There isn’t definitive evidence that the media-hyped “knockout game” is even real, but lawmakers are still enacting legislation that will give longer jail sentences to those accused of participating.
Legislators in at least four states have responded to reports of the assaults with proposals to increase penalties and jail time for defendants.
Problem is, the maybe-fake game is implicating mostly black perpetrators with white victims, turning the assaults into hate crimes — and extending prison sentences for a marginalized community already suffering from hyper-incarceration.
According to Think Progress:
Bills in New York, New Jersey, and Oklahoma are geared specifically at punishing those who participate in the “Knockout Game” — a purported game played mostly by young people who try to knock out a stranger out in one punch, which has perpetuated media portrayals of mostly black perpetrators with white victims. Legislators in Pennsylvania are also discussing a bill to create a new intermediate assault charge in response to “Knockout” reports.
These bills propose increased jail time and mandatory minimum sentences for crimes that are associated with the knock-out game, and also would subject juveniles to adult sentencing. Text of the bills is not yet available, but descriptions suggest that defendants who would otherwise be charged with another type of assault would be punished more harshly purely for their association with the so-called “Knock-out Game.” In New York, those who committed an act that jibes with perceptions of the game would be charged with a Class D felony rather than a Class B felony, meaning sentences are ratcheted up from a range of 4 to 15 years to one of 5 to 25 years.
Those who are associated but not the assaulters are subject to Class D felony charges. They include individuals who may have “egged on” the assailant or videotaped the assault.
Police in many states are still questioning whether the assaults are part of a coordinated game, or random. So the authenticity of the game, well, the jury is still out on that one.
Is the knockout game real or fake? Sound off below.
SOURCE: Think Progress | PHOTO CREDIT: Getty
