Pedo Mayor

[Jen]

You may know that the mayor of my hometown has been accused of soliciting sex from a 14 year old girl online. He was caught in an internet sting. He is also charged with possession of child pornography.

More recently, he has asked for (http://www.journaltimes.com/articles/2009/02/23/local_news/doc49a34f22f399f895758714.txt) and ultimately been allowed to enter (http://www.journaltimes.com/articles/2009/02/24/local_news/doc49a41887db851409542288.txt) a resort-style twelve-step program for treatment of sexual addiction.

In Pennslyvania. Which meant his bail conditions had to be relaxed in order for him to go.

I have mixed feelings--for one, the guy is a celebrity in our area. He likely can't walk down the street, eat at a restaurant, or go to the grocery store without being spotted and ridiculed for being a pedophile. It's much worse than it would be for any other person in his same situation. Secondly, he's meant to be innocent until proven guilty. If he's innocent, why should he have to go through all this shit?

However he's only able to become David Duchovny's roommate at this facility because he's rich. Most people in this situation wouldn't be able to live out their bail time at a resort, taking drinks with a former X-Files star.

What do you guys think? Should people who can afford it be allowed to relax their bail conditions to attend treatment programs out of state?

[Brad]

he admitted to what he was doing, he's guilty. simple.

i hope someone kills him just for his bullshit roundabout idea.

[Jen]

I am a big believer in "innocent until proven guilty."

He admitted the chat transcript was his. Personally, I don't think that the chat transcript alone proves that he was soliciting sex from a minor. He said some dirty things to her--dirty enough that I think those lines alone would make him guilty of exposing a minor to inappropriate material or something of that nature.

And if there was actual child porn--not just young-looking girls, he is guilty of possession of child porn.

But nowhere in the chat did he say he was actually going to have sex with the girl. I think it's up for the courts and the jury to decide whether he's guilty or not.

[Not That Guy]

It has been proven scientifically that roughly 80% of men are attracted to post pubescent girls, very much underage.

It's our biology.

[Jen]

True or not, it's against the law to act on it.

I think these sex stings are wrong, personally. I don't think he can be guilty of trying to have sex with a 14 year old girl if there was no 14 year old girl.

[jimmy]

I'm not too keen on busting someone just because they said some dirty things to a minor. I could just see someone being arrested because they said something vicious to a teenager on a message board. Soon enough you're in a situation where adults can't take to minors at all, for fear of breaking a law meant to stop child molesters.

Had he actually diddled a kid, I'd be pissed about him getting off so lightly. I do think if someone actually shows up after arranging a meeting with a minor, a la those "To Catch a Predator" shows, that demonstrates enough intent for arrest. But that didn't happen here, apparently.

[Jen]

Jimmy, you're right that a law stating you couldn't talk dirty to minors could be taken too far. But in this case, he was talking directly to her, no mistake about it, and said some really dirty things--asked about her sexual history, told her the size of his dick.

And he showed up to meet her at the mall. But they hadn't arranged to go to a hotel. He said something like, "I wish I could take you to a hotel but I can't." He said he was going to buy her underwear. Which isn't illegal.

[jimmy]

Yeah, I don't think what he did should be illegal. Certainly questionable and not a decent thing to do, but it seems more likely a slick teenaged girl would string along some old guy to get him to buy her shit. *lol*

[Jen]

Well, from his conversations with the fake girl, she made herself sound very easy to get into bed, so he probably thought that if he bought her some Victoria's Secret, next time he was on a business trip they could hook up. At that stage, there would be a crime. But not at the buying undies stage.

He still seems like a sick, sick motherfucker from the look of it, and treatment is probably the best place for him at this time.

[Jen]

You thought pedo mayor was bad? Well, now we have pedo cop. (http://www.journaltimes.com/articles/2009/03/03/local_news/doc49ac84d78afd7969861423.txt)

Apparently his DNA is needed because he's been accused of actually fucking a 12 year old. Perhaps if the police would spend less time jacking off with pedo mayor while pretending to be 14 year old girls online, they might actually catch the real sick fucks in their own squad, who are actually acting on their desires.