I think it comes down to entrapment. In these dateline cases (and this is from an ex-producer of the show who was let go for having issues with the entrapment) most times the decoy suggests the meeting, not the pedophile. I think that is the main difference between this and a checkpoint. The cops didn’t suggest you drive down I-95 after 5 beers so they could pull you over. I do have issue with the perps just talking to these kids that way, so don’t get me wrong.
In this case, if Conradt had gone to the house, they would not have needed a warrant. The issue is, for whatever reason he stopped communication with the decoy and would not committ to a meeting. Dateline then found out he was a lawyer and started to salivate at the idea of busting him on tv. They rushed a warrent on some iffy evidence (try googling Conradt’s supposed Myspace page that was starting to be deleted after the phone coversations according to NBC, when in fact the site hadn’t been touched in months) and went about the arrest the wrong, and in my opinion unconstitutional way, and he killed himself. I am not defending his crime, but I am saying NBC acted recklessly and contributed to his suicide. They also interjected themselves into a criminal investigation in order to get that ratings footage of a lawyer being caught.
on the door, and I blow my brains out, its their fault? Check these statistics
from RAINN regarding our children, daughters, wives and sisters:
Every two minutes, somewhere in America, someone is sexually assaulted.
One in six American women are victims of sexual assault, and one in 33 men.
In 2005-2006, there were an average annual 232,010 victims of rape, attempted rape or sexual assault.
About 44% of rape victims are under age 18, and 80% are under age 30.
Since 1993, rape/sexual assault has fallen by over 60%.
And we consider ourselves civilized? Where are the real men?
NBC crossed the line and screwed up what could have been a legit investigation. Due to their overstepping of boundaries the DA was forced to drop charges against EVERYONE arrested in this sting. So now people who were truly guilty got to walk. Congrats. A+ journalism.
I know it is difficult to look at this from a distance when something so emotional as pedophlia is involved, but no one here is arguing that pedophila is ok, that the people who perpetrate it should not be punished. The issue is the recklessness of NBC and those law officials. I think we are detracting from the real argument here by bringing up those statistics.
I agree with what you are saying that this guy never went to the house they came to him….i guess i wan generalizing about the people who do go to the house….and with that in mind, in response to your first paragraph…maybe the decoy made the suggestion, but no one made these guys go to the house…no one made them buy the wine coolers and show up with their pants around their ankles. They chose to do that. much like i choose not to drink and drive but still have to go through a safety check.
maybe a better example would be female cops who dressed as prostitutes….i always kind of thought that was border line entrapment.
i guess ultimately…how can it be entrapment if you stop someone from breaking the law….what if the decoy was a real child and Dateline wasn’t there to stop anything from happening….because as i mentioned earlier…even if they didn’t suggest the meeting, no one MADE these guys show up to meet up with a 14 year old.
(but i do agree if all this guy was doing was talking nasty online….i don’t know why they had to break his door down.)
Nebraskan,
And exactly how would I know that?
You have my sincerest apologies. I
am sorry to have offended you with
my “mouth spouting”. I thought I was
just voicing my opinion–just as every-
one else is doing. But I guess, only
a select few are entitled to mistakes
and opinions in your view. And now
that I have been properly chastised
and corrected, I will endeavor to not
make the same mistake. But I will continue
to “spout out my mouth” as long as I
have strength in my fingers–freedom of
speech I believe it is called.
I don’t like the entrapment argument since, afterall, these guys were online talking to kids. I think the real problem with the Dateline issue is, it sensationalizes the whole affair and it normally results in no one being charged because of the entrapment. I certainly think that pedophiles should be caught and prosecuted. I don’t know about the whole female cop prostitue thing though. That is a bit iffy to me.
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that was jenny jones, not sally jesse raphael.
I think it comes down to entrapment. In these dateline cases (and this is from an ex-producer of the show who was let go for having issues with the entrapment) most times the decoy suggests the meeting, not the pedophile. I think that is the main difference between this and a checkpoint. The cops didn’t suggest you drive down I-95 after 5 beers so they could pull you over. I do have issue with the perps just talking to these kids that way, so don’t get me wrong.
In this case, if Conradt had gone to the house, they would not have needed a warrant. The issue is, for whatever reason he stopped communication with the decoy and would not committ to a meeting. Dateline then found out he was a lawyer and started to salivate at the idea of busting him on tv. They rushed a warrent on some iffy evidence (try googling Conradt’s supposed Myspace page that was starting to be deleted after the phone coversations according to NBC, when in fact the site hadn’t been touched in months) and went about the arrest the wrong, and in my opinion unconstitutional way, and he killed himself. I am not defending his crime, but I am saying NBC acted recklessly and contributed to his suicide. They also interjected themselves into a criminal investigation in order to get that ratings footage of a lawyer being caught.
on the door, and I blow my brains out, its their fault? Check these statistics
from RAINN regarding our children, daughters, wives and sisters:
Every two minutes, somewhere in America, someone is sexually assaulted.
One in six American women are victims of sexual assault, and one in 33 men.
In 2005-2006, there were an average annual 232,010 victims of rape, attempted rape or sexual assault.
About 44% of rape victims are under age 18, and 80% are under age 30.
Since 1993, rape/sexual assault has fallen by over 60%.
And we consider ourselves civilized? Where are the real men?
NBC crossed the line and screwed up what could have been a legit investigation. Due to their overstepping of boundaries the DA was forced to drop charges against EVERYONE arrested in this sting. So now people who were truly guilty got to walk. Congrats. A+ journalism.
I know it is difficult to look at this from a distance when something so emotional as pedophlia is involved, but no one here is arguing that pedophila is ok, that the people who perpetrate it should not be punished. The issue is the recklessness of NBC and those law officials. I think we are detracting from the real argument here by bringing up those statistics.
What’s the difference? Weren’t they all about the same?– Anything for ratings.
But I sure do appreciate you sharing
your apparant indepth knowledge of
talk show hosts. I declare, I don’t
know where without such gentlemen.
1. i’m a woman.
2. if you gonna spout your mouth off….at least be right.
Hey Dustin, thanks for the response.
I agree with what you are saying that this guy never went to the house they came to him….i guess i wan generalizing about the people who do go to the house….and with that in mind, in response to your first paragraph…maybe the decoy made the suggestion, but no one made these guys go to the house…no one made them buy the wine coolers and show up with their pants around their ankles. They chose to do that. much like i choose not to drink and drive but still have to go through a safety check.
maybe a better example would be female cops who dressed as prostitutes….i always kind of thought that was border line entrapment.
i guess ultimately…how can it be entrapment if you stop someone from breaking the law….what if the decoy was a real child and Dateline wasn’t there to stop anything from happening….because as i mentioned earlier…even if they didn’t suggest the meeting, no one MADE these guys show up to meet up with a 14 year old.
(but i do agree if all this guy was doing was talking nasty online….i don’t know why they had to break his door down.)
Nebraskan,
And exactly how would I know that?
You have my sincerest apologies. I
am sorry to have offended you with
my “mouth spouting”. I thought I was
just voicing my opinion–just as every-
one else is doing. But I guess, only
a select few are entitled to mistakes
and opinions in your view. And now
that I have been properly chastised
and corrected, I will endeavor to not
make the same mistake. But I will continue
to “spout out my mouth” as long as I
have strength in my fingers–freedom of
speech I believe it is called.
I don’t like the entrapment argument since, afterall, these guys were online talking to kids. I think the real problem with the Dateline issue is, it sensationalizes the whole affair and it normally results in no one being charged because of the entrapment. I certainly think that pedophiles should be caught and prosecuted. I don’t know about the whole female cop prostitue thing though. That is a bit iffy to me.