As we all know, two kids brought up in the same environment may grow up to be polar opposites in terms of behavior.

So, pointing fingers at the father without solid evidence amounts to a cheap shot of populism.

When television personality Yang Lan floated the idea that the previous incarceration of the younger Li could have hardened him into a brute, she got a virtual but public lynching.

"How can she find excuses for the perpetrator instead of siding with the rape victim?" people howled.

If left to an online vote, the rape suspect could get the harshest penalty possible.

While that may make for a good morality play, it puts a dent in the impartiality of the law. Li Tianyi must be tried in a court of law.

He should not receive lenient treatment because of his father's fame and glory. Likewise, he should not be made into a scapegoat for the so-called "sins of the second generation of the rich and powerful".

Yang Lan is right to express sympathy for the father, who she personally knows to be "humble and sincere".

To avert the public wrath, she should have first poured out condolences to the victim, which she later did.

But she was pointing to an equally deep-rooted issue - the lack of efficacy for reforming juvenile delinquents through confinement.

For a parent who has put his heart and soul into bringing up a kid, it is sad to see his own failure on such a colossal scale.

While the law should be fair, there is nothing wrong as far as I can see for those who know him to comfort him.

He is a victim as well - of the age-old culture of spreading his wings a bit too much over his child.

Contact the writer at raymondzhou@chinadaily.com.cn.

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