# No men alone with that child, says Texas judge **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 25, 2011, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072 "2011-08-25T18:57:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![blindboyard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blindboyard/32/2833_2.png) [@blindboyard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blindboyard)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/1 "2011-08-25T18:57:55Z")
A [Houston Chronicle story reports](http://blog.chron.com/partisangridlock/2011/08/houston-judge-limits-rights-of-gay-father/#.TlJ4OmM1Cdk.facebook) that a judge in that city has prevented the father leaving the child alone with any man unless a relative by “blood or adoption”. Because, you know, men are all voracious sexual predators. In this case, incidentally, there is no evidence of any abuse and no accusations have been made. Although, if they had, it would presumably be against the father rather than any other adult male in the world. The article points out that this, as written, excludes the child from being alone with male teachers, pastors and doctors. Of course it’s actually aimed at the father’s husband, as he’s a gay man who went to Connecticut to get married. Not explicitly, of course, that’s just an assumption. Make up your own mind whether the ruling is objectionable due to being aimed explicitly at men, implicitly at gays or just for being stupid. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/2 "2011-08-25T18:59:42Z")
Disgusting. Especially since statistically it’s the men you’re related to that are the most likely to abuse. ---
**Author:** ![Azeotrope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/0ea827/32.png) [@Azeotrope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Azeotrope)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/3 "2011-08-25T19:04:36Z")
Yeah, because not only are all men sexual predators, but all gays are NAMBLA members who can’t look at an underage child without wantin’ some of that :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/4 "2011-08-25T19:06:35Z")
> [@blindboyard](#): > > . Make up your own mind whether the ruling is objectionable due to being aimed explicitly at men, implicitly at gays or just for being stupid. You got yourself a triffecta there. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/5 "2011-08-25T19:49:33Z")
And yet, the mom can drop the kid off with all the strange men she wants, apparently. I didn’t see her responsibilities about that addessed at all. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/6 "2011-08-25T20:44:35Z")
When I first read the OP, I thought the court had found him to be at risk for prostituting the child(ren). But no, just a blatently anti-gay poke at the now-married couple. What a sad state of affairs. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/7 "2011-08-25T20:47:27Z")
Oh, sweet Og, I am _so_ tired of feeling like I have to apologize on behalf of my state. Concur: trifecta. ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/8 "2011-08-25T21:29:01Z")
The judge is expanding on a sanction that’s already an insult in it’s original form: the “morality clause” aka “your mom is a slut” rule, that (usually she) may not have other men in the home when she has custody. I once had to duck in the closet of a woman I was dating when the ex brought her son over without prior notice to retrieve his skateboard. ---
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/9 "2011-08-25T21:39:49Z")
> [@Jack\_Batty](#): > > And yet, the mom can drop the kid off with all the strange men she wants, apparently. I didn’t see her responsibilities about that addessed at all. No kidding shouldn’t she be punished for her lack of judgement. She entered into a marriage with a gay man and thus exposed her children to a life of contact with a potential pedophile! ---
**Author:** ![fifty-six](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@fifty-six](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fifty-six)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/10 "2011-08-25T21:57:56Z")
Why would the child ever need to be alone with a pastor. What if his teacher is gay? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Devil_s_Grandmother)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/11 "2011-08-25T22:47:27Z")
> [@fifty-six](#): > > Why would the child ever need to be alone with a pastor. Counseling? Confession? Practicing for the chess tournament? Wants to give the child advice out of the ears of the bullies? Why would any adult need to be alone with a child? I hope it reassures you that most churches and schools have guidelines to prevent any child from being with only one adult. “Never be alone with a child who isn’t your kid” is just common sense for today’s insane and stupid world. > [@fifty-six](#): > > What if his teacher is gay? What if his teacher is secretly Spider Man? Or a Mason? Or a Straight Dope reader? How does that affect the student/teacher relationship? ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/12 "2011-08-25T23:19:07Z")
> [@fifty-six](#): > > Why would the child ever need to be alone with a pastor. What if the pastor wanted to have sex? ---
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/13 "2011-08-25T23:31:15Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > What if the pastor wanted to have sex? Lol. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![SnakesCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4af34b/32.png) [@SnakesCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnakesCatLady)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2011, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/14 "2011-08-26T00:24:22Z")
> [@fifty-six](#): > > Why would the child ever need to be alone with a pastor. What if his teacher is gay? The order doesn’t specify the child may not be left alone with gay men. He can’t be left alone with ANY man. Sometime I wonder how these jerks got through law school, let alone made it to the bench. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2011, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/15 "2011-08-26T00:33:30Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > Disgusting. Especially since statistically it’s the men you’re related to that are the most likely to abuse. Only, I think, because children spend much, much more time alone with men they are related to than men they are unrelated too. It does _not_ mean that a relative is actually more likely to feel a pedophilic\* attraction to a child than a non-relative. I agree that this ruling seems absurd and unjust (and homophobic). ```auto *Is that a word, and if so, is that how you spell it? ``` ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2011, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/16 "2011-08-26T00:40:10Z")
> [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](#): > > What if his teacher is secretly Spider Man? He best be careful about unleashing his webbing lest a pervy adult walk in on him spraying the kid and gets the wrong idea. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2011, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/17 "2011-08-26T01:08:39Z")
So he can’t even have a male doctor, or a teacher? What if the principal of his school is male, and he gets called to the principal? Or what if he’s the last kid off of the bus, and his bus driver’s a man? (I can’t imagine this being held up on appeal. What say you, legal types?) ---
**Author:** ![fifty-six](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@fifty-six](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fifty-six)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2011, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/18 "2011-08-26T01:25:49Z")
I must have read the OP wrong. I read it as the child is allowed to be alone with pastors, doctors and teachers. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2011, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/19 "2011-08-26T01:37:22Z")
Unless every male the kid comes in contact with is served a legal notice how could they be prosecuted on this? I think the only people that can be prosecuted are the people like the gay couple and the mom. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2011, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072/20 "2011-08-26T01:40:56Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > So he can’t even have a male doctor, or a teacher? What if the principal of his school is male, and he gets called to the principal? Or what if he’s the last kid off of the bus, and his bus driver’s a man? > > (I can’t imagine this being held up on appeal. What say you, legal types?) > [@](#): > > Jennifer Broussard, William’s ex-wife’s lawyer, doesn’t believe that the order was motivated by bigotry. She confirmed that no allegation of abuse or neglect was made during the trial but insists that even in cases in which abuse is not alleged, injunctions such as the one issued here are common. In this case, she said, it was appropriate to enter the injunction whether William’s new spouse’s name “was Jim or Jane.” Though she said that in her more than two decades of practice she had seen such orders many times, she said finding specific examples would “take hours” and declined to do so. When asked whether there would be an appellate record of such orders, Broussard speculated that because they are so common, they were unlikely to have ever been challenged and thus would be absent from the caselaw. Take hours to find and declined to do so. Isn’t that why paralegals were invented? To be honest, I expect it to be overturned. You know how hard it is to find an all female doctor’s office? all female teachers? all female religious workers? It is literally impossible for someone to avoid being alone with a male at some point in any given amount of time, let alone an entire childhood. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-men-alone-with-that-child-says-texas-judge/594072.md?page=2)