Yes, it grossed me out but didn't offend me, because it's something that's going on in our society and closing our eyes is what enables those people to get away with it It's amazing what we as people select when it comes to the information we really take in and the signs we acknowledge. When I was a kid, 2 of the girls in our neighborhood were getting molested. One by a family member, the other by an older boy in the neighborhood. They have hinted on it, but it wasn't until years later that I understood exactly what child molestation is and that it is what actually was happening to them. When you are that young, you don't even consider the possibility of an adult male being sexually interested in you or friends (male or female) of your own age. When one girl told me about the older boy, I thought she was making it up to seem older. Kids need to learn about the fact that there is such a thing as grown up predators. Whether they completely understand it or not, we should teach them something to at least be aware enough to know that this is wrong and not something to be confused and ashamed about and then hide while the pedophile continues. Just my 2 cents on the subject. And by the way, I hate to say it: but if you compare the national numbers on how much it happens where, I believe that our Golden State is most likely going to be ranked very high.
Easy answer: you acquit and feel fine sleeping at night. If he was guilty and re-offends it's not your fault our crappy justise system doesn't work.
If the witnesses and evidences are all against the man and that might be the answer your looking for his guilty and needed to be punish. And if it proves his innocent then let him free and continue living. It is hard to make decisions regarding life but you must not let your feelings overcome you think of what you think is right.
The problem with most of those cases is that it's not caught on camera like for example a bankrobbery would be. You will need to use your judgement. That is the hardest part. And not letting emotions get in the way is something very hard to do when a case is involving something like abusing a child. I do believe in our legal system, but not in our school system. There should be a lot more done to help kids.
Supposed to be, yes. But in reality that is never going to be accomplished completely as long as human beings have feelings and opinions.
Easy answer for you too although I agree that the justice system sucks, but you are just blaming it instead of offering a solution.
The American justice system is better than anything else I've read about. This is just one of the problems with it - when the crime is so shocking that many people would find it difficult to be impartial. To the credit of the system I was not selected, but I have a feeling I wasn't the only person in the room with my thoughts and feelings. Will the man get a fair and impartial jury? Who knows. If I was on the jury, he would not have. He certainly could have elected to not have a jury trial if he was afraid of a jury. I can't think of anything more fair. You can elect to get your fate determined by either a jury of your peers or a professional judge.
Situations like this is why a person should never be brought up on charges unless there is some very solid evidence against them. The fact that a person has been charged for something is enough for many people to assume guilt on the person. Which leads to a saying that a very good friend told me... "Assumptions are the mother of all fuckups"
Very likely not, as most molestations occur within families. Most humans feel uncomfortable reporting their fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts, and grandparents to the police. Of the three molestation cases I know of off the top of my head, none were reported to the authorities.
Yeah, I have a feeling that the amount of convictions in relation to offenses is extremely low, a lot lower than other crimes.
I personally would like to kill anyone who has molested a child before. What you should have done is told them you were gonna be honest and vote guilty. I agree with you will btw, its very disturbing that own family members could do such things. :/
A few years back a TV Station aired a documentry on 'how to be a child molester' and it was of the most disturbing things I have ever seen. The title of the program was actually the title of the Child Molester Manual, yeah thats right an F'ing manual. The guide describes how to groom a child become a family friend etc etc. I would find it impossible for me to be on the jury of a Child Molester case if the accussed was innocent or not I would probably just say "guilty hang the bastard". It takes a strong person to be able to shove their personal views to one side and concentrate on evidence being given which is most important for any case.
Like Discreet said I was never molested as a child either. Thank heavens! But as a college student I was placed in some very uncomfirtable situations by dirty old men old enough to be my father. The methods of attack were ever bit as cunning as that of a child molester for they were molesters. Were I to have made a scene, it would have come across as if I were dilusional. I tried to tell my mother and grandmother about a family friend. They tried to tell me they thought i had misinterpreted what had happened. (My sister who had been placed in similar situation by same man and felt just as I did.) In the other instance I told my college roommates who also though I was mistaken at least until one of them was cornered by same man. The point of this tirade is listen to your children. If they are uncomfirtable with someone make sure they are never alone with that person. Shannon
A week ago a friend of mine asked me to hang out at her job for about an hour, she works overnight. Some guy kept coming around and creeped her out. From the moment I've made eye contact with him, I knew he didn't want me there. There was definitely something wrong and your instinct is what you need to go by in a situation like this. You just know when something isn't right. Anyways, it all ended when a local cop stopped by, she spoke to him, and the cop told the dude to scatter and not come back. In situations like those I think about kids, they don't understand or are not always listened to like Smyrl says. It's really freaky to think about that some of the weirdest people can get in touch with our kids so easily. Another thing is that when a case like this occurs within a family, the level of denial is so high, it will be hard to get anything out of the child. You hear things such as "He was never alone with her for longer than 10 minutes." 10 minutes is plenty for a sicko who has his mind set on molesting a kid. Anyways, touchy subject, awesome post from Shannon!
No, it just takes a conscience. How could anyone think it was ok to convict a person if they weren't sure he was guilty. All of you are just helping prove we have a horrible justice system and make it even easier to believe a large number of those convicted are innocent.
I really cannot believe I'm agreeing with yo-yo but he's right this time. It isn't a matter of strength or weakness or anything even similar. It isn't a matter of whether or not you find certain offenses appalling or entirely acceptable. It isn't a matter of whether you have been victimized in a similar way or know someone who was. It is a matter of setting aside your personal feelings for long enough to do what you must do, which is to hear the evidence and decide whether it is sufficiently convincing to remove reasonable doubt that the accused is guilty. There is no other choice, unless you're willing to abandon the principle of trial by one's peers and innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt - and to accept the alternative.
I'm reasonable sometimes . Now, knowing that it would be a hard time giving this guy accused of child molesting a fair trial, how hard do you think it is for a black man accused of killing (or raping) a white girl in texas to get a fair trial?