Exonerating the Friedmans

Hypnosis Rigged Sex Case Against Him, Says Jesse Friedman
By COREY KILGANNON, New York Times

The 2003 documentary “Capturing the Friedmans” raised questions about the prosecution of Jesse Friedman, who in 1988 pleaded guilty as a teenager to 243 counts of sex crimes against children he and his father taught in computer classes in their Long Island home.

Mr. Friedman, who served 13 years in prison, has sought to overturn his case and clear the family name, an effort that seemed bolstered by the documentary, which featured a 24-year-old man who said he remembered being abused as a child at the Friedman home in Great Neck only after being hypnotized. ...

“You have a group of kids who initially said they were not abused, wrangled by a group of therapists who utilized highly suggestive methods like hypnosis until the kids emerged from the sessions with the most lurid and highly unbelievable examples of sexual abuse and going directly to the grand jury,” he said. “There is no more inherently unreliable form of testimony than that.” full story

The Child Porn Hoax

By Susie Bright, SusieBright.com.
Posted October 2, 2007

"...How dare anyone call it a hoax! We know children are being abused. We know some of that abuse is sexual. We know the cameras are everywhere. Isn't it obvious? No, it's not."

"...Once upon a time, there was a very serious reporter for a very serious newspaper, who decided to investigate one of society's scourges: the child pornography ring. Two years after his exposés riveted the nation, it turned out the reporter had gone off the deep end. He'd paid his main source, become a webmaster at the very porn site he was investigating, lied and bullied anyone who questioned him, and had all but ostracized himself out of a reporting career. But it wasn't just him. The witch-hunters, bogeyman blamers, and moral-panic enablers -- were everywhere. Our little reporter might have landed in deep shit, but the hysteria he milked became bigger than ever before."

"Call him one of the most bizarre media offenders in the past two years of fear-mongering: Former New York Times and Portfolio reporter Kurt Eichenwald. He wrote two front-page stories on the subject of sex that won't be forgotten soon: Through His Webcam, a Boy Joins a Sordid Online World, and its followup, Child Sex Sites on the Run. From the get-go, both stories were creepy: the softcore sexy descriptions, the "blame the internet" righteousness, the homophobic ick factor, and the unexplained implication that Eichenwald had looked at piles of this material himself, when by current law, he wouldn't have that right, no matter how well-intentioned his purpose!"

"Why did Kurt portray himself as an elite one-man rescue mission, and why was he so lurid in his crusade? It didn't smell right."

"As [Debbie] Nathan revealed in her latest courtroom coverage in Counterpunch, Eichenwald has just retained a criminal defense lawyer -- and I don't think it's for jaywalking. The courts who've investigated the Berry sting operation found that Kurt himself was one of the webmasters with full access on Justin's web site. He gave large amounts of money to Justin and was in possession of many photographs and videos from Justin's portfolio." Speechless yet?" full story

Do tough sex laws help or hurt?

State's crackdown easier to apply to strangers; 93 percent of offenders know victims
October 20, 2007, DIANE JENNINGS and DARLEAN SPANGENBERGER / The Dallas Morning News

"...As a sexual abuse survivor, the Dallas woman understands the emotional appeal of harsher sentences for child abusers. But she says the new get-tough Texas laws promise more than they can deliver because they won't affect the vast majority of sex offenders. "We're focusing on stranger danger," she said of the crackdown, which includes 25-year minimum sentences and the death penalty for some child rapists. "That's not who's molesting the vast majority of our children."" ...

"According to federal statistics, juvenile sexual assault victims know their perpetrator a staggering 93 percent of the time. Often, it's a family member. Frequently, it's another child. Rarely is it a stranger. " ...

"...it's actually very rare that that kind of political reaction [harsher penalties] makes for good public policy." ...

"Crimes in which a child is snatched by a stranger are extremely unusual, despite public paranoia. Of almost 800,000 missing children in a one-year period, just 115 were victims of a stereotypical kidnapping, and half of those involved sexual assault, according to the Department of Justice."...

""The new laws are "sheer demagoguery," said veteran Dallas defense lawyer Vincent Perini, noting that long sentences were already available."...

"...A third of all sexual offenses are committed by juveniles, according to the Texas Council on Sex Offender Treatment." ... "Legal challenges: Child-on-child sex crimes are incredibly difficult to deal with, said Shannon Edmonds, director of governmental relations for the Texas District and County Attorneys Association. "Oftentimes, they occur within families. And the problem is trying to weed out the ones who are a danger vs. the ones who are just playing doctor." full story

The ACTUAL Risks to Children

Sex Offenders vs. Child Safety
by Shirley Lowery, S.O.S.E.N. (Sex Offender Support & Education Network)
September 3, 2007

"The laws enacted to monitor and control sex offenders are extraordinary. I think we can all agree to that. The general public believes these extraordinary laws are justified. The faces of murdered children, killed by sexual predators, are flashed on the TV urging us to "consider the children." And who could resist? Who would want to? Surely it is justified to face the threats to our children.

But what are those threats really? Is there a way to know? Actually, yes..." ...

"in 2002, your child was:
1400% more likely to hang themselves than be snatched and killed by a sex offender.
1500% more likely to shoot themselves than be snatched and killed by a sex offender
3200% more likely to be murdered with a firearm by someone besides a sex offender.
4000% more likely to be shot, stabbed, strangled, burned alive or poisoned than snatched and killed by a sex offender.
15300% more likely to be killed in a car crash than snatched and killed by a sex offender. full story

Boys, 9 and 11, Charged in Sex Assault

Howell, Michigan
Two boys, ages 9 and 11, have been charged with forcing a 7-year-old boy to perform oral sex on them on a school bus.

The boys, charged in juvenile court, could be placed on Michigan's sex offender registry for life if they are convicted, The Ann Arbor News reported Tuesday.

The incident reportedly took place in May. The boys- accused of first- and second-degree criminal sexual conduct and gross indecency between males-are students at Howell Elementary School, about 45 miles northwest of Detroit.

Authorities will request an evaluation to determine whether the sexual contact was predatory or experimentation, Livingston County Prosecutor David L. Morse said.

The 11-year-old was released Friday on a $25,000 personal bond. He is required to be monitored by an adult at all times and is not allowed to spend the night at his mother's house if his two younger siblings are present.

The 9-year-old was charged in August, but the status of his case wasn't available Tuesday.

The 11-year-old's court-appointed lawyer said his client pleaded not guilty, and he called the court conditions excessive.

"In the blink of an eye, he went from being a boy to being a man before the court," attorney Carolyn Henry said.

The father of the 7-year-old reported the incident to police after catching his son performing oral sex on his younger brother at home, WHMI-FM reported. The 7-year-old later told police that the 9-year-old boy forced him to perform sex acts on him several times on the bus, the Livingston County Daily Press & Argus reported.

'Corrective' Sex Education May Make Sex Offenders More Dangerous

Science Daily
University of Alberta study, Journal of Intellectual & Developmental Disability
Date: October 17, 2007
While it is commonly thought that men with low IQs sexually offend because of a lack of knowledge or sexual deviance, new research has found the men may sexually offend because of their exposure to "corrective" sex education previously taken. full story

Are We Teaching Children To Fear Men?

"And that men are out to hurt them? The answer, on many fronts, is yes".
By JEFF ZASLOW, Wall Street Journal, August 23, 2007

"When children get lost in a mall, they're supposed to find a "low-risk adult" to help them... "a pregnant woman," "a mother pushing a stroller" or "a grandmother." The implied message: Men, even dads pushing strollers, are "high-risk." " ... "Child advocate John Walsh advises parents to never hire a male babysitter. Airlines are placing unaccompanied minors with female passengers rather than male passengers. Soccer leagues are telling male coaches not to touch players". ... "People assume that all men "have the potential for violence and sexual aggressiveness," says Peter Stearns, a George Mason University professor who studies fear and anxiety. Kids end up viewing every male stranger "as a potential evildoer," he says, and as a byproduct, "there's an overconfidence in female virtues."" full story

Malaysia To Exchange Sex Offenders List With Other Countries

Asia Observer
By D.Arul Rajoo

"The Royal Malaysia Police, who are considering publishing the list of convicted child sex offenders, plan to exchange information on paedophiles, rapists, human traffickers and other criminals with enforcement agencies world-wide. Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan said that initially they would exchange the database of such offenders with their counterparts in Europe and Asean. "We want closer networking with other countries due to the trend in human trafficking". full story

The "Teen Sex Slave" Scams ABC's Primetime Fakery

CounterPunch, February 17, 2006
By DEBBIE NATHAN
"...the Bush Administration's mission to find foreign "sex trafficking" victims has gone belly up since it began in 2001. Almost no victims have been located, but the feds want to keep their law and rhetoric afloat and broaden it to other areas, including the culture wars. For ballast, they're trolling for a domestic demographic, warning that kids and prostitution is a new "trafficking" problem.

But the claim is specious. To make it, you have to play with language and omit facts or bend them so far that they break. That's what Primetime did, Thursday, February 9, with two teens, one pseudonymed "Debbie," and the other called by her real name, Miya." full story

Sex Offender Roundup Begins Today

By John Simerman
Contra Costa Times

State parole agents today will start arresting perhaps hundreds of recently paroled sex criminals, many of whom could land back in prison for living too close to schools and parks under Proposition 83, corrections officials said Thursday.

Plans for an aggressive roundup of parolee sex offenders who live within 2,000 feet of schools and parks where children "regularly gather" were announced a day after the California Supreme Court blocked the state from forcing four parolees to move out of the zones or have their parole revoked. full story

Registered Offenders Rights Being Defended

by Betty Price, Founder "Roar for Freedom"
October 14, 2007

"It is time for all Registered Sex Offenders to file these lawsuits. No one in the injustice system cares what happens to the entire family. In most instances, the family has to move to an apartment or another house, pay rent on where they are living and pay a mortgage on their house while trying to sell it. I pray this Gentleman and his Attorney take this as far as they can, if they have to. ...If more Registered Sex Offenders would fight back like this Gentleman, perhaps you could make some changes in these ignorant laws. Stop thinking fearfully and think logically and smartly."... "The right to own property in this country is a fundamental right. Why is he being deprived of a fundamental right to own and enjoy property?" Chief Justice Thomas J. Moyer"

One Citizen's Response to Proposed Ordinance in Illinois

"The American people, it would seem, have embarked on a project to totally destroy the group of people it has defined as "sex offenders." It has, in other words, decided that it wants to purify itself by means of a holocaust. The term "holocaust," which has the literal meaning of a complete destruction by fire, is commonly used to refer to any massive destruction of a group of people by another group of people. The best known example is the Jewish Holocaust under Hitler. Is it overstating the case to use this term with regard to the treatment of sex offenders in the US? I would submit to you that, on the contrary, what we have been witnessing for some years now with regard to the sex offender issue has all the earmarks of an emerging holocaust. The first and perhaps most important step in the creation of any holocaust is the demonization of the group of people that is to be destroyed". full story

University of Washington wants sex offenders moved, Property Owner Suspects Ulterior Motives

SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER
October 12, 2007
By KATHY MULADY

"Carol Clarke believes in second chances. It's part of the reason she allows sex offenders who have served their prison time -- and have a plan for turning their lives around -- to live in the five houses she manages ...near the University of Washington. Clarke is mystified why suddenly, after seven years without problems, 13 sex offenders under state Department of Corrections supervision, who rent rooms in her homes along 18th Avenue Northeast, may have to find new places to live. ... Clarke suspects that the growing university wants to buy her houses. When she complained about her tenants being forced to move, she said, Godfrey told her, "There is a solution to our problem. We can buy a couple of your houses, and you can go set your program up somewhere else."" full story

Sex Offender Laws May Do More Harm Than Good

Sarah Tofte, for the Huffington Post
October 12, 2007
"It's not surprising that those who know something about the nature of sexual violence in the United States have started to criticize the way the laws treat former sex offenders. But it's a shame that politicians don't seem to be listening to the experts who could help to craft laws that might actually prevent sexual violence." read story

State defies high court over sex offenders: Hundreds will be sent back to prison for violating Jessica's Law

Michael Rothfeld, Los Angeles Times
October 12, 2007
SACRAMENTO -- — Vowing to fight an order from the state's highest court, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and corrections officials Thursday defiantly began sending hundreds of freed sex offenders back to prison for violating strict residency requirements imposed by voters last year. full story

Sex offenders' rights defended

Thursday, October 11, 2007 4:02 AM
By Mary Beth Lane, The Columbus Dispatch

"Forcing a registered sex offender to leave a home that he bought before a residence-restriction law went into effect in 2003 violates his constitutional property rights, a lawyer for an offender told the Ohio Supreme Court yesterday". full story

Mob beat up paedo slur victim

A vigilante mob have been jailed after storming the home of a man wrongly branded a paedophile and battering him and his son.

Christopher Peters was so terrified after locals on his estate falsely called him a pervert that he put in CCTV.

Mr Peters - cowering indoors after an earlier assault - answered his door, expecting police. But James Nicholson, 19, ex-soldier dad James Snr, 52, and Andrew Smith, 23, rushed in to attack him and son Anthony late at night in Hythe, Hants, in March.

Nicholson Snr, of Hythe, got 42 months for GBH and burglary and his son 28 months for ABH, GBH and two other offences. Smith, 23, got 32 months for ABH and GBH. All had previous convictions.

Southampton crown court judge John Boggis QC stressed Mr Peters was "not and has never been a paedophile".

Ordinance would restrict where sex offenders could go

Tuesday, October 9, 2007
BRIAN ECKHOUSE, THE CALIFORNIAN
" CANYON LAKE -- A proposed ordinance favored by the City Council would prohibit sex offenders from being within 500 feet of parks, beaches and bus stops. The ordinance would further restrict how close a sex offender could live -- and visit -- to these public places". full story

Judge strikes sex offense commitment law

By Mike Baker, Associated Press Writer

RALEIGH, N.C. — The U.S. government cannot keep sex offenders in custody beyond the end of their prison sentences, a federal judge has ruled, striking down a law aimed at holding some in mental hospitals. full story

Counterpunch Urges Support for Reform of Sex Offender Laws

By PAUL SHANNON, Counterpunch Magazine
July 10, 2007
You can sign this public statement at Reform Sex Offender Laws website to support the reform of existing sex offender laws.

"There is today in our country a growing threat to our legal system, to the rights of all of us, to the quality of life of children, and to common sense. This threat has been fanned by prosecutors, nurtured by the media, and ignored by those who usually speak out against such dangers. In its most narrow sense this threat can be defined as the particular approach to sexual deviance embodied in ever-more-draconian laws against all behaviors labeled "sex offenses" -- including those committed by minors -- and in the sex offender registries of every state and the Federal government. In this approach to sex offenses slander, hysteria and demonization often replace reason, solid research and proportionality". full story