There is a disturbing case out of Illinois where a teenage boy has been arrested for posting his ranking of 50 female students at Oak Park-River Forest High School in Oak Park, Illinois “by their sexual characteristics and alleged sexual behaviors” and posting it on Facebook. It is another example of the criminalization of our society and raises serious first amendment questions.
Prosecutors charge that the listing ranked the girls “by explicit, derogatory nicknames and assessed their physical appearance, sexual desirability, sexual activity and other characteristics.” He used a point scale to rank the girls. He printed out the listed and passed them out in addition to the posting on Facebook. Clearly, any students who hands out such obnoxious lists is properly subject to discipline in the school. He was ultimately expelled from the school. However, the prosecutors took the act of boorish, unacceptable behavior and made it a crime.
Oak Park Police Detective Commander. LaDon Reynolds, found that such conduct warranted a charge of “disorderly conduct.” One father, Dale Jones, father of one of the girls, is quoted as saying that even this charge is insufficient and that they want more criminal charges to be brought against the boy.
Charging obnoxious postings as a crime threatens free speech and would allow prosecutors and police to arbitrarily select out particular messages or authors for prosecution.
Source: Pioneer
Jonathan Turley
“now who’s fault is that? and before you attempt to come at me. i’m a woman with daughters.”
As a father with sons let me say that your attitude is disappointing and shows little insight into the abuse of females, verbally and physically. I would assume from your comment that you might even be sympathetic when the accused sexual abuser of a seven year old says that she enticed him.
hey chaz if the girls weren’t running around holding up ceilings with their feet. then they wouldn’t have to worry about their name being on any list? if they conducted themselves like respectable ladies they wouldn’t have to worry about being on a list or being discussed in locker rooms, bar rooms or any room except homeroom because this young man wouldn’t know anything about them except their names and grades!!! now who’s fault is that? and before you attempt to come at me. i’m a woman with daughters.
puzzling,
Please don’t try to take that out of context. You very well know what I was talking about. That applies to all tell-all books done by other person to impugn celebrities or politicians.
ChaZ,
So having sex with someone is what creates a first amendment right to call them a slut?
puzzling said:
“What about the Duke Fuck List, made by a female undergrad?”
That’s comparing apples and oranges because the writer of the Duke List already had sexual encounters with males and she her list was protected by freedom of speech.
However, I think the prosecutors did the right thing to charge the student with disorderly conduct. It’s same as arresting a person who was running around and screaming at women that they are sluts/whores/cunts in public.
Passing out the lists in high school that degrades and harrass other students is right on nose for being disorderly conduct.
Sadly, they didn’t think of adding one more charge against him: sexual harrassment.
Please don’t think that everyone have a right to sexually harrass other people just because we have freedom of speech.
This is clearly a violation of his rights. Surely this won’t hold up on appeal? Sadly the people in charge won’t be held liable and the taxpayers will have to pay for the mistakes of the assholes who committed the only actual crime here.
Crime
The 10 Hottest Women on the Texas Sex Offenders List
You probably would not be too surprised to learn that the vast majority of people in the Texas Department of Public Safety’s sex offender list are male.
And most are not good-looking.
http://blogs.houstonpress.com/hairballs/2011/05/hot_female_sex_offenders.php
“Anita Alverez, the Cook County State’s Atty. refuses to even pretend to investigate the nephew of the newly departed mayor, who punched a kid in the face who then fell cracked his head and died. But this type of dreck gets charged.” -seamus
Yep. The American justice system at its finest.
In high school I kept the list in my head. I am turning myself in today.
wonder what he posted about dale jones’s little angel
Anita Alverez, the Cook County State’s Atty. refuses to even pretend to investigate the nephew of the newly departed mayor, who punched a kid in the face who then fell cracked his head and died. But this type of dreck gets charged. Makes me glad I’m a defense atty.
Hip hip hurray for the free word
one gets criminally charged
another one just got killed
hip hip hurray for the free word
I hate nobody.
I don’t hate muslims, I don’t hate christians, I don’t hate feminists, I don’t hate multinationals, I don’t hate governments, I don’t hate police… the only thing I hate.., are jews.
I’m kidding! I don’t hate jews.
I know they can take a joke…
They can.
The observation by Gyges rings true
anon nurse,
Fascinating OT link
Lots of people think that if they don’t commit any crimes they are “safe”. That’s just not true anymore.
Have you ever been to France? They have fields of flowers used for perfume there and then perfume they sell on the spot.
kay s.:
I think the only thing I could have been convicted of was an affinity for cheap perfume.