Just In Case Someone You Know Thinks Child Pornography Is a Victimless Crime

We don’t protect our young, and we tolerate predators of our own species. Andrew Vachss

D. Sharon Pruitt from Hill Air Force Base, Utah, USA
Scared child: USAF

Today, I am featuring three short posts that are worth the read.

When I wrote The Difficulties With Reentry Programs Involving Churches and Convicted Sex Offenders (Child Pornography): An Example from Tuscumbia, AL. I was disturbed by a woman who worked for the Sheriff’s office dealing with sex crimes. She didn’t appear to understand that child pornography hurts a children.

The woman, who answered the phone and said she was involved in putting names on the registry, refused to give her name. However, she alleged that the two men in question only looked a child pornography and didn’t actually hurt a child.

That conversation has haunted me. Thankfully, Pennsylvania appears to get what the Alabama sheriff’s office does not.

Warning: This post is graphic and potentially triggering.

Lancaster Online wrote an article that was deeply moving, yet disturbing to me. On the Trail of Predators features the work of Dennis T. Guzy, supervisor of the (Pennsylvania) State Attorney General’s Child Sexual Exploitation Unit.This man lives Law and Order SVU.

This agency is devoted to one thing only: to catch child sexual predators. Guzy is considered the best in the business,

What does his daily work entail?

Guzy spends five to six hours a day “chatting” on the Internet with men who are looking to have sex with children, photograph naked children, tie up children and film children being forced to have sex.

His work is carried out online.

He repeatedly volunteers his fictitious three children — two daughters, aged 12 and 9, and a son, 7 — for the most unimaginable deviant sex acts.  Unfortunately, business is good.

How does he describe the dark world that he exposes?

“Welcome to my world,” Guzy said. “It’s the darkest, seediest type of world you can imagine.” It’s the thought of the trauma and horror these children endure, Guzy said, that motivates his sole mission in life: to catch sexual predators before they can hurt another child.

“You never really know who they are,” Guzy said. “Most have steady jobs, many are married with families…some live in million-dollar homes.

“But the urge to have sex with kids is that great, that they’re willing to risk it all,” Guzy said. “And pornography reinforces their beliefs that it’s OK to do this with kids.”

Guzy describes how seemingly innocent photos are actually pornography to the predator.

Color photographs of children playing at a public swimming pool, elementary school cheerleaders, an 11-year-old girl standing alone on a sidewalk, and a group of little girls playing on the beach.

“To you and me, they are just pictures of kids,” Guzy said, everyday photographs taken in public places.

To the predator, Guzy said, they’re erotic art.

An example that will break your heart.

Another man e-mailed Guzy last week, asking for movies of children being spanked, “in a loving way.” Guzy plays a home video of a little boy, in three different scenarios, repeatedly pulling down his pants and bending over for a paddling.

The video, Guzy explains, will be used later for the viewers’ sexual gratification. To the child, there’s no understanding.

“Why, Daddy, why?” the boy asks plaintively, between sobs, as he is slowly, repeatedly, struck, first with a hand, then in the second two segments, with a yardstick.

“It’s the sound,” Guzy said, hitting the mute button on the remote, that still gets to him. The sound of children crying and pleading, the sound of children being physically abused.

“My goal is to identify these child predators before the first time — before the first time they can hurt a child.”

Why he believes prison is necessary for predators

Though he fully believes pedophiles are in great need of psychological treatment, Guzy said, “prison is a good place to start.” “We want them to know: We’re out there hunting for you and when we catch you, you’re going to jail.” And what is prison like for child molesters? “It’s a living hell. Every day.” One day he asked a prisoner why it’s so difficult for child abusers in prison.

“I’m locked up in here. My kids are out there,” Guzy said the inmate told him. If someone hurts his children, the inmate continued, “there’s nothing I can do about it…but I can when he’s in here.” Guzy looks like an average, mild-mannered, middle-aged professional, but he has an bulldog attitude when it comes to sexually abused children.

How he learns to do his job better by talking with the predators he has caught.

His best teachers have been the predators themselves, Guzy said.

After their arrest and conviction, (and he has a 100 percent conviction rate), Guzy talks to his suspects asking if there was anything about the investigation that made them suspicious.

He also asks if they were molested as a child. Most say they were.

Many also tell him “the weight of the world is off their shoulders,” when they are arrested, Guzy said.

Once, while driving a convicted child molester to state prison, Guzy asked him what advice he could give to parents.

“Tell them this: If you don’t love your kids, I will.”

I think I may send this post to the sheriff’s office in Alabama.

Thank you, Officer Guzy for doing your job and doing it well.

Comments

Just In Case Someone You Know Thinks Child Pornography Is a Victimless Crime — 16 Comments

  1. I’m glad there are people out there like Officer Guzy investigating these criminals and putting them behind bars. I think many states still need stronger laws against child pornography and molestation. For example, removing the statute of limitations.

  2. It’s really frightening the number of pedophiles out there. Fortunately there are people like Guzy hunting the pedophiles. Now if only the churches would follow suit by not giving pastors who have served time for such crimes a podium and access to minors…

  3. It’s frightening the number of pedophiles out there. We need more people like Guzy hunting them. Now if only churches would deny.a podium and access to minors to pedophile pastors…

  4. I have an acquaintance who does this kind of work. He is a devout Christian. The world he operates in is very dark–the only thing that keeps him going is the knowledge that he is saving children. He has a blessing from his priest and his bishop to do this work, and he is surrounded by faithful pray-ers who beg God’s mercy on him as he does this work, that he not be overcome by the darkness. Most Christians have the ability to avoid looking into evil–and should take advantage of it. And pray for the people who do this work.

    And certainly do not hire as pastors the people who walk in darkness.

  5. Many years ago as a young college student I ran a message board for teens who wanted summer jobs. We took the job request from an adult(s) and matched babysitters, gardeners, errand runners, etc with the people applying. People requesting teen work had to fill out a form, and it was thought to be thorough enough to make sure they were fine, upstanding citizens.

    We had a request for a babysitter from a couple in a nice neighborhood. We sent over an older teen, and found out the parents made “movies.” Thankfully, the kid ran out the door to a pay phone to have her mother pick her up. Authorities were called, and I don’t know anything beyond that (it was 1977).

    It just made me sick, and still does, that those you would think to be the most ordinary people immerse themselves in making/watching porn, especially that which involves innocent victims who have no say in the matter. I never assume anything about anyone anymore, If you’re going to be hired to work around kids, you must have a background check, and the place (church, school, whatever) has to use best practices. Otherwise, I won’t participate as I don’t want to be part of someone taking an opportunity that should never be allowed.

  6. Lesley Bulbeck: Hello Wartburg!

    Waving….Hello Lesley; welcome! Nick said you may be posting so I’m so happy you’ve decided to join in on the conversation!

  7. They didn’t hurt any children… they just paid someone else to do it, so they could watch.

  8. ishy: I think many states still need stronger laws against child pornography and molestation. For example, removing the statute of limitations.

    I agree. There should be no statute of limitations on sexual assault.

  9. “I was disturbed by a woman who worked for the Sheriff’s office dealing with sex crimes. She didn’t appear to understand that child pornography hurts a children.”

    People who look at child porn are looking at pictures of child sex slaves. The children in the pictures have either just been sexually abused or are about to be sexually abused.

    Anyone who does not hate child sexual abuse and understand that child porn is very abusive to the children in the pictures has no business working in law. The woman sounds like a dumb pervert herself. She should be ashamed to be so gross and stupid.

  10. SiteSeer:
    They didn’t hurt any children… they just paid someone else to do it, so they could watch.

    Now they can wipe their mouth and announce “I Have Not Sinned”.

    It’s the flip side of “I Was Only Following Orders”:
    “I just indicated what needed to be done, and the matter was dealt with. My hands are clean.”