Nine-year-old girl fights off man who tried to drag her off the street.

Nothing like a perv that goes after kids. Wonder how long they will manage to keep him in jail or if he will ever face any charges. Pretty sad. Good for the little girl.

I thought you used to work in the legal field?

Was that criminal law or civil? Did you forget that he's innocent until proven guilty? You don't have the full story in order to call him a "perv". Nice going.

Nothing like trying people in the media.

Drives me up the wall when people speculate about these news reports.

Thank God she is ok must have been very scary for her. Regardless of what happened , wether it was an attempted kidnapping or not it must have been terrifying for her. Again , greatful she is ok.

Good for her! Glad to see her attacker was apprehended so quickly, so as not to endanger other children.

But come on sas...it really doesn't seem like much of a jump to conclusion to refer to him as a "perv", just a short step. Of course we can't know his motivations, but it doesn't take a rocket surgeon to figure it out (that's a cross between a rocket scientist and brain surgeon, fyi). Do you want this guy babysitting your kids or grandchildren? Even if he's found guilty you would take pity on the poor soul and help rehabilitate him by offering him a job taking care of the kids in your family, or help out with a before and after school program where parental supervision isn't possible. I know I sure wouldn't.

ETA: I meant ...you could take pity... Not would.

Playing devils advocate here: (Seems I do this all the time so I must be evil ;-)

Hypothetical Scenario: Let's say you (not literally, just hypothetically) have an 18 year old son who's got a girlfriend let's say, 17 but going to be 18 in a few months. You know they're having consensual sex and you thought her parents knew but didn't. Her parents find out, ARE NOT HAPPY ABOUT IT and press charges of stat rape on your son, who happens to be a good student in school, athlete, etc., yadda yadda yadda.

His arrest is published in the newspaper and because he's 18 and considered an adult, his name is published also. But because people don't know "THE WHOLE STORY" they quickly assume he's a perv...you know because 'doesn't seem like much of a jump' to conclude he's a "perv". How would you feel about that?

Wouldn't you want your son 'rehabilitated' and would you allow him to watch your grandchildren or volunteer at a before and after school program?

Oh, but you KNOW the whole story behind that scenario so....yea.

My point is, don't try him in the media. He's allowed a fair trial. Give the court system a chance to figure it out.

The CHILD was 9 and the attacker was 19. I don't think that's the same as your scenario sas212. While I see your point, this case has nothing to do with it. A child might have been raped, tortured or killed had she not had her wits about her. Thank goodness this child was taught what to do in this situation. She saved herself and possibly another child or children by getting away and turning this guy in.

YES, I know the alleged victim was a child. The whole point of the scenario was to show how easily it is to brand a defendant before he's even had his day in court.

I, too, commend the little girl for fighting to get away and telling an adult about the incident.

For our next ridiculous analogy, we'll be comparing chickpeas to nuclear warheads and the dangers they both pose to the Puerto Rican Crested Toad.

18 and 17, whatever. 19 and 9, not even close. No amount of incessant blabber could convince me otherwise.

SAS:

I did criminal (Fed. and state) and civil (wills, trusts, LLC's, Corporations, med mal., PI, divorce, custody, etc.) for your information and cannot even deal with the criminal element anymore (after doing it for more than 12 years). I worked on the really bad cases that eat your guts out. Normal people do not go around town snatching 9 year olds---and those are the facts. If it was your child or grandchild I would like to see the same reasoning. When crime "touches" your life directly, things change in most cases.

Nice one Vic. Rehab for people that "like" kids NEVER works. For example Joseph Duncan. You are right that he has a right to a fair trial but what about the victim? It is always nice when the victims have fewer rights than the criminals. That is the CJ system for you.

ALL good points and I absolutely agree with you on all of them. Like I said at the beginning of my analogy post-I was playing Devils' Advocate.

"In common parlance, a devil's advocate is someone who takes a position, sometimes one he or she disagrees with, for the sake of argument. This process can be used to test the quality of the original argument and identify weaknesses in its structure."

Absolutley, it affects you when crime touches you or your loved ones. I see it everyday. LITERALLY, everyday. I also know that there are two sides to every story and I like to save judgment until I see both sides. It's easy to jump to conclusions and we've done it many times here on the banter box and opinions left on news articles.

In the work that I do, (working in a criminal defense office) I have to desensitize myself to it; if I didn't, I'd be more of a wreck than I already am!

I was there. I commend the Sheriffs dept and others involved for the way they handled the situation. They treated the child with respect, dignity and patience. The child was terrified and they took the time to get the facts before the arrest. Our children are very precious and I watch out for them above all. We can all learn from this.....teach your children not to be afraid to TELL SOMEONE!!!! She was a brave little girl.

sas: that's one job I wouldn't want. I know it has to be done, but I just couldn't. I'd like to stay unbiased, but working that closely with people in delicate situations, you may become privy to information that would taint your opinion of them. However, due to the circumstances of your job you have to take it in stride and do your job regardless of the truth. I respect professionals that can do that. But not the ones that make a career out of it by more or less becoming the type of person they often represent. Please don't think I'm referring to you when I say that.

Vic,

No offense taken. It's not an easy job. It's taken me a long time to be able to separate myself from work and home. But I do like my job; I've learned a lot about human nature and I don't expect everyone to agree with me or with my view of things. I am privy to personal information and sometimes it is difficult to look a person in the eye when out of the office, but it happens. Usually if they recognize me, they just go the other way. Funny how that happens.

This job has been one of the most satisfying jobs I've ever had, next to being in the military and working on jet aircraft. The dynamics in our office is great and my boss is one of the best I've ever had. Many may like him, some don't but I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. Plus...I can't beat the job security! (I know, bad joke!)

I am glad the little girl is ok, I live in CCMHP and they are really trying to get this place cleaned up.

I give kudos to the little girl and her aunt for doing the right thing, and thanks to the park management for assisting in this situation.

I commend the ECSO for a fast arrest.

SAS212 I agree innocent until guilty, but when a 19 year old ADULT male takes after a 9 NINE year old female and grabs her and she breaks away and he chases her down and he trips and falls.

All I can say glad it wasnt one of my kids because I would be needing legal counsel.

Just my two cents worth, And I do understand.

OM is right this guy is a PERV!!

What is up with all these Alleged child predators in this little town,seems to me we have an awful lot. This place is getting really scary,I have two children and live only a few blocks away from where this happened. Thank God the girl is safe,but she will never forget what happened to her. What ever happened to the old days of running people like this out of town (or having them locked up away)

Hmmm I couldn't resist shaking off the dust and jumping in here. Sas has it nailed on the head.. trial in the media. You are arguing back and forth about semantics, about age, about intentions.

But you've already judged. You have already condemned him. A 9 year old said someone grabbed her. If in fact this 19 year old grabbed her and tried to drag her into a trailer for some nefarious acts.. then sure burn him at the stake. But it's a 9 year old. You need the whole story. Did he yank her out in front of a car? Grab a kid who was vandalizing his home? We all know that you can't touch a child without it being considered abuse, that's why there aren't very many decent parents left in this town (before you explode, note I said very many, so by yelling at me for that comment, you prove which category you fall into).

We just don't know the whole story... nobody deserves their life destroyed until they are proven guilty.

The Oracle,

Thank you-yes, my point was lost in the passion of an alleged kidnapping. I have learned quite valuable lessons working in this office, and one of them is patience. The entire, truthful, story will eventually prevail.