Is anyone else following the case of Zach Anderson?

beach-mom · ‎03-09-2010

HERE is the story.

My friends went through something like this with their son. He was in his early 20's, working after college at a job he liked, and he met a girl online. She said she was 18 when she was 13 turning 14. Her online picture was her body profile sideways with nothing on top. She did not look 13. They chatted for a while every night and agreed to meet sometime in the future. Meanwhile the girl's mother had been on her computer and had notified the police. They talked to him online, pretending to be her, and coaxed him into conversations that were suggestive. They set up a meeting at the food court at the local mall. When he got there, he was arrested. They had never even met face to face, but the evidence was on the computers. The girl told her brother that she had told him she was 18, but her mother didn't stop. She went to all the local news stations to talk about online predators. He went to jail for a while, and was released as a convicted sex offender. He couldn't drive for a while, and not many places would take a chance on hiring him. Finally, one local business did. Similar rules to Zach's. He lived at home, so mom and dad could no longer entertain friends in their house. All the home computers had been confiscated. Finally after a number of years, and many appeals, he got his life back. It has been about 10 years. He is no longer on the sex offender registry. He is engaged to be married and he has his own apartment.

I have known this man since he was a teenager. There is no way he would have pursued a girl this young had he known. And everyone knew that. We all signed a petition.

I don't understand the justice system sometimes. Sorry I got so personal, but sometimes it just doesn't seem fair.

Young men have to be so careful now. I guess they should ask to see the girl's driver's license.

Desertdi · ‎03-13-2010

I have a couple girlfriends who met some real duds on the "senior dating sites".................... But, that's a whole different story.

♥Surface of the Sun♥

Campion · ‎10-21-2011

To me, this is a case of creating a crime. Do we need more crimes? Do we?

If the police at some point took over and tempted this kid into meeting the (unknown age) girl, then they engaged in entrapment.

The problem is, when you get booked for this and go before a judge, they offer a plea so you don't have to spend 10's of thousands with some lawyer and get an assured outcome. Oh, you'll only be 10 years on the sex offender list (and there are classes of offenders from pedophiles to unlucky 18 year olds who get involved with a 16 year old trolling herself online.) What's the difference? Under the law, scarcely any. You'll scan for "sex offenders" in your area and you can't tell if it's a kid who shouldn't have been online with a girl who equally should have not been online, or a 50 year old attacking an 8 year old. You can't tell.

So the families plea out, and then you get this nonsense. It should be illegal for police to pose as anyone for purposes of entrapment. They are creating crime. Yes, yes, it "flushes out criminals" but it also is creating a crime where none existed.

cookinfreak · ‎03-31-2010

A similar thing happened to my brothers neighbor a few years back. Girl told the guy she was 17 and was only 14. JMO but I think some sort of charge needs to be brought against the girls that lie about their age. Probably wouldn't help, but maybe deter a few from doing it.

I also agree that it is entrapment. Where was the crime? I'll bet some of these guys may figure out after talking to the girls that they are not as old as they claim and that they would not persue it any further. But how would they have a chance to do that if the cops arrest them before anything had happened?

cookin

beach-mom · ‎03-09-2010

I agree that these young girls should have some sort of consequence, but I don't know what it would be. As of now, they are not responsible for anything.

If you read Zach's story (I posted the link in my first post - click on the word "HERE"), the girl AND her mother both said it was consensual and they didn't want anything to happen to him. It didn't matter. I really hope his parents' work results in his being removed from the registry.