder trial, Tavares sits in segregation 23 hours a day at the Pierce County Jail, said deputy prosecutor Jerry Costello. He has pleaded not guilty. Link

Fallout for Mitt Romney?

The evil murder of the Mauk’s could have disastrous repurcusions for the man who appointed the judge who so stupidly let the murderer free on his “own recognizance”. On November 23rd, 2007 Romney, through his spokesman, called for the resignation of Judge Kathe Tuttman. Romney’s spokesman described the case as “…a system-wide failure … starting with the judge.”

Eric Fehrnstrom, a Romney spokesman, said yesterday that Judge Kathe M. Tuttman should never have freed Daniel T. Tavares Jr. on personal recognizance in July, after he was charged with assaulting two prison guards. “There was a system-wide failure in this case starting with the judge,” Fehrnstrom said in a statement yesterday. “Her decision represented an inexplicable lapse in judgment and was inexcusable. Unless there are facts unknown to us, Governor Romney believes Judge Tuttman should resign.” Link

It is interesting to note that Romney issued his calls for Judge Kathe Tuttman’s resignation through his spokesman, and did not followup with a personal direct call for her removal.

Asked Saturday (11/25/07) if he was afraid the press attention on Tuttman would create a similar situation (Willie Horton and Dukakis), Romney said simply, “No, not really.” Link

Like the National Review’s premature endorsement (the editors of that formerly great publication believe he is “the most viable” candidate), Romney’s confidence that the Mauck murders and the failure of the Massachusetts justice system will not cause him any political difficulty is overly-confident at best. This case is a critical one in understanding Romney’s character both in why he appointed a liberal such a Tuttman to the bench and perhaps more importantly how he will handle the spotlight on this case once it is brightly shined upon him as it should be.

Responsibility for Tuttman’s Appointment is Romney’s

The Willie Horton case received little attention during the campaign of 1988 until it was suddenly everywhere, ubiquitous. The truth of Dukakis’ extreme liberalism and his poor handling of the aftermath of the case was instrumental in ruining his campaign. Romney’s “Willie Horton” moment will likely come, too. When it does, Romney must take responsibility for his judicial appointments, especially Tuttman’s.

Governor Mitt Romney has seized control of the way judges are nominated in Massachusetts, weakening a 35-year-old panel intended to evaluate candidates without regard to politics. Link

Romney’s desire to have more control over judicial appointments appears to have backfired in a very big way. “The changes strengthen Romney’s ability to put his own stamp on the state’s judiciary, as he prepares (his run) for president in 2008.” (link) Romney’s grab for more power in selecting Massachusetts judges may prove to be his undoing. Appointing judges is one of the critical roles of a governor just as appointing Supreme Court Justices is an important function of the President.

Romney said, ”I reserve to myself the responsibility to evaluate judicial temperament and philosophy.”

Romney has noone to blame for the appointment of Tuttman but himself. The stupidity of Tuttman’s decision to release Tavares is self-evident. Mitt Romney must take responsibility for this appointment and explain to all concerned and the American people how such a disastrous event could have occured. Nobody is suggesting that Romney is responsible for judicial decisions made by those he appoints, but he is responsible for appointing those individuals in the first place. If Mitt Romney will not discuss this case, the press and the public must demand that he do so. Romney cannot dodge this impending “Willie Horton moment”. This case could be the defining issue for Mitt Romney.

Massachusetts Judiciary and Civil Society Liberal Confusion

Something was deeply wrong in Massachusetts during the Dukakis candidacy. It took some time for the American people to figure out just what it was. There was no “Massachusetts Miracle” in 1988 only a slick ad campaign. And now, the same issues of liberal moral and ethical confusion that were the foundation of Dukakis’ defeat twenty years ago rear their ugly head again for all Americans to see.

The Massachusetts Public Safety secretary has completed his investigation of the state’s handing of a released prison inmate accused of killing a couple near Graham (Washington). Public Safety Secretary Kevin Burke says state agencies did everything they could to keep Daniel Tavares behind bars. Tavares finished a manslaughter sentence last June for killing his mother. Authorities tried to have him held on charges he assaulted two prison guards. A judge released him without bail and he moved to Washington to marry a prison pen pal. Link

Failure of the Rule of Law in Massachusetts

If Mitt Romney wants to be the leader of the greatest country in the history of the world it is time for him to comment on the failure of the rule of law in the state that he recently governed. The rule of law is the foundation of any society of value and justice. A crisis in the judiciary in any state (especially the home state of a former governor running for president) is a crisis for all Americans. The Tavares case was clearly mis-handled. The vicious murders of Mr. and Mrs. Mauk in Oregon were avoidable. Someone must take responsibility for the release back into society of someone so violent and savage as Daniel Tavares. Judge Tuttman must resign, or be removed from the bench.

Two members of the board that appointed Judge Kathe Tuttman now want her booted from the bench, charging that former Gov. Mitt Romney did not inform them of her involvement as a prosecutor in a botched case that freed a child rapist. Link

Mitt Romney must show the country how he differs from former Governor Dukakis. He owes this to the survivors and friends of the Maucks, the people of Washington State and Massachusetts, and the entire country. If he does not, his candidacy will end in defeat.

Obtuseness and Inaction Create a Disaster in Omaha

by Daniel Mallock, BookFolks

Desperately damaged people ought not to be allowed to inflict their desperation and moral emptiness on others. This is exactly what happened Wednesday (12/05/07) in Omaha, Nebraska.

All Americans are horrified, stunned and appalled at this vicious murder of innocents doing their Christmas shopping at a mall. The country unites in grief at the loss to our society and to their families and friends of the 8 innocent victims. We wonder why the broken young man who committed this act of cowardly violence couldn’t simply have killed himself and left everyone else alone? Too many broken empty people apparently have a strong need to hurt others, this makes them exceedingly dangerous to all of us.

The events in April at Virginia Tech, and the mall shootings in Salt Lake City several months later are eerily similar to this most recent horror in Omaha.

One could make political arguments here about the value of an armed populace: anybody with a gun in that mall could have challenged the angry empty killer and perhaps have stopped his murderous rampage. But now is not the time for such discussion - it’s just too soon. Now we wait for the funerals and join with our fellow Americans hurting in Omaha in sorrow and anguish. We always ask questions after these kinds of horrific events: How could this happen? How can someone be so evil, so selfish, so hateful, so angry, so empty? Could this terrible crime have been prevented?

WCBSTV in Ohama in an article on this horror posted today states
“She told the Omaha World-Herald that the night before the shooting, Hawkins and her sons showed her an SKS semiautomatic Russian military rifle - the same type used in the shooting. She said she thought the gun belonged to a member of Hawkins’ family. She said she didn’t think much of it - the gun looked too old to work. ”
The “she” in the story is the mother of a friend with whom the murderer had been living. Tragically, the gun that Hawkins showed her was likely the murder weapon, and the day of the shooting Ms. Maruca-Kovac “went to her job as a nurse at the Nebraska Medical Center, where victims of the shooting soon began to arrive.”

The twisted young man who perpetrated this evil upon the people of Omaha should never have been allowed to be near a weapon. But he was. Mr. and Mrs. Maruca-Kovac must have known that he had been “kicked out” of his parent’s home. They knew that he was a deeply troubled young man. Did they know that he had threatened to kill his step-mother and was sent to a mental institution? They should have known that such a person should not have access to firearms. Why did they not take this weapon, and call the authorities?

Misplaced Sympathy

Mrs. Maruca-Kovac said on the “Early Show”, “I feel so sorry for him, that he was so lost and alone that he had to resort to this.” This is an unfortunate public utterance. I have zero sympathy for the wretched murderer, but a great deal of sympathy for the victims and their families.

Warning Signs and Access to Weapons

Only two weeks ago a former female friend of the killer told KETV news that Hawkins had threatened her and her family. “Mandy said Hawkins had threatened her and her family as recently as two weeks ago. She said one message threatened to shoot her if she didn’t stop bad-mouthing Hawkins.” The assault rifle used in the attack was owned by his stepfather, and apparently stolen from him. This very same rifle was seen in his possession the evening before the murders by his friend’s mom (and host) Mrs. Maruca-Kovac. And yet she neither confiscated the weapon nor contacted the authorities. Shouldn’t the host family have taken some action to separate this clearly confused and bitter young man (with a long criminal history and mental health problems) from this or any weapon?

Obtuseness and Death

In so many of these horrible cases those close to the murderer are unaware of their ownership of, or access to, weapons. This is not the case here. What is the responsibility of a mature person in our society when they know that an unbalanced person (someone who had made violent threats against his own step-mother) owns a weapon or can obtain one readily? Is responsibility negated when the observer is unaware of the true nature of the person involved, or simply chooses not to see it? The killer was living under her roof for a year, how could she not have known?

Mrs. Maruka-Kovac is quoted on KETV’s website as having said yesterday after hearing of the murders, “‘I had a sick feeling when I heard about it,” she said. “I can’t believe he would go this far. He was a good-hearted kid. He was just going through some rough times.’”

The wrongness of this statement is self-evident. Deconstructing it completely unnecessary. Some knew this young man for what he was, and what he was capable of, while others were apparently utterly oblivious. Do those so close yet so apparently obtuse carry any responsibility for this crime?

Heading Toward a Total Break

Mrs. Maruca-Kovac is quoted on YahooNews today describing Hawkins as someone who “helped out all the time”. Was she seeing him for what he was, or what she hoped and wanted him to be? The authorities knew of him due to his felony drug conviction in March of 2005, and a disorderly conduct charge later that same year. He was facing a court appointment later this month on contributing to the delinquency of a minor charge. This is not a person who is “good”, or “kind-hearted”.

Despite Hawkins’ troubled recent history, and his pending court hearing (which she may not have been aware of, we just don’t know yet), she did not confiscate the rifle that she saw in his possession in her own home the evening prior to the attack, nor did she contact the authorities about it. “But Maruca-Kovak saw nothing foreshadowing the horror Hawkins would inflict during his last moments alive. She remembered a gentle young man who loved animals. She regarded him so benignly that when he showed her an SKS semiautomatic rifle the night before his attack, she thought little of it, the Omaha World-Herald reported.”

This was not a gentle young man, obviously. Can we blame people for lack of insight, for a failure of character judgment at a critical moment? Can we judge them for their inability to judge others? Because the murderer was a guest in her home, and a friend of her family, there must be some accountability that society can demand for the fact that she allowed this broken, cowardly, morally empty young murderous man a place in her home and at her table and allowed him to retain a weapon in her home. If nothing had happened in Omaha we would never have heard of Mrs. Maruca-Kovak and her wretched house guest.

As quoted in the local press, and by her own admission, she thought nothing of the rifle in the young man’s possession. Two days ago, she could forget about the rifle, dismiss it from her mind and go about her business, and the poor pathetic coward who supposedly loved animals but clearly hated himself and human beings.

The Obtuse Experts Weigh In - What Can be Done? They say Nothing Can Be Done. I Totally Disagree

Some obtuse so-called experts suggest doing nothing, in fact that there is nothing anybody can do. Sometimes, well, things like this just happen, they suggest.

Observe: “‘This is not something that anybody can reasonably anticipate,’ said Don Greene, a former FBI agent who has written a book on mall security.” This is unacceptable. Doing nothing and simply waiting for the murderer to kill himself or run out of ammunition is a failure of imagination and completely irresponsible. This concept that we are utterly powerless in the face of evil is ridiculous and offensive. A first step is to get armed security personnel into every mall in the United States, and quickly. But the experts have their negative opinions on this suggestion as well.

There are 1,200 enclosed malls in the United States and about 50,000 shopping centers. Although some include police sub-stations, most are patrolled by unarmed private mall and store security guards.

Should these private security guards be armed? “Absolutely not,” said Greene. Greene said if a security officer were to pull a gun on an armed individual in a mall, it could result in ‘the gunfight at the ‘OK corral,’ and then we might have 23 people killed instead of eight.’”

More do-nothing utter nonsense.

The concept of fighting armed criminals and murderers with complete inactivity,  flight/hiding being the only apparent acceptable (to them) response is beyond unacceptable.

We Have Air Marshals - Empower Mall Marshals NOW! 

We have Air Marshals on every American aircraft. The Air Marshal has a concealed weapon, is properly trained, and will use his/her weapon if the aircraft is threatened by armed lunatics. Every time I fly commercial I am heartened to know that there is at least one armed “good guy/gal” on the aircraft.

We need now in this country a program of Mall Marshals. Every mall in the USA should have at least one properly trained security guard armed with a concealed weapon onsite during open hours. Imagine how this nightmare may have turned out if the assailant had known there were at least one armed officer in the mall. Perhaps he wouldn’t have gone there. Perhaps it would not have happened? We can never know. Cowards don’t go places where they know they will likely be confronted. These mass murders are acts of cowards, cowards hate confrontation, and they will not go to places where they may be challenged or readily stopped. We must take action, responsive and preventative. We must make changes now.

We Need a Solution Immediately - Air Marshals to Mall Marshals

We need to create a “Mall Marshal” program as soon as possible so that killers like Hawkins will hesitate (and perhaps reconsider) before they ever consider such a course again. This program is a preventative one, to stop such events before they happen - and to provide some recourse in the event that they do. It is time that we protect our public spaces and ourselves. Attacking an unguarded mall is simply too easy for psychopaths. It seems not a difficult matter to me to empower a trained security officer to carry a concealed weapon to protect the public and employees in these facilities.

Doing nothing in the face of these mass killings is not acceptable. The reality of the solution is simple, but finding the political will in our society to implement it is quite another matter. There is too much at stake to do nothing.

Infamy is an Ugly Fame 

Hawkins the murderer wrote the other day in his pre-murder-spree note, “Now I’ll be famous”. His friend’s mom is now also famous. It’s an ugly kind of fame, infamy. They both have the attention of the country, but for all the wrong reasons.