Don't be quick to judge
First off, let me say, don't be quick to judge someone who is labeled as a "sex offender", because there is a good chance that even though they are labeled as such, they is a very real possibilty they are not. You see, convicting sex offenses is like fishing for tuna--yes, you catch some tuna, but you also catch a lot of other aquatic life in the nets as well. And yes, you can get 99 years for "just chatting" depending on how the "investigation" conducted itself, and what it views as improper. As far as this case goes, I don't know any of the facts, so I am not going to say he did it, nor am I going to say he didn't do it. All I'm going to say is the truth--I don't know and don't have enough information to come to a proper conclusion. I do know that the Court system and those who act in its interest often get emotionally, personally, politically, and socially embroiled in a case where someone is accused of a "sex offense", and often will convict them of it even in the face of hard evidence that the person is innocent.
The whole reason I am responding to this thread, though, is because it seems to be that the label "sex offender" makes people quick to rush judgement. I'm going to say this--you have to look at the facts of each individual case and judge each person on their own individual case, not by the label that has been given to them. After all, you can label a can of corn as "Beans" but that doesn't make the content of that can beans, does it?
I've learned this through my own experience with the Court in it's prosecution of my husband of allegedly sexually molesting his daughter. This accusation was made by his then soon-to-be ex-wife, and he didn't even know that he was accused until the day he was arrested a year and a half later (after the accusation). In the mean time, their entire "case" was based on her words, and even though hard evidence was contradictory to the accusation, the judge for whatever motivations of his own, refused to let it drop (the prosecutor, who eventually started looking at the facts, was going to drop the case). Anyway, the frustration of watching this injustice unfold with no ability to do anything about it (and believe me, everything that was within our power to try we have done), knowing that we are facing an already biased Court, being separated from each other hundreds of miles apart, on top of all of life's other BS, had caused a strain on our marriage. Apparently, his ex-wife heard that we were having problems and the next time she was in Court she smirked at my husband and pointed at her ring finger meaningfully. (You have to realize, he got arrested 3 days after she found out he was remarried, and was really interested in what I looked like and what the wedding was like and who went there, and wouldn't get off of the subject--I think she had the fantasy that she and my husband would get back together and that she would wave her magic wand and the whole case would disappear, and when she found out that he had remarried her little bubble burst and she set out to destroy us).
I know this case inside and out, and I know a lot of intersting little facts that the Court refuses to listen to, as well. And his ex-wife's little gesture with the ring made me even more determined that our marriage will survive this. It rankles me to no end to see a woman such as her use the "justice" system as a weapon and a means to cause harm to my husband and myself. Yes, innocent people do get labeled as "sex offenders", and yes, so do real sex offenders. I have no doubt that in the future, people will look at me and judge me the same way you have done this woman--rashly, but I am willing to endure it because I stand for what I believe in, and what I believe in is truth. He will from now on have to bear this scarlet letter, at the sacrifice of his pride and integrity, so that we can get on with our life. We are tired of fighting this, tired of trying fight a mountain with a teaspoon, knowing that under the circumstances, even though facts and truth are on our side, that we cannot win. It is sad. We're just another dolphin in the net.
All I ask, is please keep an open mind when it comes to someone who is labeled as a sex offender. Yes, there are people who commit these crimes and justice should be served on them, but justice should also work for those who are innocent, and most of the time it doesn't. They need to find a balance between wanting to catch "the bad guy" and preserving the rights of those who are innocent. So far, this has not been achieved yet. It went from one end of the spectrum to the other. So just use your head, weigh the facts of the issue if you know them, and come to a logical conclusion.
