There is an interesting case out of Florida where a dispatcher for the Palm Bay Police Department is accused of having a sexual relationship with an 11-year-old boy. Amanda Chandler, 40, is married and a mother of two young children ages 10 and 8. What caught my eye was the account of her husband.
Chandler reportedly tried to commit suicide with pills and ended up in the hospital. It then came to light that she was allegedly having sex with the boy and possibly other children. She was arrested Monday night at a local hospital and charged with eight counts of capital sexual battery and five counts of lewd and lascivious molestation. That could give her life in prison due to the aggravating element of having sex with a child under 12.
In the coverage, the following line struck me as a bit odd: “Her husband told police he would sometimes catch the boy in Chandler’s bed, kissing each other on the cheek and as he put it ‘hanging all over her.'” What I fail to understand is how you can “catch the boy” in her bed and not be a bit more than suspicious. He is also quoted as saying that he would come home occasionally finding his wife resting or sleeping in her bed with the boy and at least once believed that he came in after they had been kissing. News stories also report that the husband grabbed her iPad and found various suspicious messages between his wife and the boy. However, he still expressed shock when the charges were brought against his wife.
There is really too little in these stories to judge the husband and he may have only reached these conclusions in hindsight. However, putting aside this case, there is an interesting question of what inaction can be viewed as culpable conduct in such cases. If a husband or wife believes that a spouse may be raping a child, the question becomes when that knowledge is significant enough to make the husband or wife a co-conspirator or criminal actor through inaction or a failure to report.
Once again, there is too little information to accuse the husband of any collusion or conspiracy. Indeed, he may have simply been clueless. This is a very difficult thing to believe about any person, let alone your wife. I think that there has to be substantial evidence of both knowledge and collusion to support a spousal charge in such a case. The husband has been open about his concerns and has clearly cooperated with police. As for Chandler herself, her counsel is likely to immediately explore the possibility of a plea. If not, there could be a fight over whether the prosecution can introduce her attempted suicide in the trial. It is clearly prejudicial since jurors will assume that it is an effective admission of guilt. Yet, I cannot see how they would be able to keep it out, particularly since she was arrested at the hospital. A plea seems the logical move for the defense in light of such evidence.
Yes, I wanna bet. There is an issue of consent here, which cannot be legally given by either underage children or animals, (or lawnmowers, toasters, etc.). So while creepy adults (like the ones on this board trying to advance their causes), try to sneak the age of consent lower and lower, that does not poll well in ANY circles, and it is extremely unlikely that any court or legislature is going to go for that. I haven’t looked into it, but I understand that bestiality might actually be legal in some states–you might just consider moving there and save yourself the trouble.
And the folks who fought for the right to marry are not going to pick up your banner either–they are going after discrimination in the workplace, and other issues related to their cause.
So, how much do you want to make a ten dollar bet?
Consent laws will change, just like gay marriage.
VICTROY!
FROWARD!
http://theweek.com/articles/479986/pedophilia-guide-disorder
Inga – from your article. .” Psychologists now categorize it as a sexual orientation much like heterosexuality and homosexuality, in the sense that the sexual attraction to children appears to be involuntary and remains stable over time.”
Since it is a sexual orientation then I think pedophiles have a good shot having it declared legal.
Paul,
I seriously doubt it, as there is a victim in pedophilia. Underage children do not give legal consent, that’s not too difficult to understand.
Paul, you need to get a grip.
“Well, pardon me, but look at her.”
Chief Consort,
She looks like a cuddly 11 year old to me, but who am I to judge.
“Under the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, no State shall “deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.” The fundamental liberties protected by this Clause include most of the rights enumerated in the Bill of Rights. See Duncan v. Louisiana, 391 U. S. 145, 147–149 (1968). In addition these liberties extend to certain personal choices central to individual dignity and autonomy, including intimate choices that define personal identity and beliefs. See, e.g., Eisenstadt v. Baird, 405 U. S. 438, 453 (1972); Griswold v. Connecticut, 381 U. S. 479, 484–486 (1965). The identification and protection of fundamental rights is an enduring part of the judicial duty to interpret the Constitution.”
Thank you so much Justice Kennedy!
Maybe this ‘wife’ self-identifies as an 11 year old girl; who would deny her equal protection under the law?
Ah, I see this has turned into another “blame women and/or feminism for everything” thread. Yawn.
We won’t mention that the great majority of pedophiles are straight men.
Inga – the tide is turning. Women are holding their own as sexual predators. You should be proud of your sisters.
Paul, you should be proud of your bretheren.
Inga – you need to be proud of the strides the sisterhood has made as sexual predators. It’s old news for men.
“Sorry folks, no one supports your efforts to coat-tail your cause here. ”
Wanna bet?
Ha!
Hey babe, who you gonna believe? Me, or your lyin’ eyes?
I do so love it when the pedophiles, hebephiles, ephebophiles, zoophiles and their ilk always try to jump on the bandwagon and claim that now that we have gay marriage for consenting adults we might as well legalize everything, because, you know, slippery slope arguments.
Sorry folks, no one supports your efforts to coat-tail your cause here. Please slink back to your dark-web hole.
phillyT – I am none of the things that you mentioned, however I think the SC opened the door.
RRE, a lot depends on the state and the specific charges on which the person was convicted. In some states, the judge has very little discretion, while in others the judge will have greater latitude. Often the biggest issue is the specific charge which can make the difference between mandatory registration, discretionary registration, and no registration. The District Attorney is generally the moving force as to which charges are pursued.
@Olly
Well, pardon me, but look at her.
He may have knew what was going on and was thankful to avoid any further intimacies.
Either that, or he has a ‘failure of imagination,’ i.e., unable to envision women doing such a thing, thus denying the antecedent.
In any event, pro-feminism, this must be the husband’s fault in some way.
Chief Consort – I think a lot depend on how reasonable the explanation she gave him. And how gullible he is. 😉
WTF!? Your wife is in bed ‘snuggling’ with the neighbor kid and your hackles don’t go up? If there is not more to this story than has been presented then I would remove custody of their children and release them both into the wilds of Zimbabwe (without collars).
As a member of the police force does she qualify from being a registered sex offender?
Bet she gets to plea to a none registered sex offender status like the Florida Assist Chief and 2 Sergeants did.
Unlike Zachary Anderson [ http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/03/us/dating-app-sex-offender-registry/ ] this woman knew he was only 11 years old.
Why are the judges allowing exemption status to some and not everyone ?
Ban the exemptions or treat each person equally as guaranteed by the US Constitution’s 14th Amendment.
Either put everyone on a list or no one.
Chief Consort – I am with you on this one. I think she has a good case for making pedophilia legal.
Fnn – unfortunately you are all to correct.
It would be good to hear JT’s thoughts on your claim that the law is now biased in favor of the female. JT??
She’s merely anticipating the lowering of the age of consent, now that all moral rules are being jettisoned.
Thankfully, no one saw that slippery slope coming when gay marriage was Glorified Above All Others.
Maybe not much he could have done since the law is now biased in favor of the female. If he had called the police she could have turned the tables by making an accusation of abuse and he could have been summarily thrown out of his own home on her word alone.
What I fail to understand is how you can “catch the boy” in her bed and not be a bit more than suspicious.