Comments on: Runaway Bride Jennifer Wilbanks Pleads ‘No Contest’ to Felony

By: Jeanne

Jeanne — Thu, 16 Jun 2005 23:23:29 +0000

I would say that accepting a half-million dollars for her story puts Jennifer out of the "this poor woman" catagory, which she was never in considering that her family was the richest in town. Feel sorry for someone who deserves it. Jennifer had the benefit of parental guidance, health insurance, and the best medical care available. She's nothing but a 2-time convicted criminal for shoplifting, and now she's profiting on a costly legal prefabricated tale to avoid a wedding. This is what comes of indulging your children - NOTE to her parents.

By: John Rogersen

John Rogersen — Fri, 03 Jun 2005 15:23:47 +0000

What will be accomplished is that a crime will be justly punished.

Secondarily, perhaps other wackjob brides (or *anyone* who is tempted to concoct a wild story to attempt to cover up the real reason they did something) will perhaps be less likely to do the same thing while lying to the police, and causing a great waste of time and money at taxpayers' expense.

To let her completely off with no consequences would be the much greater crime. Sure, she apparently has mental dysfunction; this felony conviction and probation is probably a fitting sentence, but it's folly to believe the slate should be wiped clean. How would you like it if someone you love suffered from the lack of police availability because so many resources were in use looking for JW?

By: Diggers Realm

Diggers Realm — Fri, 03 Jun 2005 13:03:07 +0000

Jennifer Wilbanks Pleads No Contest, Gets Off Without Accepting Responsibility

Jennifer Wilbanks, the "Runaway Bride", pleaded no contest and escaped being forced to accept personal responsibility for her actions. Sure she -- read her family -- will pay $13,250 to Duluth for some of their expenses requiring them to...

By: Richard Gardner

Richard Gardner — Thu, 02 Jun 2005 19:01:29 +0000

So she is now going to be a felon, and her right to vote is revoked. What is accomplished here?

By: FredW

FredW — Thu, 02 Jun 2005 17:04:00 +0000

Yes, but 98% (or more) of the expense incured was before any police report was filed. If she had just shown up in ABQ and said "I needed a break" then just as much money would have been spent and no ccrime would have been committed. If this had happened in a suburb of Columbus,OH it would have been less of a deal. But since it was in CNN's backyard they paid particular attention to it.

By: James Joyner

James Joyner — Thu, 02 Jun 2005 16:17:01 +0000

Well, for starters, smoking and drinking alcohol are not crimes; filing a false police report is.

By: David Caskey

David Caskey — Thu, 02 Jun 2005 16:15:10 +0000

I was looking over some medical records on indigent patients when I began to consider the plight of this poor woman. She is obviously sick and her illness cost the taxpayer $40,000+. Yet as I look at the records in front of me, these people are indigent patients that are being placed in the hospital over and over again predominently because of their desire to smoke, use drugs and not follow any simblance of modifying their high risk lives for illness. The average hospitalization cost the taxpayer $40,000+. So what is the difference in the patients I see daily, versus this poor, sick woman??