![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Now, please don't get me wrong, child molesters and rapists deserve harsh punishments. But we live in a society that fears sex and creates criminals where no crime was committed.
I have argued against the current Sex Offender laws that required all sex offenders to have their personal information made public. I am against this because of what types of people are officially labeled "sex offender" in the legal books. A mother of children has every reason to be concerned if a repeated child molester lives next door to her, particularly if he appears friendly and offers to babysit her kids. But when she gets this shocking list on the internet of 30 sex offenders in her neighborhood, she's getting a list of guys who were drunk and disorderly and disrobed in public at a bachelor party one night, and guys who had consensual sex with girls only a year or two younger than they were at the time. This is not cause for concern, nor is it even any of her business.
And the real shame of this is that these men are now branded FOR LIFE for something they may have done 20 years ago (or will be 20 years by the time they get out). They are now prevented from fair housing and job placement. Sure, we can put laws into place that says we cannot discriminate on the basis of criminal record for things like housing, but it's done nevertheless.
And to put to rest any criticisms that I'm exaggerating about the extent to which non-deserving people get punished by our society's hysterical fear of sex, check out this article:
http://www.mail.com/Article.aspx?articlepath=APNews\Top%20Headlines\20071027\Teen_Sex_Case_20071027.xml&cat=topheadlines&subcat=&pageid=1
So, in 1995, a law is passed that makes a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison for "child molestation". In 2003, a 17 year old boy has oral sex with a 15 year old girl at a party (caught on video) who still maintains that she was never coerced. Maybe that was poor judgment (that's debatable), but it's hardly an offense worthy of 10 years in prison! In 2006, the state came to its senses and repealed the 1995 law, but the courts say "oh, so sorry, it was illegal back then. Just because it's not illegal anymore, we can't go and release offenders now".
What is WRONG with our society? We are so afraid, pathologically afraid, of sex that we would take away the future of a boy, an honor roll student, a homecoming king, an athlete, a boy with POTENTIAL, all because a girl WILLINGLY gave him a blowjob?!? Speaking as an adult, I can totally respect wanting to protect children from abusers, rapists and molesters. Speaking as someone who was once a 15 year old girl, this was NOT a case of rape, abuse, or molestation! I willingly engaged in acts of sex from age 12 through 18 because I WANTED TO. When I was 15, I lost my virginity to a 19 year old BECAUSE I WANTED TO. I'm not saying these were smart decisions, I'm saying these were choices I made and no one else should be held responsible for any consequences I could have suffered.
It is abso-fucking-lutely ridiculous that this boy's entire life has been stolen from him because our society refuses to acknowledge that we are sexual beings. We don't want to think of our parents that way, we certainly don't want to think of our children that way. We are TERRIFIED of sex! It is a good sign that the lawmakers finally came to their senses and released him, but that doesn't change the fact that he is now permanently branded as a sex offender, with all the discrimination and societal abuse that comes with it, nor does it change the fact that our society in general views sexual acts as evil and wrong, especially when they have anything at all to do with minors and unmarried people.
People have sex. Get the fuck over it. Know the consequences, be safe, make better decisions, take responsibility for your actions. But sweeping this fact under the rug, refusing to see that a teenager is sexual, will not make it go away. We are biologically designed to start having sex in our teenage years. Of COURSE there are problems with that ... kids' brains are not yet fully developed and they are notorious for making poor choices because they do not have the knowledge or experience to understand what they're getting into. But getting your dick sucked at a party by a girl who wants to do it is not a good enough reason to brand a teenager as a criminal, a sex offender, a CHILD MOLESTER for life.
I have argued against the current Sex Offender laws that required all sex offenders to have their personal information made public. I am against this because of what types of people are officially labeled "sex offender" in the legal books. A mother of children has every reason to be concerned if a repeated child molester lives next door to her, particularly if he appears friendly and offers to babysit her kids. But when she gets this shocking list on the internet of 30 sex offenders in her neighborhood, she's getting a list of guys who were drunk and disorderly and disrobed in public at a bachelor party one night, and guys who had consensual sex with girls only a year or two younger than they were at the time. This is not cause for concern, nor is it even any of her business.
And the real shame of this is that these men are now branded FOR LIFE for something they may have done 20 years ago (or will be 20 years by the time they get out). They are now prevented from fair housing and job placement. Sure, we can put laws into place that says we cannot discriminate on the basis of criminal record for things like housing, but it's done nevertheless.
And to put to rest any criticisms that I'm exaggerating about the extent to which non-deserving people get punished by our society's hysterical fear of sex, check out this article:
http://www.mail.com/Article.aspx?articlepath=APNews\Top%20Headlines\20071027\Teen_Sex_Case_20071027.xml&cat=topheadlines&subcat=&pageid=1
Georgia Court Frees Man in Teen Sex Case
Friday, October 26, 2007 8:39:33 PM
By DANIEL YEE
A former high school football star given 10 years in prison for having consensual oral sex with another teenager was freed Friday by Georgia's highest court, which ruled that his sentence amounted to cruel and unusual punishment.
Genarlow Wilson spent two years behind bars in the case that led to widespread protests of racism and heavy handed justice.
"I was in total disbelief," Wilson told reporters outside the prison. "I'm finally happy to see we've got justice now."
Wilson, 21, also said he wants to help other teens and offered some advice: "They should be very hesitant before they join certain crowds and make certain decisions."
In its 4-3 decision, the Georgia Supreme Court noted that state lawmakers had scrapped the law that required a minimum 10-year prison term.
That change, the court said, represented "a seismic shift in the legislature's view of the gravity of oral sex between two willing teenage participants."
The justices also said Wilson's sentence made "no measurable contribution to acceptable goals of punishment," and his crime did not rise to the "level of adults who prey on children."
After he was imprisoned, Wilson became the subject of prominent editorials and national news broadcasts. His sentence was denounced even by members of the jury that convicted him and the author of the 1995 law that put him in prison. **(Well, then the author should have thought about that when he made a mandatory minimum sentence on a blanket law like "no sex with 16 year-olds" - the number of 40-year olds having sex with teenagers is few, the number of other teens having sex with teens is much higher.)**
Supporters including former President Jimmy Carter said the case raised troubling questions about race and the justice system. Wilson and the girl are both black. **(I have no idea what this has to do with the case, I'm assuming someone suggested that if it had been two white kids, they wouldn't have been prosecuted, but I see no reason from this article alone to suggest that race is any kind of issue here)**
Wilson, a former honor student and homecoming king, was convicted of aggravated child molestation after he was videotaped having oral sex with a 15-year-old girl at a 2003 New Year's Eve party in a hotel room. He was 17 at the time.
Wilson was acquitted of raping another 17-year-old girl at the party.
State Attorney General Thurbert Baker said he hopes Friday's ruling puts "an end to this issue as a matter of contention in the hearts and minds of concerned Georgians and others across the country who have taken such a strong interest in this case."
The man who prosecuted Wilson, Douglas County District Attorney David McDade, said he disagreed with the decision, but he respects the court "as the final arbiter."
Wilson's supporters were jubilant.
"I never gave up hope in our judicial system, and I never gave up hope in all the prayers people sent out for us," said Wilson's mother, Juannessa Bennett.
Rep. John Lewis, an Atlanta Democrat, said: "Each day that this young man spent in prison was a day too long."
The 1995 law Wilson violated was changed in 2006 to make oral sex between teens close in age a misdemeanor, similar to the law regarding teen sexual intercourse. But the state Supreme Court later upheld a lower-court ruling that said the 2006 law could not be applied retroactively.
The high court had turned down Wilson's appeal of his conviction and sentence, but the justices agreed to hear the state's appeal of a judge's decision to reduce Wilson's sentence to 12 months and free him. That judge had called the 10-year sentence a "grave miscarriage of justice."
Wilson said he plans to return to school and sports and possibly study sociology. For now, he was looking forward to spending time with relatives.
"I feel I've been away from them long enough," he said. "At times, we've dealt with adversity. Now my family, we finally get to deal with happiness.
**The comments in italics, asterisks and parentheses are my own comments, not the article
Friday, October 26, 2007 8:39:33 PM
By DANIEL YEE
A former high school football star given 10 years in prison for having consensual oral sex with another teenager was freed Friday by Georgia's highest court, which ruled that his sentence amounted to cruel and unusual punishment.
Genarlow Wilson spent two years behind bars in the case that led to widespread protests of racism and heavy handed justice.
"I was in total disbelief," Wilson told reporters outside the prison. "I'm finally happy to see we've got justice now."
Wilson, 21, also said he wants to help other teens and offered some advice: "They should be very hesitant before they join certain crowds and make certain decisions."
In its 4-3 decision, the Georgia Supreme Court noted that state lawmakers had scrapped the law that required a minimum 10-year prison term.
That change, the court said, represented "a seismic shift in the legislature's view of the gravity of oral sex between two willing teenage participants."
The justices also said Wilson's sentence made "no measurable contribution to acceptable goals of punishment," and his crime did not rise to the "level of adults who prey on children."
After he was imprisoned, Wilson became the subject of prominent editorials and national news broadcasts. His sentence was denounced even by members of the jury that convicted him and the author of the 1995 law that put him in prison. **(Well, then the author should have thought about that when he made a mandatory minimum sentence on a blanket law like "no sex with 16 year-olds" - the number of 40-year olds having sex with teenagers is few, the number of other teens having sex with teens is much higher.)**
Supporters including former President Jimmy Carter said the case raised troubling questions about race and the justice system. Wilson and the girl are both black. **(I have no idea what this has to do with the case, I'm assuming someone suggested that if it had been two white kids, they wouldn't have been prosecuted, but I see no reason from this article alone to suggest that race is any kind of issue here)**
Wilson, a former honor student and homecoming king, was convicted of aggravated child molestation after he was videotaped having oral sex with a 15-year-old girl at a 2003 New Year's Eve party in a hotel room. He was 17 at the time.
Wilson was acquitted of raping another 17-year-old girl at the party.
State Attorney General Thurbert Baker said he hopes Friday's ruling puts "an end to this issue as a matter of contention in the hearts and minds of concerned Georgians and others across the country who have taken such a strong interest in this case."
The man who prosecuted Wilson, Douglas County District Attorney David McDade, said he disagreed with the decision, but he respects the court "as the final arbiter."
Wilson's supporters were jubilant.
"I never gave up hope in our judicial system, and I never gave up hope in all the prayers people sent out for us," said Wilson's mother, Juannessa Bennett.
Rep. John Lewis, an Atlanta Democrat, said: "Each day that this young man spent in prison was a day too long."
The 1995 law Wilson violated was changed in 2006 to make oral sex between teens close in age a misdemeanor, similar to the law regarding teen sexual intercourse. But the state Supreme Court later upheld a lower-court ruling that said the 2006 law could not be applied retroactively.
The high court had turned down Wilson's appeal of his conviction and sentence, but the justices agreed to hear the state's appeal of a judge's decision to reduce Wilson's sentence to 12 months and free him. That judge had called the 10-year sentence a "grave miscarriage of justice."
Wilson said he plans to return to school and sports and possibly study sociology. For now, he was looking forward to spending time with relatives.
"I feel I've been away from them long enough," he said. "At times, we've dealt with adversity. Now my family, we finally get to deal with happiness.
**The comments in italics, asterisks and parentheses are my own comments, not the article
So, in 1995, a law is passed that makes a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison for "child molestation". In 2003, a 17 year old boy has oral sex with a 15 year old girl at a party (caught on video) who still maintains that she was never coerced. Maybe that was poor judgment (that's debatable), but it's hardly an offense worthy of 10 years in prison! In 2006, the state came to its senses and repealed the 1995 law, but the courts say "oh, so sorry, it was illegal back then. Just because it's not illegal anymore, we can't go and release offenders now".
What is WRONG with our society? We are so afraid, pathologically afraid, of sex that we would take away the future of a boy, an honor roll student, a homecoming king, an athlete, a boy with POTENTIAL, all because a girl WILLINGLY gave him a blowjob?!? Speaking as an adult, I can totally respect wanting to protect children from abusers, rapists and molesters. Speaking as someone who was once a 15 year old girl, this was NOT a case of rape, abuse, or molestation! I willingly engaged in acts of sex from age 12 through 18 because I WANTED TO. When I was 15, I lost my virginity to a 19 year old BECAUSE I WANTED TO. I'm not saying these were smart decisions, I'm saying these were choices I made and no one else should be held responsible for any consequences I could have suffered.
It is abso-fucking-lutely ridiculous that this boy's entire life has been stolen from him because our society refuses to acknowledge that we are sexual beings. We don't want to think of our parents that way, we certainly don't want to think of our children that way. We are TERRIFIED of sex! It is a good sign that the lawmakers finally came to their senses and released him, but that doesn't change the fact that he is now permanently branded as a sex offender, with all the discrimination and societal abuse that comes with it, nor does it change the fact that our society in general views sexual acts as evil and wrong, especially when they have anything at all to do with minors and unmarried people.
People have sex. Get the fuck over it. Know the consequences, be safe, make better decisions, take responsibility for your actions. But sweeping this fact under the rug, refusing to see that a teenager is sexual, will not make it go away. We are biologically designed to start having sex in our teenage years. Of COURSE there are problems with that ... kids' brains are not yet fully developed and they are notorious for making poor choices because they do not have the knowledge or experience to understand what they're getting into. But getting your dick sucked at a party by a girl who wants to do it is not a good enough reason to brand a teenager as a criminal, a sex offender, a CHILD MOLESTER for life.
Re: It pisses me off, too....
Date: 10/29/07 05:22 pm (UTC)From:A link to the public record would be OK, if the public record was better written. Remember that furor we had on the Freaks list not to long ago, where one person got pissed at another person and posted his "public record" on the mailing list to warn everyone away? He claimed that the other guy (names removed for privacy) had this long list of felony charges and I had to step in and explain that there was one felony charge and all the rest were probation violations on the original felony charge that were all *dismissed* and the only way to understand that was to follow the link for the 2-character code at the far right of the chart and then to understand the legal jargon they used to explain it. So his record made him look like a repeat offender of felony theft. When, really, he did it once (and there were extenuating circumstances) and was merely accused of violating his probation several times and proved his innocence and the charges dismissed.
People's fear of sex makes the whole thing get out of hand. As, you mentioned, the HPV vaccine issue. There is evidence (which is not yet public) that 9 year old girls have HPV. This, to me, does not make it an "STD", it makes it an epidemic as easily transmittable as the common cold, or the flu. We give our children the flu vaccine, we should be giving our children the HPV vaccine. The original mandatory minimum sentence (which I have issues with in general, not just this case) was designed to be a severe punishment of child molestors. I'm totally for severe punishments for child molestors. But in his haste and fear, he overreacted and completely ignored all possible circumstances. The guy who wrote the law made some vague law about having sex with kids under a certain age. He didn't intend to send children to prison just because a couple of near-adults decided to get a little freaky at a party. The lawmaker disagreed with the outcome of that case (sending the teenager to prison). He let his fear overrule his sense of objectivity and rationalism and he wrote a shitty law. And it took this kid (and how many others?) losing their lives and their future to bring it home that we let our fear rule us.