Corrupted-Justice Article

On Friday, November 4th and Saturday, November 5th, a Dateline program aired on MSNBC which was devoted to publicizing how the vigilante group perverted-justice.com "exposes" online predators.

Over the course of 3 days, perverted-justice and the dateline team rented a house in a residential neighborhood in Virginia, then proceeded to conduct their own online "sting" operation, chatting sexually with online predators while pretending to be teenaged girls and boys, then inviting them for a liaison at the rented house. There were no police involved during these "busts". It was clearly stated in the program that police were not informed until after the stings took place.

In the three days, according to Dateline, nineteen different men showed up to meet what they thought was a minor for sexual purposes. A number of them were confronted on camera by the Dateline team. All good television... No doubt the program boosted the ratings of both the Dateline program and the apparent legitimacy of the perverted-justice vigilante group. Unfortunately, there was one particular incident that occurred on the program that clearly and obviously shows just how effective perverted-justice tactics actually are.

The fact that the perverted-justice team attracted a number of potentially dangerous predators to a residential neighborhood without police involvement is appalling enough. The fact that they allowed a number of them to walk or run away after being caught is worse... But the most repugnant and frightening aspect of the entire affair outshines the rest.

At one point in the program, one of the predators targeted by perverted-justice was asked to come to the house and told he should go into the garage and remove his clothes, then come into the house to meet the "child". Unbelievably , he actually did so! The entire thing was captured on Dateline's hidden cameras! He removed his clothing in the garage, then went into the kitchen, stark naked, where he was confronted by Chris Hansen, the Dateline reporter. Remember - There were no police involved...

Move forward about 20 minutes - Toward the end of the program... While online the following day, the perverted-justice team apparently notice a familiar screen name in the chat room they are working. It appears to be the same person "busted" the previous day while standing naked in the kitchen of the bust house! They immediately engage in another chat pretending to be another child and this time, they make arrangements to meet at a local McDonalds restaurant. Again, Unbelievably , he shows up at McDonalds to meet another child for sex, again "busted" by perverted-justice and the Dateline cameras.

The scenario, played out on national television, begs a number of critical questions:

Would this have happened if legitimate Law Enforcement had been involved from the outset, rather than a perverted-justice media "sting"?

If real police were involved, would this predator have walked away to prey again the very next day?

Are you comfortable knowing that in 97.4 percent of the cases perverted-justice handles, this is exactly the result?

How can anyone justify allowing more than 1000 potentially dangerous predators to simply walk away rather than being arrested and jailed by police?

Having seen this occur on national television, do you still believe that dealing with sexual predators using perverted-justice's vigilante tactics is more effective than supporting legitimate law enforcement in doing the job?

An obviously dangerous predator was allowed to walk away from the first sting without any police involvement at all, only to prey again the very next day! Chances are very good that after the 2nd meeting with the Dateline crew, he went right back to his computer to do it again! Again - Where were the police? Why was this man not jailed after the first sting? Because just like in the Dateline piece, perverted-justice very seldom involves law enforcement!

This identical scenario has played itself out in over 1000 perverted-justice "busts" to date! In over one thousand cases, the vigilante group did not involve law enforcement. That means over one thousand potentially dangerous predators could be, this very minute, arranging meetings with our children at a local McDonalds completely as a result of perverted-justice's vigilante tactics!

There is no better proof than seeing with your own eyes just how effective the tactics of the vigilante group perverted-justice were during the Dateline program. Their refusal to involve police in the vast majority of their "busts" is absolutely appalling, and what's worse, the public is being duped into believing that their methods are effective at ridding the Internet of predators! Nothing could be further from the truth! Vigilantism is not an effective means of accomplishing the task. The proof is as plain as the images on your television screen.

Until Perverted-Justice.com turns every single "bust" they do over to legitimate law enforcement for resolution rather than simply embarrassing them on their website, your children are being endangered. If that doesn't scare you into condemning the actions of this vigilante group, nothing will. Demand action!

Fairfax County Police Spokesman explains why arrests cannot be made using Perverted-Justice's "evidence"

In our most recent article in our Editorials and Articles section (Dateline Program Clearly Proves Ineffectiveness of Perverted-Justice Tactics) we posed the question "Where were the police during Dateline's latest broadcast?" - We have stated conclusively from the very beginning that perverted-justice's vigilante tactics and "group media busts" were absolutely ineffective in stopping online predators and in fact, proved beyond any logical argument that these tactics actually assist predators rather than stopping them.

Further irrefutable evidence of the ineffectiveness and danger of perverted-justice's tactics has just been published on MSNBC's own website in response to viewer questions asking "How many of the predators shown on the Dateline show have been arrested?" In a video interview with a spokesperson for the Fairfax County Police Department, it is revealed that no arrests will be possible for any of the Dateline/perverted-justice cases for two reasons -

First, virtually none of the predators were from Fairfax County, and primarily, the "evidence" gathered by the vigilante group Perverted-Justice was not sufficient to meet the legal requirements for a valid case against these men!

We will state it again, for those who are hard of hearing...

The "evidence" gathered by the vigilante group Perverted-Justice was not sufficient to meet the legal requirements for a valid case against these men!

A spokesperson for the Fairfax County Police Department has confirmed our constant assertions beyond any possible argument that vigilante "evidence" gathered by untrained, anonymous cyber-cop-wannabes is useless and cannot be used in making arrests. Unless the sting is performed properly by trained, accountable police officers, arrests cannot be made and predators are allowed to walk free, now schooled by perverted-justice.com in how not to get caught.

An MP3 audio recording of the interview can be downloaded here (Size: 2.1 Meg).

To see the actual video, surf to http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8828472/ Scroll partway down the page and click the link "Mary Ann Jennings of Fairfax County Police explains why there haven’t been arrests on the potential Internet predators seen on "Dateline." - (You'll need to use Internet Explorer to watch the video.)

Response from Fairfax County Chief of Police re: Perverted-Justice "Dateline" sting.

The following is an e-mail from the Chief of Police of Fairfax County, VA. explaining in detail why "busts" performed by vigilante groups such as Perverted-Justice are difficult, if not impossible to prosecute and may actually harm legitimate law enforcement efforts to tackle the problem of Internet predators. Certain passages have been highlighted in bold by Corrupted-Justice staff to point out specific statements. This explanation highlights why, in over 1000 Perverted-Justice "busts", less than 1% have resulted in any legal action at all.

RESPONSE TO CITIZENS RE: PERVERTED JUSTICE OPERATION

Tue 11/15/2005 9:22 AM

From: FCPD Chief, Fairfax County Police
To: admin@corrupted-justice.com

Thank you for your recent e-mail voicing your concerns about the Fairfax County Police Department response to a story aired on "Dateline NBC." The segment was disturbing to anyone who cares about the welfare of children and that includes the men and women of our Department. For some to suggest otherwise is, we believe, an unfair representation of the dedication and professionalism of our detectives and is also counter-productive to our shared goal of working together to rid our community of sexual predators targeting our children.

What we believe has been lost in the public discussion generated by the NBC program is that, in this country, everyone is innocent until proven guilty in a court of law, not on network television.

As compelling as the video aired in the "Dateline NBC" piece is, it is not sufficient proof to take into a court of law. The laws governing arrests rightfully provide protections for individuals and we respect those protections. Our Department cannot arrest any of the men simply because they showed up at the house in Fairfax County. The elements of the alleged crime and probable cause for an arrest must be clearly established through a thorough criminal investigation and the collection of evidence.

Venue (meaning the geographic area in which the offense was committed) must also be clearly established for any arrest and subsequent prosecution. The alleged crime in these cases is a violation of Virginia State Code Section § 18.2-374.3: Use of communications systems to facilitate certain offenses involving children. In these cases, since the men were allegedly communicating with someone they believed to be a juvenile, the violation would be a Class 5 felony. However, for a prosecution to occur in Fairfax County, we must establish evidence that a communication in violation of the code section was either sent or received in Fairfax County.

As a member of the Department of Justice Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, we also adhere to strict guidelines to ensure we do not entice or entrap a suspect. Private citizens are not bound by these guidelines, but we are. Every communication must be scrutinized for any evidence of entrapment. We need complete, unedited records of every computer or telephone communication between the undercover operators and the alleged offenders. We have requested these records but have not received them.

The private citizens who have communicated with the alleged offenders would be subpoenaed to testify in court, so therefore our detectives have to know who they are, their background, experience level, relevant training, and how they conducted themselves during the evidence-gathering. To date, we have been refused information about the individuals who participated in setting up the "Dateline NBC" piece.

The Fairfax County Police Department is committed to the protection and welfare of children and we are proactive in preventative and investigative measures. We also have a specialized unit to target and investigate Internet crimes and pornography that victimize children. We have conducted many investigations, and in partnership with the Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney's Office, we have successfully prosecuted and convicted many offenders.

However, although our investigative methods are proven, in this case we were not provided the opportunity to participate in advance or during the operation. In fact, we did not learn about the operation until it had been shut down. And while the tactics employed by Perverted Justice and "Dateline NBC" may be compelling and perhaps beneficial for increasing awareness of a problem, they are not necessarily effective or efficient for a criminal investigation and successful prosecution. We must, instead, now attempt to investigate these allegations backwards, which is extremely difficult and time intensive. More importantly, critical evidence may have been lost or may never be able to be collected.

None of this precludes possible future prosecutions, and we are prepared to investigate each allegation fully. However, we must have the full cooperation of Perverted Justice members and the complete disclosure of all evidence necessary to establish probable cause and to prepare clear and convincing cases for prosecution. We have invited the leaders of Perverted Justice to contact us to further the investigations.

Thank you again for your inquiry, and for your concern for the safety and welfare of our children. We share that concern with you and we are committed and unyielding in our pursuit and investigation of those who would harm our children.

Dec 02, 2005

Response from Virginia Office of the Attorney General re: Perverted-Justice "Dateline" sting.

The following is an e-mail from the Virginia Attorney General's office explaining in detail why "busts" performed by vigilante groups such as Perverted-Justice are difficult, if not impossible to prosecute and may actually harm legitimate law enforcement efforts to tackle the problem of Internet predators. The bolded portions have been highlighted by our staff to indicate the significant passages.

Further information, including a letter from the Fairfax County Chief of Police may be viewed in our Articles and Editorials section.

From: The Office of the Attorney General for the State of Virginia

Since the recent airing of the Dateline program that showed predators lured to a home in Northern Virginia for the supposed purpose of meeting a 13-year-old child, we have received many complaints in this Office.

Like yours, the nature of these complaints cites the perceived lack of initiative on the part of the local prosecutors and law enforcement to pursue legal action against the 19 men depicted in the Dateline program. While we cannot speak for the local authorities, we are aware that Fairfax Police Department is attempting to work with Perverted Justice to further investigate the cases.

Let me explain how we deal with these very important matters here. The Office of the Attorney General has created a Computer Crime Unit tasked with the pursuit of those who use computers and the Internet for the sexual exploitation of children. Within the scope of this work is the indictment and prosecution of online predators as well as the purveyors of child pornography. Attorneys and investigators in the unit work closely with local police across the Commonwealth of Virginia to accomplish these goals. Local police and other law enforcement agencies have set up undercover operations to lure child predators -- just as you saw on Dateline -- within the legal parameters necessary to follow through with arrest, indictment and prosecution. In addition, we work with recognized entities such as the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in order to make a solid, legally sound case against child exploitation that we can take to a judge or jury and feel confident that our methods and evidence will withstand constitutional challenges.

As you may be aware, the sting operation depicted in the Dateline episode was NOT conducted by law enforcement. In fact, no law enforcement personnel were present nor advised in advance of what was about to take place in Fairfax County, Virginia.

While Perverted Justice asserts they are doing good work in the area of child exploitation, and work that will withstand the scrutiny of the legal system, this may not be entirely accurate. As in any legal matter, if all of the elements of a crime are not established, there is no valid case. It is our belief that law enforcement entities such as the local police or Commonwealth’s Attorney, or even our Office, are best served, as are the citizens of the Commonwealth, when working with other experienced, knowledgeable law enforcement agencies. In this way, strong cases can be made for arrest, indictment, prosecution and, most importantly, conviction of those who prey on children with illicit intent using computers and attendant technologies such as web cams, etc.

The Dateline program, while disturbing, undoubtedly performed a public service because it reached many households and demonstrated to parents how easily children can be lured into conversations with pedophiles and others who would do them harm. Though compelling and evoking strong emotional responses, such activity on the part of citizen groups does not necessarily constitute legal authority for prosecution.

As with our SafetyNet program which we present across the Commonwealth to parents and students, this Office is vigilant in its pursuit of those who would prey on children via the Internet and continue to hold this mission as our highest priority. In that pursuit, we must work within the authority of the Code of Virginia and the Constitution to ensure that our cases withstand legal scrutiny.

Thank you for your interest in this most important subject.