On the surface, Brian Todd Davis, 21, of Spokane, committed a hate crime when he caused a 17-year-old girl to fall into a bonfire at a North Idaho kegger July 27.

Davis is accused of saying “Jews burn” before he either tossed Bonners Ferry High student Ilaura Fleck into a bonfire or dropped her onto a nearby log from which she fell into one on Katka Mountain in Boundary County. Davis reportedly said his victim was Jewish because her father was Catholic and her mother Muslim. His logic was as ignorant as his crime was hateful. However, he won’t face jail time. He received a wrist-slap sentence that outraged human rights activists.

Incomprehensibly, 1st District Magistrate Debra Heise, of Sandpoint, brokered a plea bargain in which Davis pleaded guilty to misdemeanor battery rather than aggravated battery, a felony that carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison. Heise threatened to dismiss the charges, allegedly telling Boundary County Prosecutor Jack Douglas that “boys will be boys.” She sentenced Davis to 20 days on a work detail and ordered him to pay his victim’s medical bills.

The sentence was woefully inadequate, regardless of whether Davis’ actions and comments meet the criteria for a hate crime. A teenage girl suffered first- and second-degree burns on her legs, arm and buttocks and faces extensive reconstructive surgery as a result of the thuggish assault. Heise’s dismissive attitude toward this heinous crime raises serious questions about her judgment. So does her decision that a hate crime didn’t occur because the victim wasn’t Jewish. The favorable treatment given the witness by local law officers and a possible conflict of interest involving the defense attorney raise more questions.

One thing is certain – Ilaura Fleck was denied justice.

With or without the hate-crime element, these facts remain, according to a Spokesman-Review article by reporter Bill Morlin:

“Fleck and her family discussed a possible civil action against Davis with Sandpoint attorney Todd Reed before Davis hired Bryce W. Powell, another attorney in the same Sandpoint firm, to defend him. In a complaint filed with the Idaho Bar Association, Fleck’s father, Joe, said: “The conflict of interest, from my point of view, is that the law firm gained the information it needed to fight the defendant’s criminal trial from the victim’s family.”

“Boundary County Prosecutor Jack Douglas filed felony charges only after being pressured for two months by Joe Fleck.

“Although Heise accepted a defense witness’s account that Davis dropped Ilaura Fleck on a log and that she then fell into the fire, other witnesses said Davis threw the teen into the fire.

“Heise declared that Davis did not commit a hate crime although she admitted his words were “hate-filled.”

Unfortunately, Heise has fueled speculation by refusing to discuss her decision afterward or verify the statement attributed to her in chambers that “boys will be boys.” During the proceedings, however, the judge said something similar when she dismissed Davis’ thuggish acts as a youthful indiscretion, fueled by alcohol. Neither Davis nor local law officers would comment either.

Davis’ own words indicate he thought his victim was Jewish. Regardless of whether Davis was drunk, he conveyed a clear hatred for Jews as his motivation. Perception was reality. Human rights activist Marshall Mend correctly said: “It’s a hate crime whether she’s Jewish or not.”

The strange handling of this case shows North Idaho has a way to go on the human rights front.