While there was little doubt that Lori Drew’s conduct toward Megan Meiers was wrong, and there ought to be a law, there is no doubt that pedophilia tourism is an outrage far worse. No responsible human being would argue to the contrary, as there are few more disgusting, disgraceful, inhumane acts than pedophilia. So what could possibly go wrong with a harsh law prohibiting it?
From the BBC, an unnamed 48 year old Italian tourist, visiting the coastal city of Fortaleza with his wife and daughter, was seen kissing his 8 year old child in public.
Witnesses told police the man allegedly touched the girl in an intimate way.
Under a strict new law partly designed to combat child sex abuse in South America’s largest country, he faces eight to 15 years in jail if convicted.
The unnamed man has been in custody for almost a week. A new attempt to secure his release this weekend failed.
His Brazilian wife says the case is all a misunderstanding, while staff at the resort where the incident took place have been reported as saying they saw nothing unusual.
We want so desperately to put a stop to conduct that harms others, especially children. But for those who contend that there has to be a way to separate out the crime from the innocent conduct that is somehow mistakenly swept along with it. stories like this serve to remind us of how difficult this task can be.
While it’s conceivable that this Italian tourist touched his daughter in a way that alarmed witnesses, and even that it was improper and perhaps even criminal, the more likely scenario is that this was a misunderstanding, perhaps culturally driven, or perhaps even grounded in prejudice.
While it’s conceivable that this Italian tourist touched his daughter in a way that alarmed witnesses, and even that it was improper and perhaps even criminal, the more likely scenario is that this was a misunderstanding, perhaps culturally driven, or perhaps even grounded in prejudice.
He was reported to the police by a Brazilian couple who claimed he had been touching a young girl inappropriately and had kissed her on the mouth while they were both at a swimming pool close to the beach in full view of other tourists.
It appears the couple who made the allegations did not know that the man was with his daughter.
The north-east of Brazil has for some years had a problem of pedophiles traveling to the area, often from overseas, and strongly-worded warnings about the penalties for exploiting children are posted in most hotels.
However the wife of the arrested tourist says it was all a misunderstanding by witnesses who had misinterpreted seeing a foreign white man with a young darker-skinned girl.
Some people think that a father kissing his 8 year old daughter on the mouth is inappropriate. Even worse when it’s a white man and a darker-skinned girl. This had all the makings of a crime.
Given the limits of the written word, and the often quick and dirty drafting of legislation in reaction to public demand, suffering further from carelessness, compromise and demagoguery, law can become as much of a problem as a solution. Some would hope that the police or prosecution would serve as a safety valve on the unintended, even absurd, application of law. Ah, hope. Haven’t we seen enough videos, read enough stories, to know better? Consider former prosecutor,now Judge, John Jackson’s debunked rationalization for maintaining his belief that Cameron Todd Willingham deserved to be executed.
The anticipation, or expectation, that laws will be enacted to save us from every perceived wrong, but will be handled delicately and thoughtfully, is mere wishful thinking. While many police officers and prosecutors will exercise sound discretion in the performance of their duty, some will not. Whoever is on the receiving end of the overly zealous enforcer will take no comfort in the latter.
Whether we see it as overcriminalization, or society run amok in its desire to rid itself of criminal conduct, we ignore it at our peril. We would all hope to live in a world where no one harmed anyone else, but wishful thinking won’t overcome the collateral damage in our rush to reach legal Utopia.
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