Eric Hainstock Gets His Day in Court

The "Free Eric Hainstock" and "Justice for Juveniles" contingents are gearing up for the trial of Eric Hainstock.

It's been almost a year since he committed murder. Since then, his supporters have rallied to his defense.

The Hainstock apologists are particularly upset that he's being tried as an adult. Some view his experience in the justice system as just another abuse. They think that a grave injustice is being done to the troubled Hainstock.

Well finally, Hainstock's trial for the murder of Weston High School Principal John Klang will begin.

He's getting his day in court.

Jury selection takes place today and possibly opening arguments in what's expected to be a seven day trial.

BARABOO, Wis -- Nearly a year after a 16-year-old shot and killed his principal, jurors will be asked to decide if he was a bullied, immature child or a murderer bent on revenge.

Eric Hainstock is charged with first-degree murder and is being tried as an adult in the shooting death of Weston Schools Principal John Klang. If convicted, he could face life in prison. Hainstock's trial was to begin Thursday.

According to a criminal complaint, Hainstock told detectives he took guns to Weston the morning of Sept. 29 because he was upset that Klang and other school officials had done nothing to stop fellow students from teasing him. He told investigators he wanted to make people listen to him.

...Sauk County District Attorney Pat Barrett has portrayed Hainstock as a selfish liar who reacts violently whenever adults tell him what to do. He is expected to introduce evidence at the trial that in the two weeks leading up to the shooting, Hainstock threw a stapler at a teacher and a book at a student, saying "I am going to laugh when everyone in this school gets hurt."

Hainstock's attorneys, public defenders Rhoda Ricciardi and Jon Helland, have said Hainstock was bullied and that teachers looked the other way.

It's easy to imagine how this trial will go.

The prosecution will paint Hainstock as an individual capable of making choices, a killer who carried out a premeditated plan.

The defense will counter that by showing Hainstock to be such a troubled, abused child that he became incapable of making proper choices.

The trial will boil down to this: Was Hainstock a victim?

He was a 15-year-old when he shot John Klang THREE times.

Was this the act of a mixed up kid?

Was this cold-blooded murder?

While I have sympathy for Hainstock's difficult home life and condemn the cruelty of bullies at school, I have difficulty accepting the notion that he should get a pass when it comes to killing Klang.

He was old enough to understand the consequences of his actions. He was old enough to understand what it means to murder.

Only a sociopath responds to personal pain by taking away the lives of others.

Let the facts be presented to the jury. Let Hainstock have a fair trial.

Many, many kids suffer in bad homes. Many, many kids endure merciless bullying day in and day out. Very, very few decide that the appropriate response is to go to school and kill someone.

Was Eric Hainstock a victim?

Yes, he was.

Did that, in turn, give him license to victimize?

No.

This trial really isn't about whether Hainstock committed the crime. It's about determining the extent to which he was responsible for what he did and finding an appropriate punishment to fit the crime.

That's what the jury will have to decide.

Let justice be done.