Very Sad, but Appears True
Bob Sherman
SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS
Copyright 1994, San Jose Mercury News
DATE: Friday, April 8, 1994
PAGE: 2B EDITION: Alameda County/Am
SECTION: Local LENGTH: 12 in. Short
SOURCE: SANDRA GONZALES, Mercury News Staff Writer
MAN PLEADS NO CONTEST TO CHARGES OF MOLESTING BOY
HE MET ON-LINE
A Cupertino computer engineer who went by the tag of ''Headshaver'' pleaded
no contest Wednesday to charges stemming from a sadomasochistic encounter he
had with a 14-year-old boy he met through an on-line service.
Donald Matthew*Deatherage's*plea to two counts of lewd and lascivious acts
with a child and one count of sodomy could get him a maximum four years and
four months in state prison when he is sentenced next month.
During a hearing in Sunnyvale Municipal Court, the judge denied requests by
*Deatherage's*lawyer to reduce his $500,000 bail.
Court records show that the 27-year-old*Deatherage*handcuffed the boy,
sexually assaulted him, spanked him with a belt and forced him to submit to an
enema.*Deatherage,*who also goes by the name Matt, shaved the boy's legs and
pubic hair, records show.
When deputies at the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Department searched
*Deatherage's*home, they found whips, chains, stacks of pornographic magazines
and tapes, leather restraints and leg shackles.
Authorities learned of the relationship when the boy's father searched his
son's computer files at their Monterey County home and found sexually explicit
e-mail conversations between his son and*Deatherage.*
A computer expert from the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office is
reviewing*Deatherage's*seized home-computer files and his America Online
bulletin board account to determine if any other young boys may have been
molested.
END OF DOCUMENT.
SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS
Copyright 1994, San Jose Mercury News
DATE: Thursday, April 7, 1994
PAGE: 1B EDITION: Morning Final
SECTION: Local LENGTH: 12 in. Medium
SOURCE: SANDRA GONZALES, Mercury News Staff Writer
MAN PLEADS NO CONTEST TO CHARGES OF MOLESTING TEEN
HE MET ON-LINE
A Cupertino computer engineer who went by the tag of ''Headshaver'' pleaded
no contest Wednesday to charges stemming from a sadomasochistic encounter he
had with a 14-year-old boy he met through an on-line service.
Donald Matthew*Deatherage's*plea to two counts of lewd and lascivious acts
with a child and one count of sodomy could get him a maximum four years and
four months in state prison when he is sentenced next month.
During a hearing in Sunnyvale Municipal Court, the judge denied requests by
*Deatherage's*lawyer to reduce his $500,000 bail.
Court records show that the 27-year-old*Deatherage*handcuffed the boy,
sexually assaulted him, spanked him with a belt and forced him to submit to an
enema.*Deatherage,*who also goes by the name Matt, shaved the boy's legs and
pubic hair, records show.
When deputies at the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Department searched
*Deatherage's*home, they found whips, chains, stacks of pornographic magazines
and tapes, leather restraints and leg shackles.
Authorities learned of the relationship when the boy's father searched his
son's computer files at their Monterey County home and found sexually explicit
e-mail conversations between his son and*Deatherage.*
A computer expert from the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office is
reviewing*Deatherage's*seized home-computer files and his America Online
bulletin board account to determine if any other young boys may have been
molested. At a news conference about the case this week, sheriff's detectives
warned parents to beware of those with whom their children communicate on
computer bulletin boards.
Law enforcement agencies say they have noticed a small but increasing
number of cases in which pedophiles make contact with children through
computer services. Over the past two years, for example, SEARCH, a Sacramento-
based consortium that teaches police how to use technology in
investigations, has helped various agencies investigate five such cases and
about 30 involving transmission of child pornography through electronic mail.
*Deatherage,*who worked at Apple Computer Inc., apparently arranged to pick
up the boy at his Marina home on New Year's Eve after the boy told his parents
he was going to a fictitious friend's home in Santa Cruz for an all-night
party.
Once the boy got in the truck, records say,*Deatherage*shackled the boy's
legs, put a mask and pillowcase over the boy's eyes, then made him lie down in
his truck. The boy was returned to his parents the next day.
KEYWORDS: CUPERTINO COMPUTER ASSAULT MAN
END OF DOCUMENT.
SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS
Copyright 1994, San Jose Mercury News
DATE: Tuesday, April 5, 1994
PAGE: 1A EDITION: Morning Final
SECTION: Front LENGTH: 24 in. Medium
SOURCE: By BETTY BARNACLE AND RODNEY FOO, Mercury News Staff Writers
MEMO: Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact detective
Collette Swaringen at (408) 299-2211.
Additional information attached to the end of this story
MOLESTATION CASE SHOWS THREAT TO ON-LINE KIDS
AN ALLEGED SEX ASSAULT ON A BOY WAS SET UP VIA
E-MAIL.
Santa Clara County sheriff's detectives Monday warned parents to beware who
their children chat with on computer bulletin boards after the arrest of a
computer engineer who deputies say molested a 14-year-old boy he met through
an on-line service.
Investigators said they'd like to know of any other area boys who might
have exchanged messages with or met ''Headshaver,'' the computer tag of Donald
Matthew*Deatherage,*27, of Cupertino, who also calls himself Matt.
*Deatherage*is scheduled to appear in Sunnyvale Municipal Court on Wednesday
to enter a plea and ask for a reduction in his $500,000 bail.*Deatherage,*who
has been in jail since his March 23 arrest, faces two counts of oral
copulation and one count of sodomy, all felonies.
South Bay police and other agencies say they've noticed a small but
increasing number of cases in which pedophiles make contact with children
through computer services. Over the past two years, for example, SEARCH, a
Sacramento-based consortium that teaches police how to use technology in
investigations, has helped various agencies investigate five such cases and
about 30 involving transmission of child pornography through electronic mail.
Sheriff's detective Collette Swaringen said the alleged assault on the boy
took place New Year's Eve in*Deatherage's*apartment on Valley Green Drive in
Cupertino, where deputies serving a search warrant found sadomasochistic
paraphernalia such as whips, chains, leather restraints and leg shackles, plus
stacks of pornographic magazines and tapes.
Deputies also confiscated*Deatherage's*computer equipment and tapes,
according to a Superior Court search warrant obtained by deputies.
Sexual conversations
The warrant said the case began to unfold Feb. 11 when the boy's father
searched his son's computer files at their Monterey County home and read
sexually explicit e-mail conversations between his son and the suspect.
The boy told police that*Deatherage*picked him up at his Marina home after
he told his parents he was being taken to a fictitious friend's home in Santa
Cruz for a New Year Eve's party. The parents thought*Deatherage*was the older
brother of their son's friend.
Before*Deatherage*drove the youth to his apartment, he reportedly stopped
and shackled the boy's legs and put a mask and pillowcase over the boy's eyes.
*Deatherage*made the boy lie down in his pickup truck, the warrant said.
While with*Deatherage,*police allege, the boy was handcuffed, sexually
assaulted, spanked with a belt and forced to submit to an enema.*Deatherage*
also shaved the boy's legs and pubic hair, according to the warrant.
Bulletin board frozen
The boy, who said nothing before he was questioned by his father, is now
cooperating with authorities, as is America Online, which has frozen
*Deatherage's*bulletin board account so nothing can be changed, deputies said.
Swaringen said investigators are seeking warrants to search*Deatherage's*
home computer files and his bulletin board account.
*Deatherage,*a bachelor who formerly lived in Kansas City and works for
Apple Computer Inc., has been in this area since 1988 and has no known prior
arrests, Swaringen said during a news conference.
High-tech crime experts
She picked up pointers on how to handle the case, Swaringen said, from the
San Jose Police Department's high-tech crime unit. She said a computer expert
from the district attorney's office will review the suspect's computerized
files.
Experts say pedophiles strike up conversations on computer bulletin boards
with children and gain their trust before asking youngsters to join them on
private e-mail, where they can talk sexually. Sometimes suspects send
pornographic photos via computer to children, something not done in the Santa
Clara County sheriff's case.
SAFETY TIPS
Here are some computer on-line safety tips. Keep up with what your children do
on-line and familiarize yourself with areas they frequent so you'll know what
they're likely to encounter.
(box)Warn children to never send personal information when chatting,
sending e-mail, posting on a message board or doing a user profile. That
includes phone numbers, addresses, passwords or information such as when
parents get home from work.
(box)Don't allow children to go on-line unsupervised if they're not old
enough to go out to public places unsupervised.
(box)Find out whether your on-line service has features that allow parents
to block children's access to adult chat rooms and other such features.
(box)Talk to children about unpleasant situations they may encounter and
brainstorm for ways they might handle such situations. Tell them to report
inappropriate comments.
(box)Children may feel they know someone they've become friends with on-
line. Remind children that when people can create screen names and
personalities, they may not be who they say they are.
Source: On-line services and users
KEYWORDS: COMPUTER MAN SEX ASSAULT CHILDREN SAFETY LIST
END OF DOCUMENT.
SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS
Copyright 1994, San Jose Mercury News
DATE: Thursday, March 24, 1994
PAGE: 5B EDITION: Morning Final
SECTION: Local LENGTH: 18 in. Short
SOURCE: Mercury News Staff and Wire Reports
MEMO: Bay Area News in Brief
COPS: COMPUTER USED TO LURE BOY INTO SEX ACT
A Cupertino man used a computer bulletin board to meet a 14-year-old boy
and lure him into a sadomasochistic sexual encounter, authorities said. Santa
Clara County sheriff's deputies arrested Donald Matthew*Deatherage,*27, a
computer engineer, at his Valley Green Drive apartment Wednesday morning,
according to a news release.*Deatherage*was taken into custody on a warrant
charging him with two counts of oral copulation and one count of sodomy. He
was held at county jail in lieu of $150,000 bail.
END OF DOCUMENT.
--
bshe...@mthvax.cs.miami.edu | | MCI MAIL:BSHERMAN
an...@cleveland.freenet.edu | |
Auri Rahimzadeh
: This doesn't concern the Apple II community to the point of
: you posting Mr. Deathrages' internal affairs and lifestyle,
: plus verdict of his case to comp.sys.apple2.
:
: I was hoping no one would do it, but it seems someone had the
: chutspah to do so; just let it be, man. No need to tell the
: world.
:
: I wish this would have stayed out of c.s.a2, for the sake of
: everyone. :-/ Just let the entire topic alone.
For sure... I know Matt probably hates that guy now -- but what really gets
me is that the problem with pornographic pictures through mail on AOL
happened to a person on my bbs -- I sure hope it wasn't Matt. But ANYWAYS,
his life is his life, right or wrong, and it seems that Matt's going to be
mocked now for what he did if Bob posts that on all of the A2 services.
Bob, please don't post that anywhere else, the damage is done. If it
happened to you, you wouldn't want everyone to know about it... Sad but
true, Matt has done a lot for the GS, and that last post really hurt.
(I sure sound like my English teacher...)
My wonderful new quote "Think before you post that message."
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
I learned this the hard way :)
l8r
-Auri Man
--
Auri Man of the Passive Resistance BBS (301) 890-8771 14.4k PTSE/ANSI/ASCII
Auri Rahimzadeh, editor of PongLife Diskazine and PR dude at 1WSW!!!
--- Ya know, if that thunder doesn't get you, the lightning sure will! ---
Email: Internet: au...@cap.gwu.edu GEnie: A.RAHIMZADEH BBS: #1, Auri Man
Stavros Robert Karatsoridis
> This doesn't concern the Apple II community to the point of
> you posting Mr. Deathrages' internal affairs and lifestyle,
> plus verdict of his case to comp.sys.apple2.
Ok. Now, while I don't think that anyone should have posted the articles,
there are some of us who would still like to know the outcome of this
case. I mean, if Matt does go to jail, we will lose one of Apple's better
programmers. He has done so much for the Apple IIgs (how many people
haven't read his Technical Notes or used IR?), and he could do a lot more
for the GS, but if he's in jail, he can't do that anymore. At least,
some of us would like to know only one thing in this case, that is, what
is the verdict in the case? The way the case goes will let us know what
will become of the Apple IIgs.
BTW, How many Apple II DTS people are left at Apple? Is it two or three now?
gudat henrik
- henrik
--
SYNERGETIX H. Gudat / gu...@avalon.unizh.ch (auto) | "Sun, fun,
____________________/ gud...@ezinfo.vmsmail.ethz.ch | & too much
H. Gudat - Missionsstr.38 - 4055 Basel - Switzerland | to do..."
[ This line does not contain any information to save bandwidth ]
Philip McDunnough
[ ]
> I wish this would have stayed out of c.s.a2, for the sake of
> everyone. :-/ Just let the entire topic alone.
This was a hard one to call. I for one appreciate that the message was
posted. Otherwise, I would never have known.As a result, plans to let one of my
children use a modem have definitely been placed on hold.
The electronic world is quite universal. One has to be careful, and it's very
disturbing to note that I have completely misread at least one, and most
likely thousands, of people via electronic communications.
--
Philip McDunnough
University of Toronto
phi...@utstat.toronto.edu
[Where sheep may safely graze...]
Philip McDunnough
[ ]
>The way the case goes will let us know what
>will become of the Apple IIgs.
That's nonsense.
Terry R. Olsen
: his life is his life, right or wrong, and it seems that Matt's going to be
: mocked now for what he did if Bob posts that on all of the A2 services.
Oh jeez!!!!! Cmon people, the guy MOLESTED a kid! You want to protect
his privacy??? I don't care WHO he is and how much he "gave" to the GS,
the fact of the matter is that he is a CHILD MOLESTER and should be treated
as such. Remember the guy who got parolled from prison here in California
who was convicted of rape? They can't find a place to put him because
nobody want's him around. Now if his privacy was protected, he'd be free
to prey on the population wherever he goes...Same holds true with MattD.
If he got out tomorrow and moved in next door to you, you'd be watching
your kid closely.
I know this isn't the proper feed to post this on but I'm just following
the thread and stating my opinion. Bottom line, a crook is a crook and
deserves no special treatment because of his "celebrity" status.
Davius Rex
: Ok. Now, while I don't think that anyone should have posted the articles,
: there are some of us who would still like to know the outcome of this
: case. I mean, if Matt does go to jail, we will lose one of Apple's better
: programmers. He has done so much for the Apple IIgs (how many people
: haven't read his Technical Notes or used IR?), and he could do a lot more
Tip: MattD didn't write all the Tech Notes. He wrote some of them. Not
to lessen the value of his work, but merely to give credit to the others
who wrote tech notes.
: BTW, How many Apple II DTS people are left at Apple? Is it two or three now?
Uhh, let's see.. 0?
Dave
--
| Dave J. Roberts | "My programs are fast, stable, and easy to use." |
| EMail: da...@iia.org | "Well, none out of three ain't bad." |
| :) :) Everyone: unix% irc -c #AppleIIgs - trust me, it's fun! (: (: |
Terry R. Olsen
: true, Matt has done a lot for the GS, and that last post really hurt.
Here we go again. It didn't "happen" to Matt. He "happened" to a 14
year old kid. But you don't give a damn about the kid, do you? You're
talking like Matt is the victim here...
Sheldon Simms
>: The following items come from The San Jose newspaper.
>: [... blah blah...]
>
> This doesn't concern the Apple II community to the point of
> you posting Mr. Deathrages' internal affairs and lifestyle,
> plus verdict of his case to comp.sys.apple2.
I wouldn't exactly call information that had already been printed in
the _NEWSPAPER_ Matt's "internal affairs". I can understand why someone
in his position might want to keep it quiet, but I think we all deserved
to know why he seemingly disappeared.
-Sheldon
--
W. Sheldon Simms | Newt's Friend / Jack Kemp for President
she...@netcom.com | Freedom implies responsibility
-------------------------+--------------------------------------------
David A Lyons
tol...@netcom.com writes:
> Oh jeez!!!!! Cmon people, the guy MOLESTED a kid! You want to
protect
> his privacy??? I don't care WHO he is and how much he "gave" to the
GS,
> the fact of the matter is that he is a CHILD MOLESTER and should be
treated
I have known Matt for five years. He's a good person.
There is a difference between being guilty of having sex with a minor,
and being a child molester. Matt's position is that what happened was
not against the minor's will at all; that it was all arranged; and
that the minor knew a word to stop the activities at any time, and did
not choose to use it. Legally, however, a minor does not have the
right to consent to sex.
I think it's significant to note the following, from various news
reports: (1) the minor did not go to police, one of the parents did,
when they found out; (2) the minor lied to his parents about where he
was going.
A further statement of Matt's side of the story should be forthcoming
in the next week or so. I think it would only be fair to keep an open
mind until more information is available.
Dave Lyons, dly...@apple.com
Mr Tangent
My opinions are my own, not Apple's.
Auri Rahimzadeh
: Here we go again. It didn't "happen" to Matt. He "happened" to a 14
:year old kid. But you don't give a damn about the kid, do you? You're
:talking like Matt is the victim here...
I hate what he did. I know people that it's happened to. I just know
what I would feel like if I committed a serious crime and it got out
that I was the scum of the earth. It was wrong. He should be punished.
Heck, he should get a whopping sentence for shaving the kid's pubic hairs
and all that sheist -- that's disgusting. The reason I don't agree with
the posting of it here is because it stirs up many mixed emotions that may
get into violent posts of people defending their thoughts and it will all
become one big mess.
I respect Matt Detherage for what he gave to the GS world. I don't respect
what he did to 14 year old boy.
-Auri###
Dream a little dream of me
Gord Favelle
>: This doesn't concern the Apple II community to the point of
>: you posting Mr. Deathrages' internal affairs and lifestyle,
>: plus verdict of his case to comp.sys.apple2.
>:
>: I was hoping no one would do it, but it seems someone had the
>: chutspah to do so; just let it be, man. No need to tell the
>: world.
>:
>: I wish this would have stayed out of c.s.a2, for the sake of
>: everyone. :-/ Just let the entire topic alone.
>For sure... I know Matt probably hates that guy now -- but what really gets
>me is that the problem with pornographic pictures through mail on AOL
>happened to a person on my bbs -- I sure hope it wasn't Matt. But ANYWAYS,
>his life is his life, right or wrong, and it seems that Matt's going to be
>mocked now for what he did if Bob posts that on all of the A2 services.
>Bob, please don't post that anywhere else, the damage is done. If it
>happened to you, you wouldn't want everyone to know about it... Sad but
>true, Matt has done a lot for the GS, and that last post really hurt.
>(I sure sound like my English teacher...)
>My wonderful new quote "Think before you post that message."
> ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Umm, EXCUSE ME. What about the kids he has allegedly assaulted? I agree
we shouldn't convict a person before he has had a fair trial in a court
of law, BUT if the allegations are true we should me concerned about what
he has done to the children rather what we have "lost" in the Apple // world.
Come on let's not be so short sighted and selfish to think about what WE
have lost compared to what those kids have lost!
I have worked close to 20 years with kids who have had significant
problems as a result of abuse, including their lives (i.e. suicide),
sanity, trust, childhood, etc. just to name a few of their
losses. I hardly rate OUR loss as being anywhere close to even one of
their losses.
--
Internet: gfav...@muug.mb.ca | Adam was a Canadian. Nobody but a
GEnie: G.FAVELLE | Canadian would stand beside a naked
AppleBox BBS (204) 224-0683 | woman and worry about an apple.
Jim Wong
>who was convicted of rape? They can't find a place to put him because
>nobody want's him around. Now if his privacy was protected, he'd be free
>to prey on the population wherever he goes...Same holds true with MattD.
You assume, of course, that the paroled criminal you mention actually
plans to "prey on the population wherever he goes." Don't be so quick
to say someone, in committing a crime, has given up his right to privacy
forever. You're fooling yourself if you think branding criminals for life
is going to make you safer in any way.
--
Jim Wong (jim...@owlnet.rice.edu)
Mongo
>In article <tolsenCo...@netcom.com> Terry R. Olsen,
>tol...@netcom.com writes:
>> Oh jeez!!!!! Cmon people, the guy MOLESTED a kid! You want to
>protect
>> his privacy??? I don't care WHO he is and how much he "gave" to the
>GS,
>> the fact of the matter is that he is a CHILD MOLESTER and should be
>treated
>> as such. [...]
>I have known Matt for five years. He's a good person.
>There is a difference between being guilty of having sex with a minor,
>and being a child molester. Matt's position is that what happened was
>not against the minor's will at all; that it was all arranged; and
>that the minor knew a word to stop the activities at any time, and did
>not choose to use it. Legally, however, a minor does not have the
>right to consent to sex.
[stuff deleted]
I think every one reading this stuff needs to remember that a plea of no
contest does not mean that the individual is guilty, regardless of what that
individual may admit to in private. I am probably as disappointed as any one
else here to find out this information about Mr. Deatherage, but whatever his
crimes may have been he will get his day in court and will have to live with
people believing he is guilty whether or not he actually is.
Bob Sherman
>Bob Sherman (bshe...@mthvax.cs.miami.edu) wrote:
>: The following items come from The San Jose newspaper.
>: [... blah blah...]
> This doesn't concern the Apple II community to the point of
> you posting Mr. Deathrages' internal affairs and lifestyle,
> plus verdict of his case to comp.sys.apple2.
> I was hoping no one would do it, but it seems someone had the
> chutspah to do so; just let it be, man. No need to tell the
> world.
I certainly think the possible loss of Mr. Deatherages' help and
assistance to the Apple II world is of concern to the Apple II community.
I also feel that since rumors (rumors usually contain half truths at best
along with non-truths) were starting to appear online, that the details
that were already made public would help to defuse and prevent the spread
of the rumors, thus I took the public stories direct from the computer
of the newspaper and posted them intact. In addition to being published
in the paper, it seems that some of the story also was transmitted by
at least one news wire service all over the country, if not all over the
world.
I'm very sorry if you feel that the truth is something to be buried or
hidden, or that perhaps it would go away if not mentioned. There are
others do do not wish to keep their head buried in the sand, and want
to know what's going on with fellow Apple II folks.
Bob Sherman
>For sure... I know Matt probably hates that guy now -- but what really gets
>me is that the problem with pornographic pictures through mail on AOL
>happened to a person on my bbs -- I sure hope it wasn't Matt. But ANYWAYS,
>his life is his life, right or wrong, and it seems that Matt's going to be
>mocked now for what he did if Bob posts that on all of the A2 services.
>Bob, please don't post that anywhere else, the damage is done. If it
>happened to you, you wouldn't want everyone to know about it... Sad but
>true, Matt has done a lot for the GS, and that last post really hurt.
I think I disagree you your statement Auri, The damage was not done by
my post. The damage was done when the alledged event took place. Further
damage was done when the arrest on felony charges was made. More damage
will no doubt be done because we stand to lose the help and know how that
Matt so frequently offered to the Apple II community on his own time.
When something like this happens to anyone (myself included) it is
public record, as such one has no control who knows about it, where
it appears etc. I'm sure Richard Nixon didn't want Watergate to be
known about, and I'm sure Bill Clinton didn't want Whitewater to
be known about, but again it's something the people have a right to
know about and should have access to. The time to think about not wanting
people to know about something is BEFORE you do it, not after.
I would not have posted only the charges, because they could be false,
but once one pleads on the case and says they have no contest to the
charges as filed against them in a court of law (public record) then
it is more or less a complete situation.
>My wonderful new quote "Think before you post that message."
> ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> I learned this the hard way :)
I agree and did think before I posted.
Soenke Behrens
> In article <tolsenCo...@netcom.com> Terry R. Olsen,
> tol...@netcom.com writes:
> > Oh jeez!!!!! Cmon people, the guy MOLESTED a kid! You want to
> protect
> > his privacy??? I don't care WHO he is and how much he "gave" to the
> GS,
> > the fact of the matter is that he is a CHILD MOLESTER and should be
> treated
> > as such. [...]
> I have known Matt for five years. He's a good person.
That may be so. OTOH, he also seems to be an extremely silly person
at times ... if not to say downright stupid. See below.
> There is a difference between being guilty of having sex with a minor,
> and being a child molester. Matt's position is that what happened was
> not against the minor's will at all; that it was all arranged; and
> that the minor knew a word to stop the activities at any time, and did
Well, duh. The problem with sex with kids is that the partner is
so much stronger (mentally as well as physically, usually), so
how do you tell if the kid was consenting or not?
So, to protect kids, you set a delimiter age. I think 16 is a good
choice. There might be the off-chance kid that can decide for him/herself
below that age, and the one that can't above, but on a whole, 16 seems
a reasonable choice.
So, _if_ the kid was consenting (and I'm not saying he was, I have NOT
known MattD for 5 years, and I know that existance of a safeword and
lying to ones superiors doesn't necessarily mean that the kid was
consenting ... that depends very much on the state of mind of the kid),
Matt's still a horse's ass for having sex with a minor. It's an extremely
stupid thing to do. If the kid was not consenting ... well, I'll spare
you the flames.
Soenke
--
Decompression sucksssss
## CrossPoint v3.0 ##
Auri Rahimzadeh
:I think every one reading this stuff needs to remember that a plea of no
:contest does not mean that the individual is guilty, regardless of what that
:individual may admit to in private. I am probably as disappointed as any one
:else here to find out this information about Mr. Deatherage, but whatever his
:crimes may have been he will get his day in court and will have to live with
:people believing he is guilty whether or not he actually is.
This is another Michael Jackson case clone....
I would like to point out, though, that a 14 year old boy DOES know the meaning
of the word NO. If he didn't want the sex, this would never have happened! He
CONSENTED to the sex!!! If I was gay at 14 years old and I wanted to have sex,
I would probably say yes... Even though I am not gay, I am hearing people
say '14 year olds aren't old enough to consent to sex.' Well, excuse me, when I
was 14, if I wanted to have sex, I would go ahead and do it (using a condom of course!). Both Matt and the 14-year old are to blame. And if the 14 year od
wanted the sex, he should actually try to help Matt out of this!
-Auri
John Townsend
for people personally associated with him, this story has now been publicly
reported in a variety of media. In the interest of getting the facts straight
for those of you getting them third- or fourth-hand, here are a couple of
articles from the _San Francisco Chronicle_ on the subject, taken from
NEXIS(tm):
Copyright 1994 The Chronicle Publishing Co.
The San Francisco Chronicle
APRIL 7, 1994, THURSDAY, FINAL EDITION
SECTION: NEWS; Pg. A24; BAY AREA REPORT
LENGTH: 167 words
HEADLINE: SOUTH BAY
No Contest Plea by E-Mail Sadomasochist
BODY:
Sunnyvale -- A Cupertino man pleaded no contest yesterday to charges that he
had sadomasochistic sex with a 14-year-old boy after befriending him via
computer.
Donald Matthew Deatherage, 27, entered pleas in Sunnyvale Municipal Court
to two counts of lewd and lascivious acts with a child and one count of sodomy
with a child, said Santa Clara County Deputy District Attorney Hector Moreno.
Deatherage, a computer engineer, met the boy through a computer bulletin
board and arranged to pick him up New Year's Eve from the boy's home in Monterey
County, under the pretense that he was the older brother of one of the boy's
friends and that they were going to a party, Moreno said.
According to Moreno, the boy had agreed to participate in sadomasochistic
sex. The incident came to light when the boy's father found messages on his
son's computer.
Deatherage faces a maximum term of four years and four months in state prison
when he is sentenced May 3, Moreno said.
Copyright 1994 The Chronicle Publishing Co.
The San Francisco Chronicle
APRIL 6, 1994, WEDNESDAY, FINAL EDITION
SECTION: NEWS; Pg. A15; BAY AREA REPORT
LENGTH: 151 words
HEADLINE: SOUTH BAY
Warning Issued About E-Mail Pedophiles
BODY:
Cupertino -- Police are warning parents to monitor children's use of
computer bulletin boards after the arrest of a man accused of trussing up and
assaulting a 14- year-old boy he met through electronic mail.
The suspect, Donald Matthew Deatherage, apparently contacted out-of-state
juveniles as well, but it is unclear whether he met with any of them, said Santa
Clara County Sheriff's Sergeant James Arata.
Deatherage was being held yesterday in lieu of $ 500,000 bail at the Santa
Clara County Jail.
Deatherage, 27, was arrested after the 14-year-old's father checked his son's
computer files, and called police. Arata encouraged other parents to do the same
with minors who use computer networks.
According to Detective Collette Swaringen, the Monterey County 14-year-old
and Deatherage met last January after exchanging sexually explicit messages
through private E-mail.
--
// John Townsend "We have become hostage Design Assessment and
// Mead Data Central to [MDC's] Lexis/Nexis." Process Re-engineering
// 9595 Springboro Pike -- George Stephanopoulos jo...@meaddata.com
// Miamisburg, OH 45342 (513) 865-7250
// GAT d? p+(---) c++ !l u+ e++(*) m++(-) s+/ n- h--- f g- w--(+) t-- r- y+
Paul Schultz
: I would like to point out, though, that a 14 year old boy DOES know the meaning
: of the word NO. If he didn't want the sex, this would never have happened! He
: CONSENTED to the sex!!! If I was gay at 14 years old and I wanted to have sex,
: I would probably say yes... Even though I am not gay, I am hearing people
: say '14 year olds aren't old enough to consent to sex.' Well, excuse me, when I
: was 14, if I wanted to have sex, I would go ahead and do it (using a condom of course!). Both Matt and the 14-year old are to blame. And if the 14 year od
: wanted the sex, he should actually try to help Matt out of this!
In most states the age of 14 is BELOW the age of consent. This means that no
matter what the 14 year old boy's wishes were, it is a statuatory crime! and
is wrong according to the law.
Paul
--
===============================
Internet: sch...@aa.wl.com
===============================
W. Scott Gentry
>This is another Michael Jackson case clone....
>I would like to point out, though, that a 14 year old boy DOES know the meaning
>of the word NO. If he didn't want the sex, this would never have happened! He
>CONSENTED to the sex!!! If I was gay at 14 years old and I wanted to have sex,
>I would probably say yes... Even though I am not gay, I am hearing people
>say '14 year olds aren't old enough to consent to sex.' Well, excuse me, when I
>was 14, if I wanted to have sex, I would go ahead and do it (using a condom of course!). Both Matt and the 14-year old are to blame. And if the 14 year od
>wanted the sex, he should actually try to help Matt out of this!
Auri,
This is not a question of informed consent. It is a question of right
and wrong with respect to the law. Matt allegedly broke the law.
No amount of pleading from the child is going to get Matt off the hook.
His plea of no contest means that he is going to accept what ever the
court decides. You're probably too young to remember a vice president
named Agnew who pleaded no contest to a variety of charges with regard
to taxes. Regardless, it appears that Matt made one hell of a mistake
and he'll have to face the consequenses for the rest of his life. Sex
offenders - unlike other felons - have the hardest time getting their
lives together because of the stigma sexual crime carries. My compassion
is not for Matt, though. My compassion is for the child and his family.
Regardless of how that child might feel today, these things have a profound
affect on not only the child but the whole family. These feelings do not
simply go away with a no contest plea, remorse, or tears.
Even though I have met Matt several times over the years and through that
time he provided support above and beyond the norm, I have no sympathy
for him at all in this matter. He is an adult. If found guilty, he
will have taken advantage of a child. If it were my child, I'd be out
for his head. He made his bed, let him lay in it.
--
****************************************************************************
* W. Scott Gentry | wsge...@ingr.com | Die Jerry *
* Intergraph Corporation| My words, ideas, and deeds. My fault.| Jones *
***I am not afraid of failure. I can't accept not trying. - Michael Jordan**
Joe Kohn
Joe
Gord Favelle
>I have known Matt for five years. He's a good person.
>There is a difference between being guilty of having sex with a minor,
>and being a child molester. Matt's position is that what happened was
>not against the minor's will at all; that it was all arranged; and
>that the minor knew a word to stop the activities at any time, and did
>not choose to use it. Legally, however, a minor does not have the
>right to consent to sex.
Wait a minute, I think I've heard this argument before, oh yea, now I
remember, let's blame the victim, ya, that's how it goes. Come on, IF
the allegations are true it would appear that is was more than JUST
having sex with a minor! Because the kid was scared and lied to his parents
it must be the kids fault right?
I'm sorry, but I don't buy this s**t. Unless their is significant evidence
to the contrary (and lying to his parents and not telling anyone doesn't
constitute significant evidence to me) my tendency is to believe the
kids. I've worked with many pedophiles and sexual abusers who have been
doctors, lawyers, etc. who many many people would testify they were
"nice" guys, but this doesn't make them innocent of their crimes.
>I think it's significant to note the following, from various news
>reports: (1) the minor did not go to police, one of the parents did,
>when they found out; (2) the minor lied to his parents about where he
>was going.
>A further statement of Matt's side of the story should be forthcoming
>in the next week or so. I think it would only be fair to keep an open
>mind until more information is available.
I agree we shouldn't be judge and jury in this case before any trial,
however, I also don't believe we should be defending his actions either!
Also I think it is important that many of the falacies around child abuse
and victimization should be dispelled at once as well.
>Dave Lyons, dly...@apple.com
>Mr Tangent
>My opinions are my own, not Apple's.
Michael Foegelle
Well, it so happens that in our legal system there is a certain clause which,
although probably not always fair says that a SUSPECT is INNOCENT until PROVEN
guilty. Matt is a SUSPECT in an ALLEGED mollestation. Therefore he is legally
innocent until proven otherwise in a court of law. Thus, until he's convicted,
you are making libelous statements for which YOU could go to jail (or at least
be sued.) Think about it. (No, I'm not defending Matt, nor am I trying to
support any criminal, but just pointing out that we DO have a legal system with
certain rules. (Damn, can't seem to word that sentence so that I'm not
grouping Matt in with criminals one way or the other.. Oh well, so much for
trying to be politically correct! =) At any rate, until the laws change,
(starting with "Kill all the lawyers" and ending with "Guilty until proven
innocent" because of course it is unfair to put the innocent on trial) then
we'll just have to live with it! =)
As for my own opinion (or anyone elses for that matter) as to Matt's status,
it doesn't belong here. So, everyone, keep your OPINIONS to yourself!
Michael Foegelle
--
Michael Foegelle | Call Wunderland BBS! | foeg...@ccwf.cc.utexas.edu
University of | (512) 472-0544 8n1 | foeg...@utaphy.ph.utexas.edu
Texas at Austin | 14.4kbaud, v.32/bis | GEnie: M.FOEGELLE2
Physics Department | 500 megs on a //e! | > Ask me about Columns //e & VGA! <
Jim Wong
>This is not a question of informed consent. It is a question of right
>and wrong with respect to the law. Matt allegedly broke the law.
>No amount of pleading from the child is going to get Matt off the hook.
>Regardless of how that child might feel today, these things have a profound
>affect on not only the child but the whole family. These feelings do not
>simply go away with a no contest plea, remorse, or tears.
>
>will have taken advantage of a child. If it were my child, I'd be out
>for his head. He made his bed, let him lay in it.
To say that he "took advantage of a child" is a bit strong. Yes, what he
did was wrong with respect to the law; that fact does not necessarily
imply that what he did was Wrong, in the grand, cosmic sense of the word.
Some people are perfectly capable of making informed decisions about their
lives at age 14. Some people never learn to do so.
--
Jim Wong (jim...@owlnet.rice.edu)
Andy McFadden
>'Nolo contendre' has virtually the same effect as 'guilty' according to my
>law book. In any event since Matt did not plead 'innocent', then *that*
>word *doesn't* apply to him...
Actually, he did enter a "not guilty" plea at his arraignment. It appears
that, after seeing the charges and evidence against him, he felt things
would be better if he plead "no contest".
--
fad...@amdahl.com (Andy McFadden) [These are my opinions, not Amdahl policies]
You get what you pay for, if you know what you are doing.
Otherwise, you get what you deserve.
Mark Manning/Metrica
thing. It is not in line with what I'd consider the "normal" kinds
of things you see/read here on comp.sys.apple2 - but it is Apple
related. As for the impact of loosing Matt, that is a given. It is just
really bad that this happened at all. It is bad for the kid(s), bad for
Matt, and bad for us. Nobody wins - we all loose.
--
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DUE TO THE UPGRADING OF OUR COMPUTERS, YOU MUST NOW SEND ALL RESPONSES
TO ma...@cliff.jsc.nasa.gov OR FACE THE BOUNCING MAIL GOD OF WRATH!
The sun shone upon her face, lighting my life with her grace.
Randy Shackelford
Mark Manning/Metrica <ma...@zaphod.jsc.nasa.gov> wrote:
>For myself, I'd have to say I don't mind hearing about this kind of
>thing. It is not in line with what I'd consider the "normal" kinds
>of things you see/read here on comp.sys.apple2 - but it is Apple
>related. As for the impact of loosing Matt, that is a given. It is just
>really bad that this happened at all. It is bad for the kid(s), bad for
>Matt, and bad for us. Nobody wins - we all loose.
I for one am sick of seeing this. When this crap is all there is to read about
in csa2, I think the time has come to throw my IIgs in the dumpster. All that
was needed was for someone to say that Matt is in legal trouble and would not
be around for a while. Everything else posted about it belongs in some alt.sex
group.
--
Randy Shackelford "That's right, keep dancing
sh...@crash.cts.com on the minefield"
-Al Bundy
Paul Schultz
: Auri,
: This is not a question of informed consent. It is a question of right
: and wrong with respect to the law. Matt allegedly broke the law.
: No amount of pleading from the child is going to get Matt off the hook.
: His plea of no contest means that he is going to accept what ever the
: court decides. You're probably too young to remember a vice president
: named Agnew who pleaded no contest to a variety of charges with regard
: to taxes. Regardless, it appears that Matt made one hell of a mistake
: and he'll have to face the consequenses for the rest of his life. Sex
: offenders - unlike other felons - have the hardest time getting their
: lives together because of the stigma sexual crime carries. My compassion
: is not for Matt, though. My compassion is for the child and his family.
: Regardless of how that child might feel today, these things have a profound
: affect on not only the child but the whole family. These feelings do not
: simply go away with a no contest plea, remorse, or tears.
: Even though I have met Matt several times over the years and through that
: time he provided support above and beyond the norm, I have no sympathy
: for him at all in this matter. He is an adult. If found guilty, he
: will have taken advantage of a child. If it were my child, I'd be out
: for his head. He made his bed, let him lay in it.
Very well said! I couldn't agree with you more!
Terry R. Olsen
: Well, it so happens that in our legal system there is a certain clause which,
: guilty. Matt is a SUSPECT in an ALLEGED mollestation. Therefore he is legally
: innocent until proven otherwise in a court of law. Thus, until he's convicted,
: you are making libelous statements for which YOU could go to jail (or at least
: be sued.) Think about it. (No, I'm not defending Matt, nor am I trying to
: support any criminal, but just pointing out that we DO have a legal system with
Cmon guy, read the papers. He has plead "no contest" which basically
is the same as pleading "guilty". I'm not slandering anyone.
Loren Damewood
a case for "consent" could be valid. (Laws on what age a person must be to
give such consent have varied wildly over time and geographic boundaries,
after all.) Let's all reserve judgement, and remember that not only are
there all kinds of people, there are all kinds of facets to each person.
Matt's been an asset to the Apple II community in the past, and we should
remember that.
Loren
Edward Floden
bshe...@mthvax.cs.miami.edu (Bob Sherman) writes:
>I'm very sorry if you feel that the truth is something to be buried or
>hidden, or that perhaps it would go away if not mentioned.
That was also the course of action favored by Apple Computer regarding the
Apple II. It ain't dead yet. :)
Chris Deschu
This topic has basically taken over this entire newsgroup,
and it has no business being posted here anymore. I'm sick of reading
about it, so either leave it alone, or take it elsewhere. We all know
what happened already, just be patient and wait for the outcome.
I'm sure the people at Apple will keep us informed of anything in
the case that is relevant to us, but in the meantime, find another
of the several thousand newsgroups that is more suited for these
legal and moral discussions. Thank you.
--
___________________________________________________________________________
|___ Chris Deschu cde...@nyx.cs.du.edu
_|_|con (610)791-3596 4804 Bowood Street, Center Valley, PA. 18034-9628
:-)|echnologies is IT in the Lehigh Valley for Apple ][ Consulting & Repair
stacy sherman
--
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
| Stacy Sherman sshe...@nyx.cs.du.edu |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Soenke Behrens
> : Well, it so happens that in our legal system there is a certain clause
> which, : although probably not always fair says that a SUSPECT is INNOCENT
> until PROVEN : guilty. Matt is a SUSPECT in an ALLEGED mollestation.
> Therefore he is legally : innocent until proven otherwise in a court of law.
> a ticket to jail, just like 'guilty as charged'. If he were innocent,
> one might suppose he would plead 'innocent'.
Uh ... but, hell, he IS guilty according to the law, and he knows it.
Morals are another issue. And maybe he just wanted to protect the kid.
Then maybe he didn't.
Aw, hell, I'm getting tired of this.
Auri Rahimzadeh
Does anybody know what is going to happen to Matt's job at Apple? I think
that would be the main concern of this newsgroup. Are they letting him go,
or are they suspending him? Maybe they're just waiting to see the result of
the case?
Michael Foegelle
>But Matt made a rather important admission: he pled 'no contest', which is
>a ticket to jail, just like 'guilty as charged'. If he were innocent,
>one might suppose he would plead 'innocent'.
The plea still does not define the verdict. And more importantly, at the time
of the post that this was in response to, no plea had been entered. And a plea
of no contest is not an admission of guilt. I've been forced to plead "Nolo
contendre'" (or however it's spelled) on several out of state traffic tickets
where I was innocent and only stopped because the officer knew I was out of
state and wouldn't contest it. It's a scam and it sucks, but when it costs
more to make two court dates to contest the ticket than it would to pay it,
what are you going to do? So your statement is not accurate in the least. As
for your OPINIONS, which you seem to enjoy spouting all over the net, I'm as
tired of it as anyone else. Take it elsewhere.
Jawaid Bazyar
>: BTW, How many Apple II DTS people are left at Apple? Is it two or three now?
>Uhh, let's see.. 0?
There's C.K. Haun in DTS, as well as someone else I can't remember
at the moment. Nobody in DTS does Apple II support _exclusively_. In
fact, there's so little request for Apple II help at DTS that Matt was
able to do almost all of it, although CK often answered my questions.
--
Jawaid Bazyar | Like UNIX? Like your Apple IIGS? Then ask
Procyon, Inc. | me about GNO/ME for the Apple IIgs!
baz...@netcom.com | P.O Box 620334
--Apple II Forever!-- | Littleton, CO 80162-0334 (303) 781-3273
Jawaid Bazyar
>I for one am sick of seeing this. When this crap is all there is to read about
>in csa2, I think the time has come to throw my IIgs in the dumpster. All that
>was needed was for someone to say that Matt is in legal trouble and would not
>be around for a while. Everything else posted about it belongs in some alt.sex
>group.
So come to comp.sys.apple2.gno and get away from it :-)
ScottG25
writes:
>To say that he "took advantage of a child" is a bit strong. Yes, what he
>did was wrong with respect to the law; that fact does not necessarily
>imply that what he did was Wrong, in the grand, cosmic sense of the word.
>Some people are perfectly capable of making informed decisions about their
lives at age 14. Some people never learn to do so.
I said, "if found guilty..." Mr. Wong. Please do not quote me out of context.
************************************************************************
* W. Scott Gentry | Conservative and happy | Die Jerry *
* Here, there, everywhere | scot...@aol.com | Jones *
************************************************************************
Eric Shepherd
I'm glad to know there's still someone familiar with the II there.
--
she...@aol.com |-------------- Eric Shepherd ----------------
uer...@mcl.mcl.ucsb.edu |Programming Law #21: Never put your faith in
power...@genie.geis.com|rules -- breaking them is half the fun!
she...@cs.ucsb.edu |[Apple II Forever] [PowerPC Programmers' RT]
Orion Pax
: da...@iia.org (Davius Rex) writes:
: >: BTW, How many Apple II DTS people are left at Apple? Is it two or three now?
: >Uhh, let's see.. 0?
: There's C.K. Haun in DTS, as well as someone else I can't remember
Whoa, the RavenWare dude is still around? Wow. I still use his ColorIt NDA
and some others.
Joseph
--
jl...@bonnie.ics.uci.edu | "If builders built buildings the way programmers
-------------------------+ wrote programs, then the first woodpecker that
Creative 'Ware | came along would destroy civilization."
II(><)II | -- Weinberg's Law
John Blaby
> So come to comp.sys.apple2.gno and get away from it :-)
Ahhh...Jawaid, I hope you don't have to regret bringing that little
point up. The 'green card' message made there though :). That darn
message made it to _every_ newsgroup that I look at.
John
--
Fisherman ;,//;, ,;/ | THE APPLE EXPERIENCE BBS
. o:::::::;;/// | 604-596-7398
>::::::::;;\\\ | Surrey, BC, Canada
''\\\\\'" ';\ | Internet: jbl...@cyberstore.ca
David A Lyons
gfav...@muug.mb.ca writes:
> Umm, EXCUSE ME. What about the kids he has allegedly assaulted? I
agree
> we shouldn't convict a person before he has had a fair trial in a
court
> of law, BUT if the allegations are true we should me concerned about
what
> he has done to the children rather what we have "lost" in the Apple
// world.
>
> Come on let's not be so short sighted and selfish to think about
what WE
> have lost compared to what those kids have lost!
While we're still waiting for the longer informational post that is
coming, I must clarify four things:
(1) Only ONE minor was involved. Let's NOT start carelessly saying
"kids" and "children".
(2) No assault charges are involved; no charges or allegations imply
that any force was used (and Matt states that none was).
(3) Matt entered a "no contest" plea on April 6, which was immediately
followed by a "guilty" judgement. Sentencing is scheduled for May 3,
and information is coming soon on how you can write letters expressing
your opinion of Matt's character, which may have a large bearing on
the sentencing. The -maximum- sentence is 4 years 4 months; it could
be much less.
(4) I don't see any reason to consider Matt "lost" from the computing
world. He will likely be absent for a time, but I assume that after
he has paid his debt to society, almost everyone will have enough
respect for the justice system to let him get on with his life and
career.
David Green
jbl...@news.cyberstore.ca (John Blaby) writes:
>Ahhh...Jawaid, I hope you don't have to regret bringing that little
>point up. The 'green card' message made there though :). That darn
>message made it to _every_ newsgroup that I look at.
I've been sending those all back to the poster as I find them.
;>
____________________________________________
David Green ... dcg...@pro-harold.cts.com
SysOp of Pro-Harold BBS .. San Diego, CA
John Townsend
|> While we're still waiting for the longer informational post that is
|> coming, I must clarify four things:
|>
|> (1) Only ONE minor was involved. Let's NOT start carelessly saying
|> "kids" and "children".
An investigation is still in progress.
|> (2) No assault charges are involved; no charges or allegations imply
|> that any force was used (and Matt states that none was).
That depends on whether you believe a minor can give consent, and evidently
the law doesn't. Force comes in a variety of forms.
|> (3) Matt entered a "no contest" plea on April 6, which was immediately
|> followed by a "guilty" judgement. Sentencing is scheduled for May 3,
|> and information is coming soon on how you can write letters expressing
|> your opinion of Matt's character, which may have a large bearing on
|> the sentencing. The -maximum- sentence is 4 years 4 months; it could
|> be much less.
Not likely; "Donald Deatherage" even made Time magazine this week. He picked
a lousy time to get caught, too, with all the uproar over lenient sentences
in the U.S. after this caning thing in Singapore.
|> (4) I don't see any reason to consider Matt "lost" from the computing
|> world. He will likely be absent for a time, but I assume that after
|> he has paid his debt to society, almost everyone will have enough
|> respect for the justice system to let him get on with his life and
|> career.
Speaking strictly as an Apple II user, I wish him luck. Most parents,
however, won't be so kind. Unfortunately, I am both.
--
// John Townsend "We have become hostage Design Assessment and
// Mead Data Central to [MDC's] Lexis/Nexis." Process Re-engineering
// 9595 Springboro Pike -- George Stephanopoulos jo...@meaddata.com
// Miamisburg, OH 45342 (513) 865-7250
Peter Handel
>imply that what he did was Wrong, in the grand, cosmic sense of the
>word.
It does if you believe what the Bible has to say about homosexuality.
LET'S STOP TALKING ABOUT THIS! Anyone have any release info about The Manager
v1.1 or AppleWorks GS v2.0?
--
_____________________________________________________________________________
|Apple IIGS Forever! |E-mail:sempco!pha...@wupost.wustl.edu |
|Zelix (Peter Handel) |UUCP: wupost.wustl.edu!sempco!phandel |
|Sysop of "Something in the Attic" | "What does it profit a man, to gain a |
|(314) 275-7357, 14.4k, Apple II, IBM| whole world, and yet lose your soul?"|
|____________________________________|_______________________________________|
Gord Favelle
[stuff deleted]
>(1) Only ONE minor was involved. Let's NOT start carelessly saying
>"kids" and "children".
Although the current charges involve only 1 child I would *speculate*
that this has happened before. I know, I know, I'm speculating, but this
is my guess based on my clinical knowledge of having worked with both
victim and perpetrators in the past.
>(2) No assault charges are involved; no charges or allegations imply
>that any force was used (and Matt states that none was).
In my mind the use of handcuffs and the shaving of the genital area (if
these statements are true) *imply* a level of "force" when involved with
a 14 year old adolescent. That is specifically why the laws to protect
children exist, through coercion, whether subtle or direct, it is the
adult who has the responsibility to NOT engage in these (or any) sexual
activities with someone who is a minor.
>(3) Matt entered a "no contest" plea on April 6, which was immediately
>followed by a "guilty" judgement. Sentencing is scheduled for May 3,
>and information is coming soon on how you can write letters expressing
>your opinion of Matt's character, which may have a large bearing on
>the sentencing. The -maximum- sentence is 4 years 4 months; it could
>be much less.
I'm not sure how many of us can comment on his character if the only
medium from which we have "contact" with him is via e-mail and
newsgroups. He may have been very helpful to many people on the net and
elsewhere in regards to apple computers, etc. BUT this does NOT
necessarily mean that he is a "good guy" in relation to his conduct with
minors.
>(4) I don't see any reason to consider Matt "lost" from the computing
>world. He will likely be absent for a time, but I assume that after
>he has paid his debt to society, almost everyone will have enough
>respect for the justice system to let him get on with his life and
>career.
I would hope that after he has paid his debt to society (and the
adolescent and his family too I hope) I would be more than willing to
forgive him and his error in judgement IF this is all that it was. IF he
has other problems in addition to this error in judgement (pedophile for
example) then punishment is not the solution to his problem, therapy is.
>Dave Lyons, dly...@apple.com
>Mr Tangent
>My opinions are my own, not Apple's.
--
Internet: gfav...@muug.mb.ca | Adam was a Canadian. Nobody but a
GEnie: G.FAVELLE | Canadian would stand beside a naked
AppleBox BBS (204) 224-0683 | woman and worry about an apple.
David A. Lyons
I am, and have been, acting as a private individual.
In article <1994Apr11.1...@muug.mb.ca> gfav...@muug.mb.ca (Gord Favelle) writes:
>Wait a minute, I think I've heard this argument before, oh yea, now I
>remember, let's blame the victim, ya, that's how it goes.
No, let's blame the criminal, but let's blame him only for what he
actually -did-, and not for what some people assume, imagine, or
extrapolate that he did.
>I'm sorry, but I don't buy this s**t. Unless their is significant evidence
>to the contrary (and lying to his parents and not telling anyone doesn't
>constitute significant evidence to me) my tendency is to believe the
>kids.
Are you aware of any statementis made by the minor? If not, then I don't
understand what it is that you are inclined to believe.
>I agree we shouldn't be judge and jury in this case before any trial,
>however, I also don't believe we should be defending his actions either!
I am not attempting to defend Matt's actions; what he did was wrong.
However, people keep extrapolating to things that didn't happen. I
got into this thread in an attempt to keep it fair and fact-based, not
to argue for Matt's innocence.
I hope that we can wrap up this topic; I don't think it really belongs
here. But I will participate as long as necessary to help separate the
facts from the suppositions.
--
Dave Lyons
Mr Tangent
On the net, I act as a private individual.
Jawaid Bazyar
>On the net, I act as a private individual.
I sure hope you act as an individual _all_ the time! :-)