July 18, 2011
The subtitle “Value of Erotica” in the report called “Child Molesters: A Behavioral Analysis For Professionals Investigating the Sexual Exploitation of Children” seems to mean that pictures, books, or other objects that might not be specifically illegal for the offender to create or possess but which establish the offender’s interest in having sex with children is helpful evidence to examine if you are an investigator or a prosecutor of acts against children which are specifically illegal.
Evidence of the person’s mentality and habit of considering children as sexual objects isn’t really peripheral in establishing the person’s patterns and likelihood of guilt.
I thought that section in the report supports what I’ve already been saying for more than a year about the suggestive pictures, advertisements and now increasingly explicit and obvious push in favor of child molestation that began with some publications in the Gannett-owned Burlington Free Press last year, and which were echoed with encouragement by blog posts created at the White House for the highest officials in the country.
To publish pictures of teenagers, children and even toddlers in papers such as the Gannett-owned Times Argus or the Gannett-owned Burlington Free Press, to surround those pictures with ads for fish, cheese, wine or water references in the midst of the same kind of campaign to degrade women by constantly making those references and then to say that it’s not illegal to create those kinds of publications is the same kind of dishonest or extremely naïve mentality that has led to the daily crises facing women’s rights a year and a half after the campaign to destroy women’s rights began. The intent of those kinds of publications and of the ads, code news stories on TV and radio, references on Internet homepages, and blogposts of people such as the President of the United States is legible, and it’s the intent that matters.
The section starts on page 93 of the report. When I first saw the subtitle in the list of Contents, I thought that I should read it because I was concerned that it might be something written in favor of child pornography as a fantasy substitute that helps prevent people who might otherwise abuse children in person by giving those potential offenders an outlet. I agree with the idea that all child pornography is child exploitation and ought to be illegal, and I was very happy to see that what I was afraid the section was going to say wasn’t what the section said at all but was in fact something that supported my own ideas about what qualifies to establish intent.
On July 15, 2011, I had hoped to write about this section of the report on Weebly, after I wrote the essay entitled “Sexual symbolism/harassment/child molestation.” That was why I wrote, on that page, “there are too many numbers in what I’m going to put on Weebly today” for me not to have apologized for some of my earlier, reckless page number choices and sarcastic comments.
I added bold print to a few sentences. The rest of the bold print was already in the report.
I'm also wondering, again, about the "CHILD ID PROGRAM" that was advertised for on the Mason's poster that I wrote about last night on WordPress. Please see the subsection entitled "Intelligence" in the following excerpt to understand my specific concern.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Value of Erotica
Few law-enforcement officers would ignore or fail to seize sexually explicit child
pornography found during a search. But, over and over again, officers ignore and
leave behind the child erotica and collateral evidence. In some cases even adult
pornography can be child erotica and, therefore, of investigative interest. Although
not as significant or damaging as child pornography, child erotica is valuable
evidence of intent and a source of valuable intelligence information. The ledgers,
diaries, letters, books, souvenirs, adult pornography, or nonsexually explicit images
of children that can be part of a child-erotica collection can be used as supportive or
corroborative evidence. The recognition and evaluation of the significance of this
type of material requires insight, common sense, and good judgment.
The investigative experience of the few law-enforcement officers investigating
adult pornography/obscenity is often limited to commercial material distributed
by individuals motivated more clearly by monetary profit. The direct connection
between the adult pornography and sex crimes is rarely a factor in these kinds of
cases. In an investigation narrowly focused only on the pornography or obscenity
violations, officers might have legal problems justifying the seizure of child erotica
and collateral evidence found when executing a search warrant or consent to search.
94 - Child Molesters: A Behavioral Analysis
In an investigation more broadly focused on child pornography and its role in the
sexual exploitation of children by child molesters, however, officers should recognize
the evidentiary value of child erotica. If the facts of the case justify it, this relationship
between child pornography and the sexual exploitation of children can be set
forth in the affidavit for a search warrant. Both the child pornography and erotica
should be seized as evidence when found in such cases. Child pornographers are
sometimes child molesters (see discussion beginning on page 107). The photograph
of even fully dressed children could be evidence of an offender’s sexual motivation
or involvement with children.
Because child erotica usually is not illegal to possess, the legal basis for its seizure
must be carefully considered. If there is doubt about the legality of the seizure, its
presence should be noted and, if possible, visually documented/recorded. As with
child pornography, this type of material is increasingly being stored on computers
and digital-memory storage devices. The investigative and prosecutorial value of
such “child erotica” or “collateral evidence” is for the purposes of
■ Intelligence – Insight into the scope of the offender’s activity; names, addresses,
and pictures of additional victims; dates and descriptions of sexual activity;
names, addresses, telephone numbers, and admissions of accomplices and other
offenders; and descriptions of sexual fantasies, background information, and
admissions of the subject are frequently part of a child-erotica collection.
■ Intent – It can be useful in proving an offender’s activity with a child or collection
of visual images of children was for sexual gratification. It can be part of the
context used to evaluate child pornography (i.e., shed light on the distinction
between innocent nudity or art and lascivious exhibition of the genitals).
■ Bond – It can be used at a bond hearing to help indicate the nature of the
subject’s sexual fantasies and interests and his potential dangerousness.
■ Guilty Plea – The seizure and documentation of such material negates many
common defenses and may increase the likelihood of a guilty plea.
■ Sentencing – Even if not admissible at trial, it may be introduced at the time
of sentencing to demonstrate the full scope of the defendant’s behavior and
interests. The legal admissibility at sentencing of evidence not used in the trial
needs to be discussed with the prosecutor.
Child erotica must be evaluated in the context in which it is found. Although many
people might have some similar items in their home, it is only the sex offender who
collects such material for sexual purposes as part of his seduction of and fantasies
about children. Many people have a mail-order catalog in their home, but only a
preferential sex offender is likely to have albums full of children’s underwear ads
he clipped and saved from past catalogs.
The law-enforcement investigator must use good judgment and common sense.
Possession of an album or computer file filled with pictures of the suspect’s own
fully dressed children probably has no significance. Possession of 15 albums/files
filled with pictures of fully dressed children unrelated to the suspect probably has
significance. Possession of his own children’s underwear in their dresser probably
is normal. Possession of a suitcase full of little girls’ underwear probably is suspicious.
Possession of a few books about child development or sex education on a
bookshelf probably has no significance. Possession of dozens of such books together
in a box probably is significant.
Possession of numerous books, magazines, articles, newspaper clippings, or
Internet downloads about the sexual development and abuse of children or about
pedophilia in general can be used as evidence of intent at a subsequent trial. It is
difficult to disprove the claim of a wrestling coach that his touching was legitimate
athletic training or the claim of a teacher that his or her touching was normal, healthy
affection. This difficult task can be made easier if law enforcement has seized a child erotica
collection including items such as a diary or fantasy writings describing the
sexual stimulation experienced when touching a child to demonstrate a wrestling
hold or fondling a student. Possession of text material stating such motivations is
not uncommon for preferential sex offenders.”
From pages 93 and 94 of
“Child Molesters: A Behavioral Analysis For Professionals Investigating the Sexual Exploitation of Children, Fifth Edition, Kenneth V. Lansing, Former Supervisory Special Agent, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Copyright 2010 National Center for Missing & Exploited Children”
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Copyright, with noted exceptions, L. Kochman July 18, 2011 @ 4:13 p.m.
----------------------------------------------
"
High-Risk Situations
There are certain high-risk situations that arise in investigating acquaintance exploitation
cases. Unfortunately certain youth organizations inadvertently provide
the child molester with almost everything necessary to operate a child sex ring. A
scouting organization, for example, fulfills the offender’s needs for access to children
of a specific age or gender, a bonding mechanism to ensure the cooperation and
secrecy of victims, and opportunities to spend the night with a victim or have a
victim change clothing. The bonding mechanism of the scouts is especially useful
to the offender. Loyalty to the leader and group, competition among boys, a system
of rewards and recognition, and indoctrination through oaths and rituals can all be
used to control, manipulate, and motivate victims. Leaders in such organizations
should be carefully screened and closely monitored.
Another high-risk situation involves high-status authority figures. As stated above,
child molesters sometimes use their adult authority to give them an edge in the
Child Molesters: A Behavioral Analysis - 77
seduction process. Adults with an added authority (e.g., teachers, camp counselors,
coaches, clergy members, law-enforcement officers, doctors, judges) present even
greater problems in the investigation of these cases. Such offenders are in a better
position to seduce and manipulate victims and escape responsibility. They are usually
believed when they deny any allegations. In such cases the law-enforcement
investigator must always incorporate understanding of the seduction process into
interviews, take the “big-picture” approach, and try to find multiple victims or
recover child pornography or erotica in order to get a conviction (see the chapter
titled “Investigating Acquaintance Sexual Exploitation” beginning on page 137).'
COMPUTER'S GOING @ 4:14 P.M.
The subtitle “Value of Erotica” in the report called “Child Molesters: A Behavioral Analysis For Professionals Investigating the Sexual Exploitation of Children” seems to mean that pictures, books, or other objects that might not be specifically illegal for the offender to create or possess but which establish the offender’s interest in having sex with children is helpful evidence to examine if you are an investigator or a prosecutor of acts against children which are specifically illegal.
Evidence of the person’s mentality and habit of considering children as sexual objects isn’t really peripheral in establishing the person’s patterns and likelihood of guilt.
I thought that section in the report supports what I’ve already been saying for more than a year about the suggestive pictures, advertisements and now increasingly explicit and obvious push in favor of child molestation that began with some publications in the Gannett-owned Burlington Free Press last year, and which were echoed with encouragement by blog posts created at the White House for the highest officials in the country.
To publish pictures of teenagers, children and even toddlers in papers such as the Gannett-owned Times Argus or the Gannett-owned Burlington Free Press, to surround those pictures with ads for fish, cheese, wine or water references in the midst of the same kind of campaign to degrade women by constantly making those references and then to say that it’s not illegal to create those kinds of publications is the same kind of dishonest or extremely naïve mentality that has led to the daily crises facing women’s rights a year and a half after the campaign to destroy women’s rights began. The intent of those kinds of publications and of the ads, code news stories on TV and radio, references on Internet homepages, and blogposts of people such as the President of the United States is legible, and it’s the intent that matters.
The section starts on page 93 of the report. When I first saw the subtitle in the list of Contents, I thought that I should read it because I was concerned that it might be something written in favor of child pornography as a fantasy substitute that helps prevent people who might otherwise abuse children in person by giving those potential offenders an outlet. I agree with the idea that all child pornography is child exploitation and ought to be illegal, and I was very happy to see that what I was afraid the section was going to say wasn’t what the section said at all but was in fact something that supported my own ideas about what qualifies to establish intent.
On July 15, 2011, I had hoped to write about this section of the report on Weebly, after I wrote the essay entitled “Sexual symbolism/harassment/child molestation.” That was why I wrote, on that page, “there are too many numbers in what I’m going to put on Weebly today” for me not to have apologized for some of my earlier, reckless page number choices and sarcastic comments.
I added bold print to a few sentences. The rest of the bold print was already in the report.
I'm also wondering, again, about the "CHILD ID PROGRAM" that was advertised for on the Mason's poster that I wrote about last night on WordPress. Please see the subsection entitled "Intelligence" in the following excerpt to understand my specific concern.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Value of Erotica
Few law-enforcement officers would ignore or fail to seize sexually explicit child
pornography found during a search. But, over and over again, officers ignore and
leave behind the child erotica and collateral evidence. In some cases even adult
pornography can be child erotica and, therefore, of investigative interest. Although
not as significant or damaging as child pornography, child erotica is valuable
evidence of intent and a source of valuable intelligence information. The ledgers,
diaries, letters, books, souvenirs, adult pornography, or nonsexually explicit images
of children that can be part of a child-erotica collection can be used as supportive or
corroborative evidence. The recognition and evaluation of the significance of this
type of material requires insight, common sense, and good judgment.
The investigative experience of the few law-enforcement officers investigating
adult pornography/obscenity is often limited to commercial material distributed
by individuals motivated more clearly by monetary profit. The direct connection
between the adult pornography and sex crimes is rarely a factor in these kinds of
cases. In an investigation narrowly focused only on the pornography or obscenity
violations, officers might have legal problems justifying the seizure of child erotica
and collateral evidence found when executing a search warrant or consent to search.
94 - Child Molesters: A Behavioral Analysis
In an investigation more broadly focused on child pornography and its role in the
sexual exploitation of children by child molesters, however, officers should recognize
the evidentiary value of child erotica. If the facts of the case justify it, this relationship
between child pornography and the sexual exploitation of children can be set
forth in the affidavit for a search warrant. Both the child pornography and erotica
should be seized as evidence when found in such cases. Child pornographers are
sometimes child molesters (see discussion beginning on page 107). The photograph
of even fully dressed children could be evidence of an offender’s sexual motivation
or involvement with children.
Because child erotica usually is not illegal to possess, the legal basis for its seizure
must be carefully considered. If there is doubt about the legality of the seizure, its
presence should be noted and, if possible, visually documented/recorded. As with
child pornography, this type of material is increasingly being stored on computers
and digital-memory storage devices. The investigative and prosecutorial value of
such “child erotica” or “collateral evidence” is for the purposes of
■ Intelligence – Insight into the scope of the offender’s activity; names, addresses,
and pictures of additional victims; dates and descriptions of sexual activity;
names, addresses, telephone numbers, and admissions of accomplices and other
offenders; and descriptions of sexual fantasies, background information, and
admissions of the subject are frequently part of a child-erotica collection.
■ Intent – It can be useful in proving an offender’s activity with a child or collection
of visual images of children was for sexual gratification. It can be part of the
context used to evaluate child pornography (i.e., shed light on the distinction
between innocent nudity or art and lascivious exhibition of the genitals).
■ Bond – It can be used at a bond hearing to help indicate the nature of the
subject’s sexual fantasies and interests and his potential dangerousness.
■ Guilty Plea – The seizure and documentation of such material negates many
common defenses and may increase the likelihood of a guilty plea.
■ Sentencing – Even if not admissible at trial, it may be introduced at the time
of sentencing to demonstrate the full scope of the defendant’s behavior and
interests. The legal admissibility at sentencing of evidence not used in the trial
needs to be discussed with the prosecutor.
Child erotica must be evaluated in the context in which it is found. Although many
people might have some similar items in their home, it is only the sex offender who
collects such material for sexual purposes as part of his seduction of and fantasies
about children. Many people have a mail-order catalog in their home, but only a
preferential sex offender is likely to have albums full of children’s underwear ads
he clipped and saved from past catalogs.
The law-enforcement investigator must use good judgment and common sense.
Possession of an album or computer file filled with pictures of the suspect’s own
fully dressed children probably has no significance. Possession of 15 albums/files
filled with pictures of fully dressed children unrelated to the suspect probably has
significance. Possession of his own children’s underwear in their dresser probably
is normal. Possession of a suitcase full of little girls’ underwear probably is suspicious.
Possession of a few books about child development or sex education on a
bookshelf probably has no significance. Possession of dozens of such books together
in a box probably is significant.
Possession of numerous books, magazines, articles, newspaper clippings, or
Internet downloads about the sexual development and abuse of children or about
pedophilia in general can be used as evidence of intent at a subsequent trial. It is
difficult to disprove the claim of a wrestling coach that his touching was legitimate
athletic training or the claim of a teacher that his or her touching was normal, healthy
affection. This difficult task can be made easier if law enforcement has seized a child erotica
collection including items such as a diary or fantasy writings describing the
sexual stimulation experienced when touching a child to demonstrate a wrestling
hold or fondling a student. Possession of text material stating such motivations is
not uncommon for preferential sex offenders.”
From pages 93 and 94 of
“Child Molesters: A Behavioral Analysis For Professionals Investigating the Sexual Exploitation of Children, Fifth Edition, Kenneth V. Lansing, Former Supervisory Special Agent, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Copyright 2010 National Center for Missing & Exploited Children”
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Copyright, with noted exceptions, L. Kochman July 18, 2011 @ 4:13 p.m.
----------------------------------------------
"
High-Risk Situations
There are certain high-risk situations that arise in investigating acquaintance exploitation
cases. Unfortunately certain youth organizations inadvertently provide
the child molester with almost everything necessary to operate a child sex ring. A
scouting organization, for example, fulfills the offender’s needs for access to children
of a specific age or gender, a bonding mechanism to ensure the cooperation and
secrecy of victims, and opportunities to spend the night with a victim or have a
victim change clothing. The bonding mechanism of the scouts is especially useful
to the offender. Loyalty to the leader and group, competition among boys, a system
of rewards and recognition, and indoctrination through oaths and rituals can all be
used to control, manipulate, and motivate victims. Leaders in such organizations
should be carefully screened and closely monitored.
Another high-risk situation involves high-status authority figures. As stated above,
child molesters sometimes use their adult authority to give them an edge in the
Child Molesters: A Behavioral Analysis - 77
seduction process. Adults with an added authority (e.g., teachers, camp counselors,
coaches, clergy members, law-enforcement officers, doctors, judges) present even
greater problems in the investigation of these cases. Such offenders are in a better
position to seduce and manipulate victims and escape responsibility. They are usually
believed when they deny any allegations. In such cases the law-enforcement
investigator must always incorporate understanding of the seduction process into
interviews, take the “big-picture” approach, and try to find multiple victims or
recover child pornography or erotica in order to get a conviction (see the chapter
titled “Investigating Acquaintance Sexual Exploitation” beginning on page 137).'
COMPUTER'S GOING @ 4:14 P.M.