Rounding up Pedophiles in the United Kingdom

     Police in the United Kingdom arrested 660 alleged pedophiles following a six-month investigation. The suspects included doctors, teachers, scout leaders, care workers, and former police officers. On July 16, 2014, the United Kingdom's Crime Agency reported that the operation occurred across the UK and included 45 police forces…

     The operation, kept secret until the arrests, involved targeting those accessing online images of pedophilia. Thirty-nine of those arrested were registered sex offenders. The rest of the suspects had been unknown to the police. The charges ranged from possessing indecent images of children to serious sexual abuse…

     These arrests followed a series of pedophilia scandals that have dogged the UK. In July 2014, the authorities revealed that in the 1980s, politicians in the UK routinely abused vulnerable children….

Mirren Gidda, "UK Police Arrest 660 Suspected Pedophiles," time.com, July 17, 2014

     

TV Star Confessed to Sex Crimes

     "7th Heaven" TV star Stephen Collins has admitted to inappropriate sexual contact with three female minors…The actor released a statement amid child molestation accusations that arose in his divorce proceedings.

     Collins was the subject of reports in October 2014 after his wife, Faye Grant, said he admitted to her he molested three underage girls. TMZ posted an audio recording that was alleged to have been made during a November 2012 therapy session involving Collins and his wife during which he made incriminating statements…

     The incidents reportedly happened between 1973 and 1994.

     "Forty years ago, I did something terribly wrong that I deeply regret…I have been working to atone for it ever since. I've decided to address these issues publicly because two months ago, various news organizations published a recording made by my then wife, Faye Grant, during a confidential marriage therapy session in January 2012. This session was recorded without the therapist's or my knowledge or consent," Collins wrote.

     Collins, 67, was known for his clean-cut image in Hollywood and played a pastor and beloved father on the hit show "7th Heaven," He's avoided the limelight since the accusations were made public….

" '7th Heaven' Actor Stephen Collins: 'I Did Something Terribly Wrong,' " CNN, December 17, 2014 

Former Government Cyber Security Director Convicted of Child Pornography

     Former acting director of cyber security for the Department of Health and Human Services, Timothy DeFoggi, was convicted for a myriad of gruesome child pornography charges Tuesday, August 26, 2014. DeFoggi, who had top security clearance in his capacity as cyber security director, first joined the child pornography website PedoBook in March 2012…He was arrested last April when law enforcement officers, when serving a search warrant, found him downloading child pornography in his home.

     In addition to viewing and soliciting child pornography, DeFoggi reportedly asked another member of the PedoBook site if he would share photographs of the other member's son. DeFoggi suggested that he and the other member meet in person to violently rape and murder children together.

     The DeFoggi trial lasted four days. The jury only deliberated two hours to reach its guilty verdict. DeFoggi will be sentenced on November 7, 2014.

     PedoBook's founder, Aaron McGrath, was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2013. So far seven users of the site, including DeFoggi, have been convicted. Department of Justice attorney Keith Becker explained that the site, prior to being shut down by the FBI in December 2013, had specific forums for discussion of babies, young boys, and young girls. DeFoggi had been active on forums discussing the rape of young children.

     Under federal law, the minimum sentence for engaging in a child pornography enterprise is 20 years in prison.

Tristyn Bloom, "Former HHS Cyber Security Director Convicted for Child Porn," The Daily Caller, August 26, 4014 

Criminal Justice Quote: Prep School Headmaster Convicted of Child Porn Dealing

     A judge has convicted a former headmaster of an elite Delaware prep school on 25 counts of dealing in child pornography. Christopher Wheeler was arrested after police, prompted by child sex abuse allegations involving two Pennsylvania brothers, searched his home and office at the Tower Hill school for evidence of witness tampering or intimidation and instead found child pornography.

     The conviction on all counts on December 22, 2014 came after a bench [no jury] trial for the 54-year-old ex-headmaster of the school founded by members of the DuPont family. The school's graduates include DuPont company CEO Ellen Kullman and U.S. Senator Chris Coons…

     Each of the 25 counts carries a minimum two-year prison term.

"Ex-Delaware Headmaster Guilty in Child Porn Case," Fox News, December 22, 2014 

Criminal Justice Quote: Man Lured Boys By Posing as Woman on Craigslist

     A Tustin, California man arrested for allegedly posting an ad on Craigslist in which he attempted to lure teenage boys by pretending to be a woman was released from jail on October 18, 2014…Sherwin Ngo, 34, posted bond a day after he was arrested by Irvine police…

     The mother of one of the alleged victims, a 15-year-old boy, found explicit emails on her son's computer…A 16-year-old from Mission Viejo has been identified as a second victim…

     Irvine police arrested Ngo on suspicion of committing a lewd act on one of the teens and an attempted lewd act on the other. Detectives suspect there may be additional victims based on emails seized during a search of Ngo's online accounts.

Scott Glover, "Irvine Police Say Man Posed as Woman on Craigslist to Lure Teen Boys," L.A. Now, October 18, 2014

Criminal Justice Quote: Honey Boo Boo Gets TV Bye-Bye

     The Learning Channel (TLC) has given "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo" the boot after a story surfaced Thursday October 23, 2014 claiming that June Shannon--aka Mama June--was dating a convicted child molester. Shannon reacted to the news in a video posted on her daughter Alana "Honey Boo Boo" Thompson's Facebook page…Shannon denied she was dating Mark McDaniel, a sex offender who was recently released from jail. "The statement of me dating a sex offender is totally untrue," she said.

     McDaniel, who is in his early 50s, was convicted on May 20, 2004 of aggravated child molestation. He registered as a sex offender in March 2014. Shannon wrote a Facebook post on Thursday October 23 that she dated and dumped McDaniel 10 years ago. "I would never put my my kids in danger," she said in the video post.

    TMZ reported that McDaniel went to prison for molesting a relative of Shannon's. The site posted a photo of Shannon and McDaniel together, but Shannon insisted that the photograph was a fake. The cancellation of the TV series, however, is real…

     "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo" debuted in August 2012. The show focused on the life of Alana Thompson, who rose to fame as a child pageant winner on the TLC show "Toddlers & Tiaras." In recent seasons, ratings for "Boo Boo" had decreased significantly. An episode in June 2014 brought in just 1.7 million viewers, a big drop for a show that had seen 3.2 million viewers at its peak.

" 'Honey Boo Boo' Canceled Amid Sex Offender Scandal," Fox News, October 24, 2014

     

Criminal Justice Quote: Child Porn Producer Gets 20 Years

     A man will spend 20 years in federal prison for taking pictures of himself molesting a sleeping 11-year-old boy…Todd Lapping, 40, of Millcreek Township, was sentenced on October 20, 2014 by a federal judge in Erie, Pennsylvania. He had pleaded guilty in June to producing and possession child pornography and faced a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison…

     Lapping had befriended the boy's family before molesting the youth, saying, "There isn't anything much worse than taking advantage of an 11-year-old boy who loves you."

     Authorities were alerted when the victim's sister found the pornographic photos on Lapping's computer last year. The boy's mother contacted police in the Erie suburb before federal authorities took over the case.

"Man Gets 20 Years for Porn With Sleeping Boy," Associated Press, October 22, 2014 

Criminal Justice Quote: Father Beats Up His Son's Abuser

     In Daytona Beach, Florida, a father punched and kicked an 18-year-old man unconscious after finding him sexually abusing his 11-year-old son early Friday, July 18, 2014. The father called 911 at one in the morning after he walked in on the abuse. When the officers arrived, they found Raymond Frolander motionless on the living room floor. He had several knots on his face and was bleeding from the mouth.

     "He is nice and knocked out on the floor for you," the father told the 911 dispatcher. "I drug him out  to the living room."… When asked if any weapons were in involved, the father said, "my foot and my fist."

     Daytona Beach Chief of Police Mike Chitwood, in speaking to reporters said, "Dad was acting like a dad. I don't see anything we should charge him with. You have an 18-year-old who had clearly picked his target, groomed his target and had sex with the victim multiple times."

     Frolander was charged with sexual battery on a child under 12. He was being held without bail. According to the arrest affidavit, Frolander admitted the abuse.

Associated Press, July 21, 2014

Criminal Justice Quote: Child Molester Spared Prison

     In 1984, a Kalamazoo, Michigan man was found guilty of sexually assaulting his underage stepdaughter over a period of seven years, until she ran away. Rather than serve prison time, the judge ordered that he undergo chemical castration, a drug therapy that would diminish his sex drive.

     The craziest part is this: the drug was manufactured by the Upjohn pharmaceutical company, which was founded by the grandfather of the accused, making him the heir to the fortune. He'd go on to get rich off the company, but not before being forced to sample his own products.

Neil Patrick Steward, Headlines! Headlines!, 2012

Criminal Justice Quote: Convicted Pedophile Jerry Sandusky's Wife Says He's Innocent

     Dottie Sandusky is the wife of the former assistant football coach at Penn State Jerry Sandusky who was convicted of sexual abuse against children. She insists her husband is innocent and did not do those horrible crimes that put him behind bars. Sandusky has been married to her husband for 47 years and spoke for the first time on the "Today Show." She said her husband was innocent and claimed that the victims had been manipulated. She said the case against her husband had been built on lies. She said the parties involved were influenced by money…..

     Jerry Sandusky, who is 70, is serving a sentence of 30 to 60 years for being convicted on 45 counts of sexual abuse of boys over a 15 year period. Mrs. Sandusky said she believed he showered with boys, but that was how her husband's generation grew up, using group showers and people coming and going all the time. [Give me a break.]

     In her interview on the "Today Show," Dottie responded harshly to a story in a national newspaper that said predators like Jerry Sandusky choose spouses that can be counted upon to suppress unpleasant ideas that might occur. She said she was not a spouse who was weak, referring to her nickname of Sarge, because her husband said she kept everyone on the straight and narrow. [Not everyone.]…

     Dottie said her husband spends 23 hours per day in his cell and can leave handcuffed for one hour daily. She calls her husband a happy person. He reads, writes and meditates and spends two hours each week in the prison's law library.

David Smith, "Sandusky's Wife Calls Him Innocent," DC Progressive, March 12, 2014  

Criminal Justice Quote: Prolific Child Rapist Gary Hegna Gets Probation

     On January 30, 2014, Gary Hegna of Austin, Minnesota, a man convicted of sexual conduct with a young girl, entered a plea deal to avoid jail time….He was originally charged with first and third degree sexual conduct for forcing himself on a young girl over a five year period. [He made her dress up like an adult woman and had sex with her.]…Hegna was given probation in accordance with state guidelines for first time offenders….

     The Mower County Attorney's Office said that in general, cases that happened a long time ago involving child victims can be hard to prosecute and difficult to prove….

John Doetkott, "Questions Raised Over Child Molester's Sentence," KAALtv., January 31, 2014 

Criminal Justice Quote: Public School Sexual Abuse Underreported

     Sexual abuse of children by teachers and other public school employees is likely underestimated because of a patchwork reporting system and involvement of numerous local, state and federal agencies in investigating such claims, according to a new government report….The report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) raises numerous questions about how closely public schools are following federal requirements for mandatory reporting of child sexual abuse allegations or suspicions involving the public school employees who oversee the 50 million children enrolled in the nation's public K-12 schools. The report also raises doubts about the accuracy of the data on the scope of the problem….

     Even when state law requires reports to be made to outside agencies, sometimes the information never goes beyond a school district--whether because of uncertainty about whether a report is necessary, delays in reporting or outright failure to report allegations or suspicions of abuse….

     GAO investigators said they found that most states do not require training of educators on sexual abuse, even though experts say it's critical to preventing abuse. The report said such training might keep school officers from discounting their own suspicions or observations….

Gil Aegerter and Joel Seidman, "Reporting of School Sexual Abuse Plagued by Confusion, Spotty Data, GAO Says," NBC News, January 30, 2014

Criminal Justice Quote: Pedophilia Court Settlements Plunge Catholic Diocese into Bankruptcy

     The Roman Catholic Diocese of Helena, Montana is set to file for bankruptcy protection in advance of proposed settlements for two lawsuits that claim clergy members sexually abused 362 people over decades and the church covered it up….The settlement details are being worked out, but the U.S Bankruptcy Court in Montana would be responsible for approving and supervising the disbursement of $15 million to compensate the identified victims, plus an additional amount set aside for those who come forward later….

     The two lawsuits filed in 2011 claim clergy members groomed and abused the children from the 1940s to the 1970s. They claim the diocese shielded the offenders and knew or should have known the threat they posed to children.

Matt Votz, "Catholic Diocese to File for Bankruptcy Protection," Associated Press, January 31, 2014

Criminal Justice Quote: Australia's "Incest Town"

A shocking incest "cult" has been discovered nestled in the hills near Sydney, Australia, and the sickening details have disturbed the entire country. At least 40 adults and children were discovered living in squalid conditions and suffering from a wide array of health issues and deformities as a result of massive inbreeding. The "family," all of the descendants of a brother and sister who had 13 children four generations ago, were discovered after people in a nearby town called authorities to say that children in the hills were not going to school. Authorities describe the shanty incest town as one of the worst cases of incest ever made public.

Kiri Blakeley, "40 Adults and Children Discovered Living in Squalid 'Incest Town' ," Articles in the News, December 11, 2013

Criminal Justice Quote: The Catholic Church's Justification of Pedophilia in the 1980s

Contrary to most state laws, which criminalize sex with adolescents under 16 or 18, the Catholic Church considered [in the 1980s] the age of consent to be as young as 12. This provided a convenient rationale for the Milwaukee archbishop Rembert Weakland, who shifted the blame onto teenage victims in a 1988 article for The Catholic Herald. "Sometimes not all adolescent victims are so innocent," he opined. "Some can be sexually very active and aggressive and often quite streetwise."

Janet Reitman in a New York Times review of Mortal Sins: Sex, Crime, and the Era of Catholic Scandal (2013), by Michael D'Antonio