Nonoi's stepdad gets death sentence for murdering toddler (SUMISSION)

Link to article:
http://www.todayonline.com/articles/208768.asp

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Summary Of Article:

It's the gallows for Nonoi's stepfather Mohammed Ali Johari.

The High Court has sentenced the 31-year-old to death for killing two-year-old Nur Asyura Mohamed Fauzi, also known as Nonoi.

It was shown that the child was killed when Mohammed Ali dunked her in a pail of water three times last year. He also badly injured by him and her naked body was then dumped under the Aljunied Flyover.

The truth only came to light when Mohammed Ali confessed three days later to the police that he killed the child.

The defence had argued that Mohammed Ali was provoked by the little girl's non-stop wailing. But the judge dismissed the argument as evidence did not show that Mohammed Ali had lost self-control.

Mohd Ali’s family and lawyers say they will appeal against the verdict.


My Response:

Finally, a verdict has been given regarding this horrifying saga. And I believe that justice has been served in the best way possible; though Mohammed Ali Johari did not really get what he deserved.

What disturbs me most is not the murder itself but Mohd Ali’s maltreatment, or more accurately put, torture of 2-year old Nonoi. He kicked, punched and slapped her continuously before dunking her into a pail of water thrice. Post-mortem scans showed that her hymen had been broken and her vaginal wall ruptured. These injuries would obviously have caused her considerable bleeding and pain. Let me remind you that Nonoi was only 2 years of age.

What was being contented in court was whether Mohd Ali had committed this heinous act intentionally or accidentally. This would make a difference as the latter stance would save him from the death penalty and instead result in imprisonment. In my opinion though, death by the noose is a punishment that is favourable to Modh Ali, if you look at what he did to Nonoi.

An important principle of the “crime and punishment” concept is that for every crime, there is a punishment that matches it, with the criminal getting what he deserves. And if you look at it in this context, Mohd Ali has gotten off lightly. In her last few hours alive, Nonoi suffered greatly. To add insult to injury, her mutilated body was stripped of whatever dignity there was remaining as it was left to rot under a heap of rubbish. Now, compare that to the few seconds of pain Mohd Ali will undergo when he gets hanged, before he ends his drug-abusive, jobless and bankrupt life to live as a free man in eternal bliss. I feel that this is celestial treatment compared to what Nonoi was made to go through. How a person became so twisted in the mind as to treat a daughter-figure like that puzzles me. I’m not advocating for the torture of Mohd Ali as well; it will never happen due to our society being civilised and humane. So I suppose hanging him is the best punishment possible. All in all, I’m just lamenting the fact that no humane punishment could ever be enough to compensate for his wrong doings.

Anyway, I’m not too bitter about it; I realise that death by the noose is still better than life imprisonment, in which case people like you and I will be feeding him for life.

I feel very sorry for Nonoi’s family and of course, Nonoi. She didn’t have a good life, I suppose, if you look at her highly dysfunctional and chaotic family background. Her mother is only 22 and has already been married thrice, with her latest husband a drug addict and a few of her children from earlier marriages already delinquents. I hope her memory rests in peace and that no other two-year old will ever have to go through what Nonoi went through.