Since when do people who assault another person, who is unarmed, escape justice? I am appalled at how the whole situation turned out. It was totally a hate crime and the family of the children will receive God's justice in the end.

This case shocks me. It is very obvious that this family used vigilante justice and should be prosecuted for this beating.

I believe that from the facts of the case there are two overriding factors that require the prosecutors to not file. First and foremost, there was justification in this that goes well beyond vigilantism. The parents of the children were protecting them and were not required to wait for police help in rendering assistance to children tat were in obvious danger. If they are not your children, do not bring them into your home.
Second, the family will be sympathetic because there will be a bias against a homosexual unlawfully taking custody of children. It isn't fair but perception is difficult to get over. The jury will say its unbiased but the LDS culture frowns on homosexuals and there is a perception that such are unfit with young children. Whether true or not, its the perception.
The man should file his civil case against the family for his injuries and see if he can get some recovery for his injuries.

Good point, ceg. Thanks for making it.

I don't care where you stand on sexual orientation. It's irrelevant. This whole thing just stinks. I don't know what the DA knows that we don't know, but it sure seems like there should be assault charges brought up on these vigilantes.

Why is it that when ever a "gay" person gets beat down its a hate crime.

The point here is that the guy took the kids into his house without permission, and he got the beat down he deserved.

I would as him how he would feel if it were his kids that were taken from the home but...

I've got a feeling this is a big misunderstanding the kids were in no harm. Wait and watch. All parties involved will be called out fro making bad decisions.
1st, parents of children will be shown to be neglectful of kids resulting in them leaving the house.
2nd, gay couple made bad choice bringing kids in the house, (though if it was a straight couple it would not have been).
3rd, Parents in hindsight made bad choice by beating gay couple.
4th, procecution dropped ball assuming they had the story right.
Just wait and see.

1. Perhaps there should be more on possible neglect by the parents of their children. Maybe the children are telling the truth.
2. Vigilante justice or justifiable defnse of the family--which is it when you threaten the victims and let them know your family will be back to get you?
3-it's a hate crime, pure and simple.
4- While I don't approve of their lifestyle, that's my choice, they have been targeted by many people and judged unfairly because of their sexual preferences and, perhaps, physical appearance. I thught we'd moved beyond that, people.

The parents were polynesians, a minority. Remember there are some cultural differences (which does not excuse rash behavior but may help explain it). They had every right to recover their children, but they should have called the police.

While Mr. Fair may have had nothing to do with bringing the kids into the house, he was complicit by his actions (or lack of actions), which means if it is a kidnapping he could be considered an accomplice. No ball was dropped. He is free to pursue civil action should he wish to do so.

Religion has nothing to do with this issue.

Whether being gay had anything to do with the parents actions remains to be discovered, but being gay has nothing to do with their treatment under the law.

Gay or straight - it is a very bad decision to bring kids into your home without parental knowledge and concent.

This is bananas!.. This family should of definately been charged w/ felony assault!! This was a hate crime all the way, from previous stories on this, the kids were all ready safe at their own home, when this family went over, broke into these peoples home, and assaulted them. This shows how truly bad Utah's system is biased against minorities!!

The beating took place after the kids had already been taken back to their home! The vigilantes should be charged to the full extent of the law, and Lohra Miller's office is being cowardly. If this was an election year for her, her opponent ought to be out there saying she was soft on crime - because she is.

It don't matter if your gay or str8,or the color of your skin. That family had no right to beat anyone up. The first thing that should have been done is,the family should have been asking Bell & Fair qustions. Why were the kids in the house, what were they doing. Then if you think something bad was going on, CALL THE POLICE & WAIT FOR THE POLICE. What did the kids say happened?

This behavior would have been prosecuted anywhere. Doesn't the physical force used have to be reasonable in light of the circumstances? The parents reaction was WAY over the top - this appears to have been an enraged, mob/gang beating.

The family should have called the police and insisted that charges be pressed. Instead, they beat these men mercilessly - after the children were clearly safe! The prosecuter should be investigated for failing his/her duties and probably be fired.

It is not appropriate to engage in vigilante justice when the threat has passed. Had the beatings occurred during the retrieval of the children, when perhaps some doubt existed as to the well-being of the children, or whether or not they were being restrained against their will, then MAYBE the violence would have been justifiable. But delivering the beatings AFTER the children had been retrieved is not justifiable...the police should have been called to sort everything out, and what happened there is a crime. The race/sexual orientation of both the perpetrators and the victims is irrelevant. A crime is a crime, and these beatings were NOT justified under the law, despite the fact that Lohra Miller and her office don't seem to understand that.

What crime was committed first? Kidnapping. I don't care if they're gay or straight. This idiot was beat up for kidnapping someone's children.

This isn't a hate crime. This is a family's anger at a neighbor for kidnapping and possibly sexually abusing their children. Heaven knows how mad I'd be.

As I have said previously, there appears to be ample evidence for charges against almost all the parties involved, the children and, apparently, Mr. Fair excepted. From Mr. Bell to the relatives of the children to the prosecutorial authorities. They all appear to have reasons to worry.

I hope everyone will take a deep breath and let the broader legal system do its job. It worked in the case of the FLDS seizures and I think it will work in this case.

I believe the children were away from thier own home very late at night and Mr. Neighbor took them in. The parent came and got the kids thne the family returned and severally beat the gentlemen. No kids in danger at this point. Culture/nationality/sexual orientation has nothing to do with this. The law is you don't take children so charge the man and give him his day in court. The law says you don't beat up anyone(period)arrest the beaters and let them have thier day in court.
Now as to the prosecutors, you are supposed to be unbiased up holders of the law. Since you have chosen to be judge and jury you should be removed from office. If Utah really does believe in the law it has put on the books then Utah should do the right thing ie the morally right thing and try both cases and let a jury of thier peers decide if a law has been broken and the punishment due.
Of course I am a religious person who thinks that homosexuality is wrong, but I think the bigger wrong was the family who beat these gentlemen without cause. the kids were safe already.jmho

Of course it is a hate crime. After all the guy was beaten with a "ornate salt shaker." No such item would be found in the home of a stright guy.

You should know better to mess with Polynesian kids! Your messing with the whole family.

Which crimes are <i>not</i> hate crimes?

I thought one story said that "Mr Gay" went into the neighbors home and took the kids? If that were the case I think they got off easy. I don't think I would, no could have stopped beating them. But yes I think they can try a civil cass and get a jury trial, but it will be tainted.

I don't know what everyone is arguing about, this isn't a hate crime, I don't care who you are, what color your are, what sexual orientation you are. If you took my kids you would get a beat down, and probably the wrong end of my shotgun.

Some people HATE it when other people take their kids. Bell isn't telling the truth and Fair needs to get away from him and move on to better companions. Bell is only going to be in the media again for pulling crap. I hope this wakes him up but seeing how he's getting media attention he will play this card as far as he can and if he can drag Fair down with him then he'll keep going.

Ditto achick47

In civil society you don't take the law into your own hands. Period. The severity of this man's beating makes it OBVIOUS that this was more than self defense on the behalf of the children.

If the DA is cool with citizens doling out mob justice, then why do we even need a DA? Why do we even need a legal system for that matter?

SLC seems to have a number of things going on where the police and other authorities simply are not there to protect and serve. The last incident was the drive-by shooting of a child. I would say that some citizen justice was in store there. While the facts of this particular situation are cloudy at best, there is no reason to bring little children into your home like this. You could have walked around the neighborhood asking at different homes where these kids belonged and these two people would have been heros. I am also sick and tired of hearing either the race card or gay/lesbian card played in every situation. For someone who took these kids into their home rather than trying to find the parents is an absolute mistake. They are lucky the beating was not worse. This had nothing to do with either race or sexual orientation. There are simply things that you do not do and this guy found out about one of them. Leave it alone and let these people resolve the issue.

Taking kids - wrong
Beating people that took them - wrong
Calling it a hate crime - wrong
Stupidity on all sides - RIGHT
Let's not turn everything into a gay issue

Only in Utah. Whether or not there should be kidnapping charges is irrelevent in what I have to say. So let me make sure I've got this right... the parents went next door, found and took their children home, then came came back and beat these two men (one who was sleeping and had absolutely NOTHING to do with the incident!. They don't go to jail? Are you kidding me?! Of course, it's not a hate crime. Being gay has nothing to do with it but a crime it is. You can't accuse someone of something, rightfully so or not, and then beat them up before the police get there. AND get away with it!! Run, people of Utah! RUN! It doesn't sound like you live in the United States of America to me. I would be sitting at the prosecuter's office day and night if I lived there. Thank heavens I don't. Oh, by the way-file a civil suit. Those people should lose everything they have.

There has to be more to this story. The kids are in the house, I don't care if you're homosexual or not a parent will go balistic. I would have done the same thing.

The fact that the victim doesn't see this as apparent makes it seem either that he's not very smart, or there's a part of the story that isn't being told.

The only minorities in this case are the polys. Homosexuals are not a minority.

Mr. Fair, two words, CIVIL SUIT

The one thing I remember about this was that the person accused of kidnapping, entered the home of the children and took them. If that is the case, then I can see why the children's families were so upset. The Polynesions should have called the police instead of taking care of it themselves, but it would be hard not to do what they did.

Gay or straight, you take my child from our home and I would be wanting to take matters into my own hands.

Obviously there is more to the story. Bell supporters keep saying that the children walked over to the house. When if fact, Mr. Bell admitted to the detective that he took the children to his house, he knew he shouldn't have because it was not his place. That is direct evidence, admitted into the recent court hearing (not heresay). If there is evidence to the contrary, why didn't the defense attorney put it on? He had every chance to put on witnesses just like the DA had but HE chose not to. Also, "sitting at the prosecuter's office day and night" or protesting at the court house will not influence the legal system nor should it. Could you imagine if they based their legal decisions on who had the better picket signs. Let the system work. If the case against Bell is so weak he should have no problems with a trial.

How absurd to believe that a straight couple would have escaped retribution. That family absolutely broke the letter of the law by attacking these two after the kids were safely removed, but there isn't a jury in America that would have convicted them. I suspect the DA realized that and decided to drop the matter.

We can be sure that the worst thoughts in the world were going through the minds of the parents in the few minutes after their children were recovered. Any reasonable person would have believed their child had been molested if they were taken from their bed in the middle of the night and found crying in a neighbors bedroom. Even if nothing happened, the victims should have had the sense to understand the gravity and sheer stupidity of what they had done and left, or if they were innocent, called the police immediately themselves.

The public is still waiting for the justification from this couple for why he felt it was ok to take the kids in the first place.

Lost in this discussion; I'll bet this has at least served as a warning to others; you don't touch other people's children.

If you find a child wandering around - you take him back to his parents when you find him. If you're the parents, and you find the child in another person's home, you call the cops. You do NOT take the law into your own hands.
Both parties are guilty here.
Both should share equal responsibility for the problems caused. Both should be punished for the crimes committed.
End of story.

Roger:

Way to keep tainting the jruy pool! Good luck.

When the family members start to use objects, that mean's they used weapons against another person. Vigilante law is illegal, and they should be punished. How would the majority in the state like it if, I had a gang that rode up on horses, riped people out of their homes, beat them and then tar & feathered the person... Oh wait, that type of vigilante violence already happened to the majority here.

I guess it's alright if it continues just not to the majority now... How times change.

Wrong is wrong, no matter who the victim is.

Mr. Fair: May I suggest that you contact an attorney and sue those who beat you up. You could end up with all of their homes because they deserve to lose them for taking the law into their hands and beat up somebody. Even if you were guilty of a crime, they had no right to beat you up. And since you were not guilty of a crime, you should have no problem winning a lawsuit. In a civil case, you don't even need to prove your case beyond a reasonable doubt.

Okay, Mr. Person. Sitting at the prosecuter's office is only meant to bring attention to an injustice and an inept prosecutor's office. And by the way, the system hasn't worked; that's the whole point. Mr. Fair and Mr. Bell-Take your story to the national news-Good Morning, America/Today Show. That'll get someone's attention.

Person said: "When if fact, Mr. Bell admitted to the detective that he took the children to his house, he knew he shouldn't have because it was not his place"

If two kids are at your door and you let them in for a moment that does not mean you kidnaped them. He is a gay man and he knows he should have never been stupid enough to allow kids in the house. Again - NOT KIDNAPING! Just because he admitted to them coming into the home and admitting that he shouldn't have done it - does not mean kidnaping.

The court hearing was for the prosecution to put on their side - not the defense. The defense will put on a case when the time is right.

All this aside - the kids were out of the home and the doors were locked. When is it ever okay to break in to an innocent persons house and beat them? Fair woke up to the Woman screaming - he had no involvement in the alleged kidnaping.

There is a reason that vigilante justice is illegal. People make assumptions without all the facts. Innocent until PROVEN guilty.

Does Mr. Fair know how the children are doing? If he was supposedly asleep...it seems he would have no idea whether the parents found worrisome signs by which they were provoked after they took the children back next door.

Most or all homes have a "public" room often called a living room where guests or refugees of parties next door of every age can be accommodated. Small children fit well enough in chairs and sofas...I can't get rid of the problematic picture of them being heard by the mom and found nextdoor in THE BEDROOM AND CRYING!

If the family of the children was so concerned, why did they go over and beat the crap out of them instead of calling the police? The police were called by the ALLEGED kidnapper. Also.. if it weren't a concern that they were gay... why did they beat up only David James Bell and his partner and not any of the other 3 adults who were there??

Even if beating the one guy that knew the kids were in the house was justified, the partner didn't know or have anything to do with the kids being there.

The neighboors should be prosecuted for beating him. In either case that guy should sue the people who beat him and get a very hefty sum,

As several people have correctly noted, the children were home when the family returned to Bell's house, broke in, and beat the occupants to a pulp.

However, I disagree that they were "safe" at home. A family that drinks and parties all night long until 6:30 in the morning--without watching their kids--and then breaks into a house with the admitted intent to beat up the neighbors, is not a "safe" place for any child.

re: Anonymous @ 3:49pm.

Innocent until PROVEN guilty? Not in Utah - especially Utah County. When it comes to court cases associated with child abuse, no matter what the evidence is of your innocence, you're automatically guilty. I know of a person who's defense attorney didn't even want to work his case, and was told that because he's in Utah, he'd lose the case, so he shoul plea bargin. He was as innocent as could be, but by plea bargining, he's now a registered sex offender and is serving a year in jail and when he gets out, will have to live in a group home for a year.

What was the evidence against him? Not knowing he could legally leave at anytime, and knowing he was innocent, he waived his rights and was interrogated for 5 hours and forced to admit to some minor non-sexual infraction so he could go home.

Only in Utah! Utah's reputation is known throughout the country. This may give you some insight as to why the DA in Mr. Fair's case, is doing absolutely nothing.

If two gay men took my children into their bedroom, I would give them a beating too. I would do the same to a straight man. Only with a woman would I not do it, because they really can't abuse children sexually.

I don't think this is about them being gay. I think it's about them being MEN and having other people's children in their house and in their bedroom.

Perhaps he got beat down more than he deserved, but how much do you deserve for stupidity? It's a judgement call.... At least he'll think twice before taking children into his house without parental permission...

To Sally:
Again you claim that you want to bring attention to an injustice and an inept prosecutor's office. This means you are trying to influence the legal system that did work. Also, if the inept prosecutor got Mr. Bell bound over what does that say about his defense attorney.
To Anonymous 3:19
Mr. Bell admitted that he TOOK the kids, not that he just let them in. And the hearing is for both sides to put on evidence, not just the DA. It is ridiculous to think that if the defense had a witness that could testify at the pre lim that he/she saw the kids knocking on Mr. Bell's door that night that he could not call him to testify. You honestly think the judge would say no, you have to wait for trial. All this aside, the facts are no one saw the kids knocking on Mr. Bell's door (this is a story that Mr. Bell made up to cover his guilt). And trust me YOU are making assumptions without knowing all of the facts because you nor I know what the prosecution knows.

I don't believe this case has anything to do with whether or not David Bell and Mr. Fair being gay.

Mr. Bell had NO BUSINESS taking the children into his bedroom. It does not matter if he was gay or straight. A man has no business taking someone else's children into his bedroom. Mr. Bell was asking for trouble by doing so.

Did some of you even read this article before posting your comments? It is about Mr. Fair--not Mr. Bell.

By ALL accounts (even those guilty of the assault), Mr. Fair had NOTHING to do with the children and had absolutely no idea they were at the home. He awoke to a woman yelling and minutes later he had a TV smashed into his head! That is a felony assault by any standard of the law. The DA's office keeps saying they have "no evidence" that an assault took place. Look (if you can stomach it) at the pictures of Mr. Fair after this felony assault and see if you can pass this horrific crime off as lacking evidence.

realitycheck wrote:

"Only with a woman would I not do it, because they really can't abuse children sexually."

When is the last time you listened to the news? Have you not heard of the rampant female teacher sex scandals across the nation. Sex scandals involving female teachers violating children or minors, far exceeds the priest scandals, and are of a much greater frequency.

That said, I too would have a hard time with anyone taking my little children into their home, without permission, late at night. I would hardly acknowledge a child's "hello" while walking down the street, let alone put myself in that kind of trouble. What were they thinking?

This "couple's" story stinks! They are most likely guilty. This is not prejudice speaking, but truth, and experience. If THEY are not prosecuted, that is the real travesty.

This was a hate crime. We HATE it when pedophiles kidnap kids. The perv got what he deserved.

I know this man David Bell and his family personally, have for over 10 years. He is an INNOCENT MAN! I cannot believe that charges have not been filed against those who beat him and his partner Dan Fair. That in and of itself IS A CRIME!