Cops as groomers and predators

[MU82]

Startling Washington Post investigation about police officers preying on children ...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/interactive/2024/new-orleans-police-child-sexual-abuse-rodney-vicknair/?utm_campaign=wp_post_most&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&wpisrc=nl_most&carta-url=https%3A%2F%2Fs2.washingtonpost.com%2Fcar-ln-tr%2F3d11bce%2F65f324a7715ef2295fc50f19%2F5f8d147cae7e8a56e5b732a4%2F5%2F53%2F65f324a7715ef2295fc50f19

Americans have been forced to reckon with sexual misconduct committed by teachers, clergy, coaches and others with access to and authority over children. But there is little awareness of child sex crimes perpetrated by members of another profession that many children are taught to revere and obey: law enforcement.

A Washington Post investigation has found that over the past two decades, hundreds of police officers have preyed on children, while agencies across the country have failed to take steps to prevent these crimes.

At least 1,800 state and local police officers were charged with crimes involving child sexual abuse from 2005 through 2022, The Post found.

Abusive officers were rarely related to the children they were accused of raping, fondling and exploiting. They most frequently targeted girls who were 13 to 15 years old — and regularly met their victims through their jobs.

The Post identified these officers through an exclusive analysis of the nation’s most comprehensive database of police arrests at Bowling Green State University, as well as a review of thousands of court documents, police decertification records and news reports.

In case after case, officers intentionally earned the trust of parents and guardians, created opportunities to get kids alone and threatened repercussions for broken silence. Unlike teachers and priests, they did it all while wielding the power of their badges and guns.

Chuck Wexler, who leads the Police Executive Research Forum, a law enforcement policy and training organization, said the number of officers charged with these crimes is “very troubling.”

“Whatever we can do to prevent this and hold those accountable will help restore the trust in the police,” Wexler said.

But while many school systems and churches have created practices and policies to root out predators, law enforcement agencies have largely treated child sexual abuse as an isolated problem that goes away when an officer is fired or prosecuted — rather than an always-present risk that requires systemic change.

[Uncle Rico]

IBTL

[Jockey]

Simply means that these people are everywhere.

Odds would tell us that there are are probably a couple on Scoop.

[Scoop Snoop]

Simply means that these people are everywhere.

Odds would tell us that there are are probably a couple on Scoop.

Most guesses of the percentage of adult male offenders are slightly over 4% of the population, or at least it was when I was when I was a facilitator/presenter for a sexual abuse awareness program. Your "probably" is almost certainly a huge understatement. They are on Scoop. I am sure of that.

I made a point to session attendees that there are many female and juvenile offenders as well so that they knew to watch for behavioral patterns common to offenders, regardless of the gender or age of the person. Members of no profession should be dismissed of suspicion if they exhibit the behavioral patterns. I provided examples of women, teens, physicians and judges who were apprehended to drive the point home. The names of two New York state judges appeared on the "roster" of a "Man-Boy Love Association" organization. A pediatrician had been caught abusing young children and a cardiologist of abusing early teen girls.

I also had attendees who decided during the discussion period to share their stories of childhood abuse with the group. I cannot find the words to express what it was like to hear the stories first hand. "Gut-wrenching" is far too mild.

 

[MU82]

Most guesses of the percentage of adult male offenders are slightly over 4% of the population, or at least it was when I was when I was a facilitator/presenter for a sexual abuse awareness program. Your "probably" is almost certainly a huge understatement. They are on Scoop. I am sure of that.

I made a point to session attendees that there are many female and juvenile offenders as well so that they knew to watch for behavioral patterns common to offenders, regardless of the gender or age of the person. Members of no profession should be dismissed of suspicion if they exhibit the behavioral patterns. I provided examples of women, teens, physicians and judges who were apprehended to drive the point home. The names of two New York state judges appeared on the "roster" of a "Man-Boy Love Association" organization. A pediatrician had been caught abusing young children and a cardiologist of abusing early teen girls.

I also had attendees who decided during the discussion period to share their stories of childhood abuse with the group. I cannot find the words to express what it was like to hear the stories first hand. "Gut-wrenching" is far too mild.

Thanks for offering this perspective.

When the predator is someone that kids have been conditioned for years to trust and respect - clergy, teachers, police officers, doctors, etc - it's all the more gut-wrenching. Many of these young victims will never be able to trust anybody ever again. Tragic.

[Pakuni]

Thanks for offering this perspective.

When the predator is someone that kids have been conditioned for years to trust and respect - clergy, teachers, police officers, doctors, etc - it's all the more gut-wrenching. Many of these young victims will never be able to trust anybody ever again. Tragic.

It's that trust and often pre-existing relationships that predators exploit. In the vast majority of child sexual abuse cases, the victim knows the abuser. Instances of "stranger danger" get much of the publicity, but are rare.
Of course, that doesn't account all the children trafficked through pizza restaurants and Wayfair catalogues.

[Plaque Lives Matter!]

It is hard to reconcile how so many supposedly trusted positions of authority within a community are high areas of risk for predation. Maybe that is why the sources of this awful issue is often ham-fistedly deflected onto more vulnerable demographics.

We do not/cannot imagine that those who are supposed to protect and offer the moral standard of society are so often the ones perpetuating the abuse.

[Scoop Snoop]

I am going to begin with a disclaimer. I have no professional (higher education) training in this very complex issue. I had only training in the presentation of a professionally developed educational program. Presenters were warned to not go off on their own (opinions, theories, etc.)  in order to "preserve the integrity of the program". There was a huge amount of additional information available for presenters and I read quite a bit of it. The program was updated frequently, mostly to focus predators' advances in using the internet but also to update the program in regard to new research and statistical analysis.

At the time, I was active in the Catholic Church and the name of the program was Virtus, Latin for truth. In Virginia (and my guess is everywhere) it was offered free to anyone, regardless of any religious affiliation or lack thereof. If you are interested in attending a session, go to the website of the Catholic Dioceses in your area. I assure there is far more to know than you currently do. The sessions lasted 3+ hours and involved 2 video presentations, the first explaining how predators operate (often hiding in plain sight) and the second on identifying probable/possible predators grooming kids and where to report the suspicious activities you observe. It has been years since I was a presenter, so the program may well be structured differently today.

At the time I was a presenter, the estimated percentage of cases of abuse in which a family member (parent, sibling, cousin, aunt/uncle, grandparent) is the predator was about 27%. I tell you this so that you are aware that informing the family of your suspicions is sometimes not a wise decision. The response may be "Thanks. I'll look into it". Then you will later be told that it was just a misunderstanding and all is well.

 



 

[#UnleashSean]

I am going to begin with a disclaimer. I have no professional (higher education) training in this very complex issue. I had only training in the presentation of a professionally developed educational program. Presenters were warned to not go off on their own (opinions, theories, etc.)  in order to "preserve the integrity of the program". There was a huge amount of additional information available for presenters and I read quite a bit of it. The program was updated frequently, mostly to focus predators' advances in using the internet but also to update the program in regard to new research and statistical analysis.

At the time, I was active in the Catholic Church and the name of the program was Virtus, Latin for truth. In Virginia (and my guess is everywhere) it was offered free to anyone, regardless of any religious affiliation or lack thereof. If you are interested in attending a session, go to the website of the Catholic Dioceses in your area. I assure there is far more to know than you currently do. The sessions lasted 3+ hours and involved 2 video presentations, the first explaining how predators operate (often hiding in plain sight) and the second on identifying probable/possible predators grooming kids and where to report the suspicious activities you observe. It has been years since I was a presenter, so the program may well be structured differently today.

At the time I was a presenter, the estimated percentage of cases of abuse in which a family member (parent, sibling, cousin, aunt/uncle, grandparent) is the predator was about 27%. I tell you this so that you are aware that informing the family of your suspicions is sometimes not a wise decision. The response may be "Thanks. I'll look into it". Then you will later be told that it was just a misunderstanding and all is well.

The last place I think I would want to take a class on "how to spot a predator" would be the catholic church honestly.

[Scoop Snoop]

The last place I think I would want to take a class on "how to spot a predator" would be the catholic church honestly.

Oh, I get that, but the program's merit is not related in any way to the church. It was produced by independent experts in the field and the church pays a fee for every time it is used. 

[MU82]

Maybe that is why the sources of this awful issue is often ham-fistedly deflected onto more vulnerable demographics.

We do not/cannot imagine that those who are supposed to protect and offer the moral standard of society are so often the ones perpetuating the abuse.

That’s one of the sad things going on now. Trans people are highly unlikely to commit these crimes. There have only been a few cases in the entire country. But to a large, bigoted segment of American, they’re the low-hanging fruit, the easy ones to call “groomers.”

Meanwhile, you literally have hundreds upon hundreds of cops and clergy and teachers - mostly heterosexual males - ruining the lives of young people who trusted them.

[WellsstreetWanderer]

The disparity makes sense as trans persons make up only a fraction of a percent of the population. I personally don’t think of them as groomers as I don’t see any acts like that reported and think they have a different drive

[Scoop Snoop]

That’s one of the sad things going on now. Trans people are highly unlikely to commit these crimes. There have only been a few cases in the entire country. But to a large, bigoted segment of American, they’re the low-hanging fruit, the easy ones to call “groomers.”

Meanwhile, you literally have hundreds upon hundreds of cops and clergy and teachers - mostly heterosexual males - ruining the lives of young people who trusted them.

Focusing on any group, including "heterosexual males" is, in my opinion, is a really bad idea. Predators are male, female, gay, straight, trans, juveniles, all races, creeds, profession etc. The entire principle of numerous training/awareness programs focuses solely on observing behavioral patterns that indicate the likelihood that a person is involved in sexual predation and reporting your observations/suspicions to the proper authorities.

 I recommend Child Protective Services. They have the experience and training and will likely question the child at school in a private room. Then, if there is sufficient reason to go forward, will contact the police to bring in the alleged predator. You may remain anonymous as the informant at this point.

The research and statistical analysis that I was knowledgeable about has almost certainly changed quite a bit but think that the basic premises are the same. From my readings years ago, I remember a paper written by two women with PHD's in psychology suggesting that female predators are probably underreported, perhaps substantially. The reasons? 1) Female predators are often abusing very young children-even sometimes their own-and the young children usually do not talk about the abuse 2) Female predators tend to be extremely careful, unlike their male counterparts who, emboldened by years of success, become careless, take risks, and get caught.

At least at the time I was involved with the program, statistics were based on all police reports of abuse and did not distinguish various levels of the abuse (e.g., Class 1, Class 2 etc.). So here's a question for you. What age group is, by far, the most likely to abuse kids? The answer is below.










Juveniles.



I have forgotten the breakdown between boys and girls, but I remember that while the boys were more likely to abuse, the split was not as overwhelming as I expected.. I cannot find the title of a book written by a MLB player who told of being abused first by his babysitter, someone who people probably referred to as a sweet girl, and later abused by a 17 year old HS boy.

[MU82]

The disparity makes sense as trans persons make up only a fraction of a percent of the population. I personally don’t think of them as groomers as I don’t see any acts like that reported and think they have a different drive

We get it. Feelings matter more to you than facts.

How many incidents of abuse by clergy, cops, teachers and the like do you think go unreported?

[MU82]

Focusing on any group, including "heterosexual males" is, in my opinion, is a really bad idea. Predators are male, female, gay, straight, trans, juveniles, all races, creeds, profession etc. The entire principle of numerous training/awareness programs focuses solely on observing behavioral patterns that indicate the likelihood that a person is involved in sexual predation and reporting your observations/suspicions to the proper authorities.

 I recommend Child Protective Services. They have the experience and training and will likely question the child at school in a private room. Then, if there is sufficient reason to go forward, will contact the police to bring in the alleged predator. You may remain anonymous as the informant at this point.

The research and statistical analysis that I was knowledgeable about has almost certainly changed quite a bit but think that the basic premises are the same. From my readings years ago, I remember a paper written by two women with PHD's in psychology suggesting that female predators are probably underreported, perhaps substantially. The reasons? 1) Female predators are often abusing very young children-even sometimes their own-and the young children usually do not talk about the abuse 2) Female predators tend to be extremely careful, unlike their male counterparts who, emboldened by years of success, become careless, take risks, and get caught.

At least at the time I was involved with the program, statistics were based on all police reports of abuse and did not distinguish various levels of the abuse (e.g., Class 1, Class 2 etc.). So here's a question for you. What age group is, by far, the most likely to abuse kids? The answer is below.










Juveniles.



I have forgotten the breakdown between boys and girls, but I remember that while the boys were more likely to abuse, the split was not as overwhelming as I expected.. I cannot find the title of a book written by a MLB player who told of being abused first by his babysitter, someone who people probably referred to as a sweet girl, and later abused by a 17 year old HS boy.

Thanks for this fact-filled comment. You're right ... we all (including me) shouldn't generalize on this issue. It's too serious.

[muwarrior69]

That’s one of the sad things going on now. Trans people are highly unlikely to commit these crimes. There have only been a few cases in the entire country. But to a large, bigoted segment of American, they’re the low-hanging fruit, the easy ones to call “groomers.”

Meanwhile, you literally have hundreds upon hundreds of cops and clergy and teachers - mostly heterosexual males - ruining the lives of young people who trusted them.

For Catholic clergy 80% of the victims were male. Disgusting regardless of orientation.

[Scoop Snoop]

For Catholic clergy 80% of the victims were male. Disgusting regardless of orientation.

My point to MU 82 was the importance of focusing on behavioral patterns common to people who are predators rather than focusing on people by group. The former will encompass people who otherwise might not be noticed in their activities. The latter not only can but has resulted in persons in a particular group from escaping detection. "A woman would never do that!" Just like "A priest would never do that!" from many years ago.

When sexual abuse first hit the news in the US decades ago, comments from people in other countries was shock at what was perceived as an American problem. Then when data sharing with police in other English-speaking countries yielded confirmation of similar patterns and other valuable insights, the response was well beyond idiotic. "Well, it seems to be a problem in English-speaking countries, but not in ours". This is just one more reason I suggest attending a program to have a realistic grasp on the problem. The amount of misinformation is massive.