Yes, but the the police can still nail them for attempting to have sex with an underage person.
Go back and read Bricker’s post (#15)
I don’t think there have been any acquittals. Plenty of people have been convicted of this very thing, not just as part of a TV show. It has never been fought as being unconstitutional as far as I know. Many involved in the show have plead guilty or been convicted. Some are waiting for trial.
The Perverted Justice web site has a great FAQs area that explains the entire process in detail. Their writing style is matter of fact and quite forward, almost as blunt as SDMB posts.
What the perps also don’t realize is that any chance of an acquittal is gone once they start admitting on camera that it was them on the computer, that they are in fact 8thgradesk8rboi, and on and on. Don’t forget (although I could see this as entrapment) the “teen girl” always asks them to bring condoms and beer, the beer could be contribution to deliquency of a minor at the very least.
I’ve seen a few episodes…the idiocy of these guys is outstanding! I remember seeing a guy who brought a blueberry pie for the “girl”! Then there was the 67-year old guy who had to call his 90 year old mother (to tell her he would’nt be home for dinner). You would think these guys would smarten up a bit.
I am especially amused by the perps who walk into the house nekkid already. What, no small talk?
Have they done any new episodes or are they still rehashing the old ones?
They are all new.
I haven’t seen any of the episodes (I don’t watch TV much) but one of the latest episodes was set up just a little bit north of here in Harris County, GA., not very long ago.
Yes, just as there seems to be no short supply of tone-deaf egomaniacs eager to debase themselves on “American Idol,” the pool of dumbass online perverts is apparently vast enough to keep “Dateline” in the black for quite some time.
I’m not sure which fact is more depressing.
I’ve only seen a couple of episodes of this and it is amazing how idiotic these men are. On one recent showing they got some guy for the second time. He was awaiting trial for the first one.
The reason I asked is the last few of these I’ve seen were all re-edits of the same pervs they caught before. I wondered if NBC had pretty much worn out this gimmick.
Does the guy in the tree-suit still jump out of the bushes?
I don’t watch TV either. However, you can watch TCAP online anytime you want, last night’s episide is already up.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10912603/
To answer the earlier question about conviction, PeeJ has logged close to 250 convictions so far. NOT ONE of the guys caught on TCAP have been acquited. Their website is http://www.perverted-justice.com/
Is there any significant research being done on the cause, and possible treatment, for this sexual obsession? If there is, why don’t we see media coverage of that?
I see it as a sad commentary on our humanity, that we find these men’s actions fodder for entertainment and ridicule, but there’s very little, if any discussion about finding ways to intelligently deal w/ a very serious problem.
Seems to me that from a biological standpoint, many males have a drive/obsession to “be the first” to impregnate a fertile female. The whole dominant male/perpetuation of the species thing. Was useful in the past. Today, not so much. While men these days tend more to show off their “dominance” through money, fast cars, and big houses, there are still some who still think the nubile young girl is a prize. Not surprising, when you look at advertising, girls are becoming sexualized at ever younger ages. Men are bombarded with the message that young = sexy. And some take it too far. And some are obviously pathetic losers who, far from being “alpha-males”, are too lacking in whatever qualities it takes to attract an adult female, and and thus prey on young teens who will (in the perv’s fantasies) look up to him worshipfully.
Before anyone slams me, I am not defending these guys caught by TCAP in any way and some of them are truly despicable. But a lot just seemed to have been drawn into making a ill-thought-out fantasy come true.
The point isn’t to forgive, or justify, the behavior. I’s to learn what causes some people to become so obsessed w/ these fantasies that they act them out in the face of overwhelming evidence and logic, that the behavior is immoral, illegal and harmful. It’s one thing to notice the attractiveness of a much younger person and an entirely different thing to pursue a sexual relationship w/ such a person. There can be no doubt that it isn’t “natural” instinct that causes this. At 68, I can appreciate the physical beauty of a 20-30 year old, maybe even a physically mature teenager, but I have no desire, or instinct, to compete for her affection. I have to believe that my attitude is typical, or the practice would be much more prevalent.
Sure, the media, and contemporary permissiveness, might not be helping, but this problem has transcended changes in social mores, so there must be lots of room for sociological/scientific exploration into the subject.
Locking people up and labeling them outcasts for life seems more than a little outdated. With modern advances into the working of the brain, it seems logical that there should be some research aimed at understanding and treating this behavior.
Surely you are aware of the whole “old guy buys a red sportcar and tries to score a nubile young blonde” stereotype. And is envied by all his friends? Not natural? On the contrary, I’d say it seems to be practically every man’s fantasy
And what exactly IS a “trophy wife” anyway? Any cases where she is older than him? Not likely.
I haven’t seen any episodes where that scenario happened (but I didn’t watch the most recent installments, did it just air). But from what I’ve seen, the people they claim to be at the wrong house etc etc etc usually have an address in their car and alot of the ones that where just coming to ‘talk’ and 'tell them that they shouldn’t be doing this" seem to have condoms and porn on them. And BTW it looks really great when they lock the door behind them.
If you think it through, your examples only strengthen my point. Most of the guys who indulge their “mid-life crisis” instincts live to regret their choices to one degree or another.
Maybe we have a psychologist who could check in here. I don’t have the formal training to explain it very well, but a lifetime of experience tells me that there’s a distinct difference between a 40-50 year old chasing a 25-30 year old woman, in some misguided attempt to recapture his youth, and adult men being sexually obsessed w/ pubescent, or even prepubescent children.
You’ve got a long way to go to convince me that pedophilia is the result of some natural instinct, in fact I think natural instinct is more likely to be responsible for a man to be less inclined to indulge in such behavior.