To catch a predator

[ikojo]

NBC does a lot of these shows....I find it hard to believe they are still able to catch so many men. One would think that stings like this would not be as effective since there have been so many episodes of To Catch a Predator.

One of the guys they caught on tonight's episode is from Egypt...I don't think his life is going to get any easier over the next few months.

[alarimer]

1. do they ever do anything else?

Wouldn't it be nice to see REAL investigative journalism for once? I fucking hate these shows, more than I hate the "all Anna Nicole all the time shows".

[ikojo]

2. I think the other stuff they do is all celebrity

related. Of course it's February sweeps and I think these programs are popular.

They caught two guys tonight who watched the program regularly!

[WI_DEM]

3. The interesting thing is that apparently a lot of the guys they catch

later say that they had seen previous editions of "To Catch a predator" and still take the chance.

[dysfunctional press]

4. it seems that it's mostly in texas and florida...

i guess they probably have the best ratio of strict laws and horny idiots.

[Hippo_Tron]

5. Florida eh, could you imagine if they had caught Mark Foley on that show?

[ironflange]

6. Shhhh. . . just wait

We can always hope:

Have a seat. Would you like a cookie?
            \



I, uh, was just making sure he's OK!
            \



What's that in the bag?
            \

[ornotna]

25. Not from what I gather

Seems most of the shows are actually from So. California.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10912603/

[derby378]

7. Tonight's FRONTLINE talked about how ABC passed on this project...

...leaving NBC's Dateline to pick it up and toss its own street cred out the window.

[Generic Brad]

8. What a terrifying lot of delusional men

Nubile young teens hot for old farts? Since when in the history of humankind has that been a reality?

[riverdeep]

9. favorite episode..

I liked the one where the guy walked into the house completely naked at the request of the girl. I thought-this guys on national television caught naked exposed, so to speak, as a pedophile-he's going to be shaken to the core. Nope, next day, they posed as a different girl that asked to meet them at McDonalds. Sure enough, they catch him walking out, him insisting he was trying to get something to eat.

They need to be stopped, because it doesn't seem many of them stop themselves.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

10. I'd like to see them get punked.

That is, the person that shows up at the house is another television crew.

[deadparrot]

11. It may be trash TV, but if there's one less pervert on the streets

because of it, it's done a tremendous service, IMHO.

[Oeditpus Rex]

17. The show isn't taking them off the streets

The cops are.

[deadparrot]

19. Of course,

but the organization that the show profiles helps the cops arrest them.

You're right that it isn't the show doing the heavy lifting, but when it airs, I'm not particularly concerned about the poor child molester being embarrassed that he's (as it usually seems to be a 'he') on camera. And if fear of being humiliated on national television keeps some sick person from acting on an urge and drives them to seek help, then it helps all the more.

I won't lie, I've caught the show once or twice, but it's hardly part of my regular programming. I just don't understand the hysteria surrounding the whole thing. It's certainly not the classiest, smartest entertainment out there, but I don't think it's the work of complete scumbags, either. :shrug:

[Oeditpus Rex]

20. '(N)ot the classiest, smartest entertainment'

is the only real beef I have with it. It is entertainment, of the "voyeur" variety, but it's being passed off as journalism under the "Dateline NBC" flag.

Journalism, it ain't.

[BlueStorm]

12. But isn't this show basically entrapment?

I'm all for catching these sickos but the way that it's being done on TV just smacks of entrapment. Some of the methods that Perverted Justice uses seems to be cohersive.

Blue

[AshevilleGuy]

13. Exactly! How is it not?

There is no actual child involved, so no physical crime is possible. If I were to go online and say that I am 13, and some guy comes to my house, could I have him arrested? Okay, so he talks dirty to me online and sends photos, etc. Didn't I instigate it? By the way, I am WAY over legal age.

And the host, Chris what's-his-name: so smug! I would like to see HIM get caught doing something like that. And the cops who run out as the perp leaves - they REALLY enjoy carrying on like crazy people, you can tell.

No, I don't want to see grown men molesting children!! But THIS is just over the top. If this is not entrapment, what could be?

[riverdeep]

14. Not according to current law

The crime is actually sending lewd material to a minor over the internet. THAT is the crime, and ones that don't show up still get records turned over for prosecution. Them showing up is the icing on the cake and further proves intent making prosecution easier. Doesn't matter that there is no real minor involved, the intent is enough. Kind of like walking into a bank with a fake gun. Maybe bad analogy, but this is my recollection from the show.

As for the ethical thing, there's nothing the staff does that forces the perps to do what they do, they do it on their own. I don't feel the least bit sorry for them.

[AshevilleGuy]

18. I don't feel sorry for them either, that is not my point.

But to me it's just a police state out of control. Were it not for the decoy, who is an adult, there would be no crime in that instance. The perps are ASKED to commit a crime, then they are arrested. I would like to see a Federal judge overturn some of those convictions and put a stop to this.

Now if some guy actually does show up at a REAL child's house, fine, arrest his ass. No problem.

[AllegroRondo]

24. From what I've seen, they dont ask the perps to commit the crime

That would be entrapment, agreed.

They let the perp say "hey, can I send you some porn" "can I come over to your house", etc. THATS the crime.

[BlueStorm]

15. Right!!!

I have had this argument with my mom and she sympathizes with the show. She doesn't believe that it is entrapment. I don't see how, the rationale is that they are trying to get these people off the street. But I don't see how this can hold any water. It's like you said, there is no actual child involved. The contact is instigated and plus it's over the Internet. Plus Chris Hansen tells them they are "free to go" but in reality they are getting arrested.

If they want to sting, they should use real children, um teens, whatever, but not actors.

Blue

[riverdeep]

16. Also,

Perverted Justice is very careful to make sure the perv initiates the lewdness. All they typically have to do is coyly indicate their age they are posing as, and pervs are swimming around like sharks on chum usually within ten minutes. It may not be everyones idea of ethical, but it is legal.

[scarpa43]

21. I just went to the Perverted Justice website

and it had a couple interesting points in the FAQ's.

On the question of entrapment they used the analogy of a husband trying to hire a hitman to kill his wife. If the "hitman" was an undercover cop and the husband is arrested the situation is exactly like To Catch a Predator, but nobody says that the husband did not commit a crime by trying to hire the killer.

They also said they never start conversations, they simply put a profile online and reply to IM's sent to them, they do not IM people in an attempt to get a potentially illegal dialog started.

[silvermachine]

23. But oftentimes...

...I've heard it said on the show that the online conversations would sometimes have gone on for over a week, and the perp was often unsure about whether to continue, and then the decoy would repeatedly try to persuade them to follow through with it. This is the only aspect that really bothers me regarding the methods used, but I have to say it does bother me quite a bit.

[Orrex]

22. Don't miss the companion shows, either

I don't know the name, but NBC has given several cushy, comfy, and softly-lit interviews of female sex offenders, conducted in living room-like settings. It's nice to see the network maintaining such an evenhanded treatment of the subject.