In case you missed it, the news and talk shows have been on fire today over the Ray Rice debacle. Outraged pundits from MSNBC, CBS, CNN, and ESPN are calling for the heads of everyone involved, including Rice, the NFL Commissioner, the Raven’s GM, and the Raven’s head coach. (Fox News prefers to blame the victim for not taking the stairs).
The source of this outrage is a video of Rice cold-cocking his then fiancé, Janay in an elevator. Apparently the previous video of Rice cavalierly dragging her lifeless body of out of the elevator like a sack of garbage, dumping her on the floor, and doing nothing to help her was not enough to conclude that the man is a thug.
Meanwhile, a prominent Alabama judge has been charged with the savage beating of his wife in a hotel room. The media response? Crickets
Follow me over the orange squiggle for the details:
From the Associated Press
The wife of a federal judge arrested earlier this week on suspicion of hitting her told emergency dispatchers that she was being beaten and needed an ambulance.
U.S. District Judge Mark Fuller, meanwhile, has been stripped of his case load in the Middle District of Alabama as he stands charged with misdemeanor domestic battery in a Georgia court.
In a recording of a 911 call obtained by The Associated Press, the woman who dialed authorities identified herself as Kelli Fuller and reported that she was involved in a domestic dispute at the Ritz Carlton in downtown Atlanta.
"He's beating on me. Please help me," the woman tells the 911 dispatcher before saying that she needed paramedics.
About a minute into the call, as the initial dispatcher patches an ambulance dispatcher into the call, the woman identified as Kelli Fuller, 41, can be heard saying 'I hate you, I hate you." A male voice responds: "I hate you too" followed by dull noises in the background.
The woman's voice can be heard loudly repeating: "Help me, please. Please help me. He's beating on me."
The initial dispatcher tells the ambulance dispatcher: "She says that she's in a domestic fight and I can hear him hitting her now."
According to a written incident report, Kelli Fuller "answered the door in tears" when police arrived. She had visible cuts on her mouth and forehead when police arrived. She was treated at the hotel by paramedics but refused to be taken to a hospital.
Police say the judge was on the bed when they entered the room, which smelled of alcohol. There was broken glass and hair on the floor. Blood was discovered in the bathroom.
So who is this judge? Mark Fuller, a former district attorney in southwest Alabama, was nominated by President George W. Bush in 2002 upon the recommendation of Alabama Sens. Richard Shelby and Jeff Sessions, both Republicans. He was famously (or infamously) known as the judge who presided over the trial of former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman, a trial that reeked of partisanship. He is a well known friend, if not a full-fledged member, of the Sons of the Confederacy.
But while the media, including every TV outlet, newpapers, websites, and blogs have been whipped into a frenzy over the Ray Rice story, there has been nary a word about the conduct of Judge Fuller.
That Ray Rice committed a despicable act is beyond question, and he is deserving of the public scorn and humiliation he is receiving. But why is a Federal judge who beats his wife given a pass by the same media that is busy crucifying Rice? Do we live in a society where we hold our football players to a higher standard than our Federal judges?