Vigilante Mom in Prison in Alleged Abuser's Death

A Florida woman reported to prison Thursday to begin finishing a 10-year sentence for killing a man she believed had molested her daughter.

Sylvia Neeley, now 48, admits killing Arthur Danner, 73, of Dade City, Fla., more than a decade ago, The St. Petersburg Times said.

Three months earlier, Neeley had reported to authorities that she believed Danner, her next-door-neighbor, had molested her daughter, the paper said. The girl, who is mentally disabled, was 12 years old at the time. The Pasco County Sheriff's Office investigated, but did not find enough evidence to charge Danner.

On May 24, 1998, Danner boasted about molesting the girl and threatened to do it again, Neeley said. "Stoned on beer and painkillers," Neeley went to her home in Dade City's Land O'Lakes mobile home park, got her gun, then returned and fired at Danner's chest and groin, the paper said.

Neeley was convicted of the killing in 2000 but the verdict was later thrown out and a new trial was ordered. With a new trial coming up, she pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison, but will receive credit for the more than four years she already served, the Times said.

Before she headed back to prison, Neeley told the judge, "I'm very sorry for the crime I committed. I just felt like no one was helping my daughter."

Neeley's daughter, now 23, has been moved to a group home, the paper said.

For more information on this story, see The St. Petersburg Times.

Common Sense

Obituary of Common Sense

MY parents told me about Mr. Common Sense early in my life and told me I would do well to call on him when making decisions. It seems he was always around in my early years but less and less as time passed by. Today I read his obituary. Please join me in a moment of silence in remembrance, for Common Sense had served us all so well for so many generations.

Obituary
Common Sense

Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as knowing when to come in out of the rain, why the early bird gets the worm, life isn't always fair, and maybe it was my fault.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you earn) and reliable parenting strategies (adults, not children are in charge).

His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a six-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job they themselves failed to do in disciplining their unruly children. It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer Aspirin, sun lotion or a sticky plaster to a student, but could not inform the parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an abortion.

Common Sense lost the will to live as the Ten Commandments became contraband; churches became businesses; and criminals received better treatment than their victims. Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar can sue you for assault.

Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.

Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust; his wife, Discretion; his daughter, Responsibility; and his son, Reason. He is survived by three stepbrothers; I Know my Rights, Someone Else is to Blame, and I'm a Victim.

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone. If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing.