I'm not an apologist for pedophiles, but I was wondering about the legality of the show. Isn't it entrapment that these guys get snared up in? Are they charged as sex offenders, or do they get off with a misdemeanor or something? What are they charged with anyway? They always say the cases are "pending," not that anyone was convicted, except those with prior offenses. What crimes are they actually charged with and at what point did they commit the crime? I heard one of the cops say on the show that the crime was committed when they stepped out of their house.
And just one observation...what does this show say about our society? Is it worse that there are people who would do such things, or that the so many people watch the show?
2007-07-09 15:40:46 · 9 answers · asked by menorans23 1 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
the show is based on ratings. and that's why they have so many spin off of it like to catch a con men. To catch an identity thief and etc. and No its not entrapment since lawyers for the defandents tried that excuse and it didn't work. since they said no one forced them to drive and go all the way there. A lot of people watch the show unless they would stop doing it on national t.v. Their charged with I think soliciting a minor.
2007-07-09 15:48:34 · answer #1 · answered by bunnygrl43 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It is perfectly legal. The creep is not "snared"....HE makes the contact on a website and starts a sexual conversation with a person he thinks is 12,13,14 years old... If you watch regularly, the "pretender" who is being the young person doesn't bring sex into the conversation at all. The mere fact that the creep KNOWS he is chatting with a minor and starts a sexual conversation is a misdemeanor....right then and there.
When he makes arrangements to "meet" the minor, he is committing a felony. When he shows up at the house - it's all over.
If you watch regularly, they do segments on what happens to these creeps. Most of them have been sentenced to 4 - 10 years in prison and probation afterwards.
All of them have lost their jobs - positions and their wives and family if they had one.
They are charged with attempted sexual assault of a minor.
The first crime was committed when the creep starts talking "sexy" to someone he knows is supposed to be a minor. The second is when he arranges to meet the minor for the purpose of having sex and the biggie is when the nutcase shows up at the house.
What this shows about our society is that there are too many men out there who prey on our children and we have to be on the lookout all the time.
So many people watch the show for the pleasure of watching the worst in our society get what's coming to them.
2007-07-09 16:22:44 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is not entrapment as the decoys never approach the would be offenders...all they do is set up an IM Chat profile listing an age of usually between 12-15, male or female and common likes and dislikes, then visit a chat room - the offenders are the ones that have to ask for a private chat and the offender is in the lead in the conversation, not the decoy.
What the would be offender is charged with depends on the content of the IMs and the laws in the State where the decoy is.
The reason that the cop said as soon as they step out of their own door to visit a decoy a crime has been commited because they have the intent to have sexual contact with a minor.
In reality, some have already commited a crime even if they never left their home if they sent explicit pictures or videos (sometimes they send pics of themselves naked or jerking off) or have discussed doing graphic things to the decoy.
To date, there have been 201 convictions from the work the folks at Perverted Justice have done. For more information on the results of the show and more about the process, check out this link.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10912603/
People watch the show because it is shocking to see how ordinary everyday guys, many that are married and/or have children, would visit a mere child for the purposes of having sex.
It has been a real eye-opener for many people that just think it is weird psycho looking people, because it is not...one guy that was caught was even nicknamed a "Brad Pitt" look alike due to his resemblance to the actor. It is newsworthy and educating parents and teens to a very real problem that exists.
I highly recommend that you read Chris Hanson's book on the subject because the dangers are not just limited to those that are overtly sexual to teens right off the bat like in the IMs that most of the men that have been caught for...some put on a ruse for months to gain the trust of their mark and persuade them to meet or give out personal information based on what they think is an on-line romance or friendship with someone their age, only to find out the "person" they are involved with is not who they say they are. Sometimes the situation is fatal. In Chris Hansen's book he details the case of Kacie Woods, a 12 year old the visited a Christian Chat room and made what she thought was a "cool" new hip 17 year old male friend in California. She and her friends even gave out their phone numbers and they talked to him in on the phone. After months, and never any reference to a romantic or sexual inuendo, the man drove from CA in his van, used ether to kidnap her, chained her down in van, raped and killed her.
What the show is doing is capturing these offenders prevents a child's life from being ruined and maybe even saving a child's life.
Here is a link to a particularly sick person that wanted to make a young girl his sex slave. I will warn you, it is graphic. By the way, although he was convicted, he made a plea bargain where he plead guilty to one of the 7 counts he was charged with, indecent solicitation, and has been given two years probation, listed as a sex offender, and a fine - he served no jail time.
http://www.perverted-justice.com/?archive=fleet_captain_jaime_wolfe
Who is worse...the offenders that are trying to take advantage of young, often confused or emotionally neglected children.
What it clearly says about our society is that you always need to be on guard and think before you give out too much information and beware of "online" friends and romances or even in person "fast-friends" as it takes a really long time to really get to know a person in person.
2007-07-09 17:37:51 · answer #3 · answered by bottleblondemama 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
i doubt any of those guys are actually convicted of a crime. I think I remember seeing a clip about that program (I'll try and find it and post it if I see it), and one high profile guy actually committed suicide because he got busted. He was a high profile person in the community. Not sure how it actually happened but it crossed the line between law enforcement and entertainment.
I think that's why the show hasn't aired in so long.
And what does the show say about our society? I think the same sickos exist in all countries.
2007-07-09 16:18:38 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Depending on how the on-line contacts are handled, and you NEVER see more than a small fraction of that, it may or may not be a form of entrapment. Posing as a minor is not entrapment by itself. The rule would be similar sting operations going after 'johns' using a female officer posing as a prostitute. If she suggests anything illegal, it is entrapment. If she simply allows the 'john' to suggest something, it is not entrapment. There is a fine line, and it may be open to interpretation.
2007-07-09 15:53:31 · answer #5 · answered by STEVEN F 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I wondered that myself. How can it be a crime once they step out of their house? They cant charge you for robbing a bank if you were just thinking of robbing a bank. What if you were in the bank with a gun under your shirt and they found it before you tried to rob the bank could they get you for bank robbery or just firearm possesion. What if you just had a note on you that said give me all your money and it fellout of your pocket and the security gaurd picked it up. could they charge you with intent to rob the bank? I would think so. food for thought..
2007-07-09 16:01:53 · answer #6 · answered by garstar 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Entrapment is when law enforcement tricks someone into doing something illegal that they wouldn't have done. It's very narrowly defined. This is not entrapment.
2007-07-09 16:01:22 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
It's TV, people love it.
No convictions, no young girls, but good TV
2007-07-09 15:47:54 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
It actually would be considered as conspiracy.... meaning they had intentions to do so.
2007-07-09 15:52:22 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋