Tucked away in a tiny corner of the vast, sprawling and largely irrelevant world-wide web I found this small story of redemption. It happened in a little place called Gardnerville, Nevada, population 5,400. A 19-year-old who was living in his car at the time with two other people decided to paint the number 666 and draw satanic symbols on a few local churches. It happened on June 6, 2006. That was probably funny to drunk teens in the middle of the night (three other teens were also involved.)
Jonathon Walker received a suspended sentence of two years in jail for the crime and was ordered to serve 200 hours of community service and pay $7,000 in restitution. Walker also spent 22 days in jail and 35 days on house arrest following his arrest.
He sent apologies to the six churches damaged and wrote a letter to the community, which was published in the local paper.
Prosecutor Mike McCormick worried in 2006 that community service wouldn’t be enough of a deterrent for the vandal.
"We'll see if the (suspended) jail sentence is sufficient impetus to keep Mr. Walker on the straight and narrow," McCormick said.
Judge Michael Gibbons thought a little differently. He said the boy’s father had contacted law enforcement, leading to a break in the case. He also said the first-time offense had come as a surprise to the kid’s family, that he had already turned his life around, and according to his dad, "regained his faith and the support of church members," the judge said.
That was enough to convince Gibbons that the misguided kid might not be a menace any more. This week, just in time for Easter, Walker was honorably discharged from probation, more than a year ahead of his four-year term.
Theology on vandals
Consider the theology lesson from these two legal minds for a moment. On one side of the court we have the prosecutor. Granted his job pivots around putting away criminals. But the reason criminals stay out of trouble seems to rest on the severity of the punishment, according to this prosecutor.
On the other side of the court sits the judge. He’s no doubt seen the guilty and the innocent come and go. But he sees this case with what I consider to be a more Christian consideration for the defendant. I’m sure Walker’s age was a significant factor as well. But the fact that the judge had a letter from his father assuring the judge that the prodigal son had returned to his home, his faith and his church, is very telling. The judge is right: this is a good test of what the future may hold for someone. Are they at odds with their family or do they have a home? Do they believe in Jesus? Do they belong to a group of believers where they worship and emulate Christ? And finally, what have they been doing lately?
Walker is in college. He has worked to pay off his restitution. And he says he’s in church each week at Trinity Lutheran, one of the churches he vandalized. He says the congregation has forgiven him.
"A couple of people come up to me once a month at church and say they’re proud of me and how I’ve changed. They’ve forgiven me for what I did to the church and the community," Walker said.
And one final note—because it is such a perfect picture of a parable Jesus told to illustrate forgiveness—according to the paper this week, "at the end of the hearing, Walker embraced his father." Sounds like a Prodigal Son tale, doesn't it?
