Text 9806, 91 rader
Skriven 2008-01-14 03:30:48 av Jeff Smith (1:14/5)
   Kommentar till text 9792 av Ward Dossche (2:292/854)
Ärende: Myths
=============
Hello Ward.

14 Jan 08 07:06, you wrote to me:

 WD> Jeff,

 JS>> The alleged crime was not the act of having sex with a minor
 JS>> child. Which you are correct in stating that that crime did not
 JS>> happen. That was not the crime that he was arrested for. What he
 JS>> DID do was a crime just as what he wanted to do would have been if
 JS>> he had had actually had sex with a minor.

 WD> I am glad that I am not living under a justice system that quite often
 WD> resembles a runaway train.

 WD> When one argues well enough it probably is possible to getting someone
 WD> convicted for farting.

     If that were the case I might never be a free man again. <g>


 WD> If a LEO poses him/herself the way that this person did in the Menno
 WD> Blom case then I think this is OK as long as this happens on US soil
 WD> if that is covered by some form of US legislation.

    It is my understanding that police officers may pretend to be someone
else to create the opportunity for a crime to be commited. The police
or their agents are not allowed in dealing with the suspect to act in a
manner that would have induced a "normally law-abiding person" to commit
the crime. The police may provide the opportunity but the suspect must make
the decision to commit the crime. The matter of entrapment depends on how
much and what manner of persuasion, pressure, and cajoling are brought to
bear by the police to induce people to commit crimes.

 WD> What sheds a complete new light on it however is that this happens in
 WD> an international context. A US LEO has posed as a minor in an
 WD> entrapment case on Dutch soil.

    Did not the arrest occur on US soil in Chicago? Didn't Blom travel to
Chicago to meet someone he thought was a 14 year old girl and was arrested
after arriving in the US? If I were to travel to Belgium to do something
that I knew or suspected was a crime in Belgium. I would be bound by any
and all Belgium laws and pay whatever penalty was required either in money
and/or time.

 WD>  That is an obvious breach of
 WD> jurisdiction and under whatever legal system a reason for immediate
 WD> dissmissal by the court.

    How so? Blom traveled to another country and was under the jurisdition
of that countries laws while there.

 WD>  Further, posing like that is even illegal I think under Dutch law.

    Which would be relevant IF the crime had occured on Dutch soil and under
Dutch law. I am not suggesting that either Dutch or US laws are better or worse
just differant.


 WD> Quite obvious US courts, and as it looks the court appointed legal
 WD> counsel of Mr.Blom neither, had never heard about this interesting
 WD> aspect which was not brought into the trial.

    Probably because it wasn't relevant to the US crime.

 WD> Interesting were if Mr.Blom would sue the LEO who misrepresented
 WD> him-/herself in a Dutch court and get this person convicted. As this
 WD> person most likely would not show-up for his/her trial, he/she might
 WD> be convicted in-absentia and therefor make such a person wanted and
 WD> liable for arrest at any point when and if entering Europe ... on a
 WD> vacation for example.

    Sorry but that idea doesn't quite make sense. The LEO didn't (As I
understand it) misrepresent themself under US law and Dutch courts would
have no jurisdition since no Dutch law was broken nor any criminal act
commited on Dutch soil.

 WD> Then again I would hope that Dutch courts are not American courts and
 WD> would not stoop that low.


 WD>  \%/@rd

 WD> --- D'Bridge 2.94
 WD>  * Origin: Many Glacier -o=O=o- Preserve - Protect - Conserve
 WD> (2:292/854)

Jeff

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