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Tofusensei wrote:

hikaru004 wrote:

Lothar wrote:

hikaru004 wrote:

You mean like girls panhandling for money to buy Pocki? It's not like conventions were safe before now.

Panhandling = kidnapping. You win the Internets, good sir.

How do you know she was kidnapped? She could have ran away.

IANAL, but I'm pretty sure by definition if a minor (who is not legally capable of making their own decisions) runs away with a 40 year old man, that's more or less grounds for a kidnapping charge.

-Tofu

This is the legal definition of kidnapping. This is the Oklahoma version. (Looks like the upper limit is age 12.) It is possible that this isn't kidnapping if the girl went willingly. He'll prob get another charge like rape if he had sex with her. (The guy was over the upper age limit of 18 and the girl is 14.)

What a sad and disturbing story. Of course, I pray for a safe resolution. Maybe the even more disturbing fact is that I'm sadly sure this is just the tip of the iceberg. Cases like this happen way too often. This one just happens to involve some anime con.

It's odd. Friends and I joke about getting hit on and picking up 'jailbait' at cons, mainly directed at one friend who does a lot of panels and con stuff. We've even sent him some rather blue songs about it for a lark. It's rather an off color joke, kinda like joking that you're gonna smash the next crappy Inu-yasha cosplayer in the face with a hammer. It's a way of dealing with a disturbing idea, humor. Meanwhile, the reality is quite disturbing, as you can see here.

I would be surprised if actual predators show up at cons. It's surely a large meeting area for underage teens, more and more every year. You hope they're smart enough to avoid such advances from some older person. Of course I'm sure even kids their own age can be a danger too. Not that this event started at a convention, but it does make me wonder about safety at them.

hikaru004 wrote:

This is the legal definition of kidnapping. This is the Oklahoma version. (Looks like the upper limit is age 12.) It is possible that this isn't kidnapping if the girl went willingly. He'll prob get another charge like rape if he had sex with her. (The guy was over the upper age limit of 18 and the girl is 14.)

If they're headed to Texas, it's across state lines, which probably means that federal laws apply.

Haha. So many of you think they'll actually be going to the stated conventions. I've got news for you- even if the original intention was to go to Ikkicon, there's no way the guy will go there now what with the authorities alerted to their destination.

I think that it's more likely the girl is headed to the bottom of a ditch or shallow grave than to California for Anime Expo.

BellosTheMighty wrote:

hikaru004 wrote:

This is the legal definition of kidnapping. This is the Oklahoma version. (Looks like the upper limit is age 12.) It is possible that this isn't kidnapping if the girl went willingly. He'll prob get another charge like rape if he had sex with her. (The guy was over the upper age limit of 18 and the girl is 14.)

If they're headed to Texas, it's across state lines, which probably means that federal laws apply.

If the girl went willingly, then no law was broken. Here's the Federal verson.

Of course, if she went willingly, then she should just call home.

Hm.. I'm going to be daring to make a risque post. I got some whole new perspectives for all:

Call me naive, but has someone considered that - leaving the partner-commited-crimes asside - there could be something like... "love" between the two? It's interesting how everyone automatically assumes him to be a dirty-minded nasty pedo who will go "rape-mode" anytime, as if it's mentally or physically impossible to actually fall in love with a underage girl.

Sure, the age gap is huge and makes me cringe myself - so I don't want to defend his or her actions - running away from home is bad, going around Bonnie & Clyde style is bad - he can't be an angel, that's for sure. But.. still doesn't mean he will absolutely force anything upon her. I actually believe it's all her free will, be it a product of her weak common sense or not, at the time and place, she may have wanted it that way. I'm just the kind of the guy to always give love a chance, the hetero guy that cried at the end of Brokeback Mountain.

When a whole society seems to be against a relationship, that just sucks. Maybe they're on this insane no-way-out crime-and-anime-con-trip because of pure frustration for their impossible situation?

Personally, if there's some kind of kind of real romantic connection between them, I feel sorry. They *will* be caught most likely and be in reeeeally deep trouble, especially him. So they're both literally doomed. Guys, you need some damn good cosplay!

Samurai Drifter wrote:

Haha. So many of you think they'll actually be going to the stated conventions. I've got news for you- even if the original intention was to go to Ikkicon, there's no way the guy will go there now what with the authorities alerted to their destination.

I think that it's more likely the girl is headed to the bottom of a ditch or shallow grave than to California for Anime Expo.

That's IF they know that this case has been reported. You never what people might do, and you don't know what they're thinking at this moment in time. Rather than saying that the girl is headed for beneath the dirt, God forbid, think about the safety of the girl and what people may be able to do to return the girl to her parents. And they'll be taking a very long road trip if they're going to Anime Expo.

hikaru004 wrote:

If the girl went willingly, then no law was broken. Here's the Federal verson.

Of course, if she went willingly, then she should just call home.

I'm sure almost any prosecutor could argue Risk of Injury to a Minor.

-Tofu

Samurai Drifter wrote:

Haha. So many of you think they'll actually be going to the stated conventions. I've got news for you- even if the original intention was to go to Ikkicon, there's no way the guy will go there now what with the authorities alerted to their destination.

I think that it's more likely the girl is headed to the bottom of a ditch or shallow grave than to California for Anime Expo.

As harsh as that sounds, unfortunely that might be the case. However, if this girl ever returns back to her town, I can't imagine she'll live a "normal" life for several years.

Tofusensei wrote:

hikaru004 wrote:

If the girl went willingly, then no law was broken. Here's the Federal verson.

Of course, if she went willingly, then she should just call home.

I'm sure almost any prosecutor could argue Risk of Injury to a Minor.

-Tofu

And how would this be any different from her driving with her family to Texas? Driving is driving. Stealing money from a convenience store cash register without holding the place up won't put her at increased risk as that isn't anything that the cops in Texas are going to get the shotguns out for if he did it. The police aren't sure if he's the one that did it.

The only thing that put this in the spotlight is the Amber Alert.

Edit: People have to understand that sometimes teens do really stupid things voluntarily.

Tofusensei wrote:

hikaru004 wrote:

If the girl went willingly, then no law was broken. Here's the Federal verson.

Of course, if she went willingly, then she should just call home.

I'm sure almost any prosecutor could argue Risk of Injury to a Minor.

-Tofu

The law in most states is actually called Contributing to the Delinquency of a minor. So yes, a law has been broken. There's other minor misdemeanor laws as well (at least there are here in MD) but that's the big one right now. If they can prove any sort of sexual intercourse happened that you've got Statutory Rape. That's even bigger. I'm just irritated because this will probably give anime/anime fans more of a bad name for no bloody reason. Suppose they stop at say...Safeway to get food. Are all people that shop at Safeway now pedophiles and child kidnappers? But because Anime is not a widely accepted or understood medium in American culture the fandom will probably get a black eye over this for no reason. If/when the girl is found I can almost guarantee you a judge will have her locked up in some sort of minor mental health clinic for her own good. At least for a little while so they can do some psychological tests.

Hope she's alright.

Psycho 101 wrote:

Tofusensei wrote:

hikaru004 wrote:

If the girl went willingly, then no law was broken. Here's the Federal verson.

Of course, if she went willingly, then she should just call home.

I'm sure almost any prosecutor could argue Risk of Injury to a Minor.

-Tofu

The law in most states is actually called Contributing to the Delinquency of a minor. So yes, a law has been broken. There's other minor misdemeanor laws as well (at least there are here in MD) but that's the big one right now. If they can prove any sort of sexual intercourse happened that you've got Statutory Rape. That's even bigger. I'm just irritated because this will probably give anime/anime fans more of a bad name for no bloody reason. Suppose they stop at say...Safeway to get food. Are all people that shop at Safeway now pedophiles and child kidnappers? But because Anime is not a widely accepted or understood medium in American culture the fandom will probably get a black eye over this for no reason. If/when the girl is found I can almost guarantee you a judge will have her locked up in some sort of minor mental health clinic for her own good. At least for a little while so they can do some psychological tests.

She's only being a delinquent in that she missed school to travel to a con. She could have gone by bus or hitchhiked to get there, but instead she went with someone she knew.

The Amber Alert is what blows this out of proportions and the fact that she neglected to tell her parents what she was doing. If they did have consensual sex, it would only have been considered rape because he's above the age of 18. (If she didn't go willingly, then this side of the debate is thrown out of the window.)

If this was another teen that she went with, would we really be having this debate?

PhoenixHeart wrote:

It's interesting how everyone automatically assumes him to be a dirty-minded nasty pedo who will go "rape-mode" anytime, as if it's mentally or physically impossible to actually fall in love with a underage girl.

Agreed wholeheartedly. Romance between a 40 year old man and 14 year old girl is creepy and weird, but there's absolutely nothing that suggests that he's automatically some sort of dangerous child rapist who plans to assault her. Not every creepy 40 year old guy who is attracted to 14 year old girls is a rapist who is going to force underaged girls to do their sexual bidding. Especially since everything in the article suggests that she went by her own will, and wasn't shoved into a truck or anything.

There's not even evidence presented in the article saying or suggesting that they're going to have sex at all. Whether he should receive jail time or not is a whole different story, but I don't understand why everyone automatically labels him a child rapist. Sheesh.

PhoenixHeart wrote:

Call me naive, but has someone considered that - leaving the partner-commited-crimes asside - there could be something like... "love" between the two? It's interesting how everyone automatically assumes him to be a dirty-minded nasty pedo who will go "rape-mode" anytime, as if it's mentally or physically impossible to actually fall in love with a underage girl.

I see what you're saying, Phoenix - and sure, it is possible. Back in the day, it wouldn't even be considered that ghastly an age gap. ("The day" being the 1800s...) What the real issue is is that regardless of their feelings or crime spree, according to US law, any romantic relationship between them is illegal.

Well, and so's going on a crime spree.

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