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To Catch A Predator is one of the more intriguing shows to come around in past years, and certainly one that's sparked its fair share of debates. A group known as Perverted Justice goes into Internet chat rooms posing as young teens and engages in conversation with potential pedophiles. After a while, the offer is made for the targets to come over and a meeting time is set. Unbeknownst to the subjects, the person that they're really meeting is an actor or actress, known as the bait, who brings them into the home where they are interviewed by NBC's Chris Hansen before being arrested. The program has proven to be quite successful, both in the amount of arrests and in terms of ratings.
LAist.com spoke with Dani Miura , who played the role of the bait in several episodes, to get her opinion on the program and to discuss the extent of her involvement.
When is it that you decided that you wanted to become an actress?
I was about 7 years old, walking around in the mall and I was about to get pictures done for a pageant. The photographer asked me, “Have you ever considered being a model?” and I said, "No, but I would love it!" I loved taking pictures and it was later suggested that I try acting because I was very small and very outgoing, so then I started modeling, acting, and taking classes.
Were you already thinking of a career at the age of 7?
Definitely. Since I was about 7 or 8 I considered it as something I’d want to do for the rest of my life. It was something I got into it and I just knew it was where I was supposed to be.
And when is it that you moved to the L.A. area?
I moved here when I was 16 years old.
Was that a hard move for you and your family to make?
Actually, I moved on my own with a guardian because my family works as emergency dispatchers and my father's a police office, so their jobs couldn't transfer.
And how is it that you got involved with “To Catch A Predator?”
My manager knew that my family worked for 911. All of my dad’s brothers and sisters are police officers. She knew that I’m a pretty brave kid. I love doing anything action packed that's hands on. Plus, I'm active in charity. She thought, “You love acting and helping people, so do you think you'd like to audition for this?”, and I was all for it. She asked if I was scared, and I wasn't, so after about an hour-long interview, where they learned all about my background, I was in.
What sort of audition was it?
All I had to do was go in there and basically interview with them and they basically were trying to see how comfortable I was with the idea of being around actual pedophiles and actually working with the police. They wanted to be sure that it wasn’t going to scare me and that I knew I'd be protected.
And how old were you at the time?
18.
Did you go through any psychological preparations for the role?
To a certain extent I did. There were a lot of people in there I guess and you don’t really get to see all the people that will protect you if anything happens because they’re in a backroom or if you’re in the park and you don’t see where the police are waiting so it was kind of…I get a little nervous but I pretty much knew I was protected the whole time so I pretty much went into in thinking, “Ok, this is a job. This is acting. Just improv it, do it well, and don’t let these guys get away.” I wanted to do the best I could to get Chris Hansen an interview every time so I got closer than any other decoy ever has. I think I got four hugs and you’re not really supposed to get that close, but they just happened to end up getting that close and I couldn’t walk away fast enough.
So all your lines were improvised when you met with the pedophiles?
Yes.
Is that what you just called them, pedophiles or did you have a different term?
Yeah, we pretty much just called them pedophiles.
Did you get to know the pedophiles?
I got to talk to them a lot and got to know them pretty well by the time it was over. They were talking about drugs and condoms and stuff while I’m playing 11 year old. All I could think was, “Wow, these guys are insane.”
Did you ever feel like you were in danger?
Never. Every single time a guy got close, the police were ready to pop out and strangle them, even if they just touched me. I felt pretty fully protected and Chris Hansen was right there and I think he would have gone a little crazy had anything happened.
And when you were talking to the pedophiles, did you get to just learn more about the sort of people they were? About say their families or their jobs?
Yea. We caught a nickelodeon producer and a couple other really crazy guys with really good careers.
And what sort of things would you think about as this was going on or was it just very in the moment?
It was just pretty in the moment. I was trying not to think too much because if I did, I knew I’d get freaked out.
What was your first day of work like?
It was pretty much just sitting around and listening to conversations and basically getting to know the guys that would be coming the next day.
And were there any phrases they told you to avoid while you were talking to them?
Not too much. They didn’t want me to use “Would you like a drink?” too much since it was used so much in the other episodes.
Was there a lot of footage that was cut that audiences didn’t get to see?
Yea there was. A lot of it’s online, actually, at MSNB.com, but there was some pretty funny stuff where I’d be talking on the phone to them and they’d have me trying to get him to come over. There were a couple guys that said some pretty graphic things but were too scared to come over.
So Perverted Justice, the group that did all the arrangements, they'd give the pedophiles a number to reach you at?
They were the ones typing and they did everything. I just pretty much sat there when it came to being on a webcam. I just sat there and had to react and pretend like I was typing, but I never actually had to do typing or anything like that but I did have to talk on the phone.
And the pedophiles were on cam as well?
Oh yea. I saw plenty of gross stuff and I had to sit there and taking a bunch of pictures and stuff like that.
Is that something you eventually got used to?
After a while, yea, you kind of get used to it, but they still had me reacting like I was completely grossed out. Some of it was really, really disgusting, but eventually you just get used to it because you see it so often.
Before you got involved with this project, how did what you expect you would be doing compare to what you actually ended up doing?
I did not realize that I would be 1 on 1 with these pedophiles. I had never ever seen the show before and I also didn’t realize how far away I was supposed to stay. I thought I had to get closer and so I ended up being closer and having my face in more of the episodes than most of the decoys.
I’m not sure if you still are studying to be a registered nurse, but did you feel like by being involved with this project, that you are performing a service for society?
Definitely. Yeah I definitely did. The fact that it was a really good thing and I had a lot of people saying it was a really good thing was something I kept in my mind to keep me from freaking out.
Was there ever a time when you felt bad for the pedophiles?
There were maybe one or two guys where I felt really bad because they seemed really sweet, but I had to remember that their conversations were pretty bad.
How do you feel like some people have criticized the show regarding entrapment?
It makes me really mad because I know that perverted justice does a really, really good job of making sure they’re not trying to seduce anybody. We just sit in a chat room, we say 11, female, Long Beach, California and then see who pops up so when people accuse them of seducing these guys, it annoys me because I know it’s not true.
So you were in the room as they were talking with people in the actual chat rooms?
Oh yeah.
It sounds like a lot more work than I first thought. How many hours would you say you spent in total for this?
I’d say we spent 3 days and they were about 13 or 14 hour days.
After the pedophiles show up, you leave the room and then Chris Hansen comes in. Where do you go when you leave the room?
I just go back to the spot where all the computers are and where they’re typing with all these other guys or if there was another guy that shows up, they’d send me around to get him to the front.
Did you ever make any mistakes?
Yeah, there were some mix-ups. I answered the door when they didn’t realize that the guy, Dan, was supposed to answer the door, so it got really confusing. “Oh, that person’s not here right now.” We ended up still arresting the guy, but it was pretty funny.
What would be some of your blooper highlights?
Well, the first guy I had, the earpiece came out of my ear. It just dropped and I ended up just standing there while they kept telling me to go to position 2, but I was still in position 1. Basically, I ended up getting a lot closer than I should have and I didn’t know what I was doing since it was my first guy, but it ended up going well.
Were there times when it seemed like the pedophile was going to just leave and then it was you that kept them there?
Yea. There was one guy in particular I had to stand outside with for 40 minutes and talk him into walking into the house.
Talking to someone for 40 minutes is a long time. What are some things that you would talk about?
I would just basically say “You can walk around the house.”, “You can check it out.”, “There’s nothing going on and I can get any other guy to come in here.” “If you don’t want to come in that’s fine.” I’d just be really like a bratty little kid pretty much.
After 40 minutes, did you just start talking about say television or sports?
Well, we talked about some normal stuff but they were really just into just talking about sexual stuff and they asked me a couple times the way I wanted to do it and stuff like that so it was kind of awkward conversation.
When you go out in public do you ever start to suspect random people of being pedophiles?
I get a little paranoid sometimes, especially when some of the guys walking around outside look like some of the guys we caught.
What did all of the pedophiles have in common?
Pretty much every single one said that they were going to bring condoms and pretty much they all did. There were a couple with weapons; they brought guns or knives, which was kinda scary. They all knew they had a problem and they all came in there knowing that. A lot of them had even seen the show before and they still came.
Did they ever mention the show while talking to you?
Oh yeah. In half of the conversations, they would say “This isn’t one of those To Catch A Predator shows is it?” or “You’re not a police officer are you?”
Did you watch the arrests as they were being made as well?
Yes. Over the monitors in the other room.
Did you ever see the officers use unnecessary force? I read about an incident where someone had a rubber chicken shoved in their face. Did that actually happen?
Not on my episode. One guy got tazered, but that was it.
Was there any comedy on the set in general or did the set have a quiet, somber sort of tone?
Oh no. It was comedy the whole time. We had a guy that was talking about anal sex with me so the whole entire time, they’d be joking and they’re like “Ooh Dani do you want some anal?” “Why don’t you go for that guy?” and it was just joking around the whole time.
Did anyone say pull any pranks on the set?
We tried to pull a prank for somebody’s birthday and it didn’t work out very well but it was a try.
What'd you do?
We made it look like we had all left and were going to surprise them, but they saw us.
So what is Chris Hansen really like?
He’s such a nice guy. He’s really protective and he was just really all around nice and he just wants to help people pretty much.
You're the only one of the bait with a website. Is there a reason for that?
Not really. I already had website before it but I didn’t need to take it down. I know some people are nervous and they really try to hide their identities, but I didn’t really feel unsafe so I just kept it up.
Do you ever get recognized on the street for your work on the show?
Oh yeah. I’ve gotten a couple, which is pretty funny. They’re like “Oh, you’re the pedophile girl.”
I read that you’re currently working on an album?
Yes. I’m focusing a little more on the singing right now.
It’s also going to be a reality show?
Yes, we filmed the first episode already and right now, we’re just waiting for more funding and publicity and stuff like that to go on before we keep filming.
And what company are you working for with this?
J.J.P.Z.
What’s the reality show going to be like?
It’s basically a bunch of teenagers and a couple 20 year olds. We all have back stories and things that we have been through and fought really hard through and recovered from It’s basically supposed to show teenagers that they can get through anything.
What are the things that you had to overcome?
My main story is anorexia, but I also have lupus.
Lupus is an autoimmune disease. It's not really something people know a lot about.
It’s pretty hard to diagnose. For the first couple years when I was undiagnosed it was difficult, but now it’s not quite so bad and I’m not taking any steroids or anything like that.
Is there anything else you're involved in?
As of right now, not too much. It’s mainly just been the singing.
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Very interesting woman. As a journalist, however, I still have concerns about this show. And while she says they don't start the conversations, it's well documented that when one of these creeps decides to end the conversation, the PJ guys keep trying to entice them to come over
Holywriter, you're right, I don't know why a young actress would want to scar her young career in an entrapment scheme? It's really not something to be proud of, especailly since the dirty tactics of Perverted Justice, a group that among other things has forced the suicide of a number of their victims, and has harassed kids as young as 16 by calling their school, their friends, their house and lying about them. yeah, that's the stuff you never here about this bunch of seriously twisted people.
this show is really messed up. its just using a loophole to get around entrapment. of course the guys that go on this show are in the wrong, but that doesn't help the fact that its a perversion of justice. the fact that people watch this just helps to prove the concept that we are a decaying society.
yeah i read a rolling stone article about this show a few months ago, it is a really terrible scheme. i'm all for getting pedophiles off the streets, but this is definitely not the way to go about it, the PJ people are ridiculous.
Apparently people don't get the article. I'm taking it as, the point of her even doing it was so she could clear the air. Nobody knows what REALLY goes on unless you are there. Unless you witness everything happening and you're behind the scenes. You people are RIDICULOUS. There are a lot of great people in Perverted Justice who spend all their time and their lives putting this on and making this work. This is not one of those shows used for publicity and attention. In fact, it's quite the opposite. The point of it is to show kids how to be safe. Somehow people can twist such an amazing show with such good intention into something terrible. Get your facts correct.
Here's an excellent article on TCAP, published in Esquire magazine:
http://www.esquire.com/features/predator0907
This article does go behind the scenes, and reveals some really disturbing and shady practices that the show employs-- especially the collusion between the show and the local police force, which are making decisions based on creating good television, rather than properly enforcing and respecting the rule of the law.
It's actually quite infuriating how this whole operation runs.
Here's an excellent article on TCAP, published in Esquire magazine:
http://www.esquire.com/features/predator0907
This article does go behind the scenes, and reveals some really disturbing and shady practices that the show employs-- especially the collusion between the show and the local police force, which are making decisions based on creating good television, rather than properly enforcing and respecting the rule of the law.
It's actually quite infuriating how this whole operation runs.
I have to agree with #5 the article was not about PJ is was about Dani. As for what TCAT does I say keep it going. There is no reason for a strange adult to contact a 11 year old and talk sexually. EVEN if PJ has initiated and persisted the adult can and should stop and express it is inappropriate for an adult to chat explicitly to a minor end of story. What's decaying society the are the seemingly endless creeps that prey on minors everyday.
If it wasn't for publicity and attention, it wouldn't be on TV. If it wasn't about money, there wouldn't be commercials. Yes, arrest these creeps, but don't make it entertainment.
If you're wondering about some of the odd comments to this article, do know that this article is being targeted by organized online pedophiles as the link below illustrates.
Ref: http://www.boychat.org/messages/1109845.htm
The link above will show you just how mentally ill these people are.
#10, you're trolling websites of online pedophile organizations because...?
In a world that is so dependent on computers, where parents are working and not aware of what their child is doing at all times, how in the world can anyone fault a tv program that actually has some use. That actually tries to protect children from being raped, abused, kidnapped and even murdered? These guys are not having their rights abused, they are potential child abusers(if not already) and they are not stupid. But they rely on the sympathies of viewers who say "entrapment". And so what if TV ratings are good? Than maybe people will see that the importance of getting this information out to people is more than just an entertainment. Or perhaps you would just rather be entertained by all the reality shows that show what people will do for a buck? or a million? Are we so intent on protecting the rights of offenders that we forget about the victims? I give this girl credit. She didn't do it for the money, she did it for a cause. Open your eyes, these predators are there...unfortunately, they won't go away even if the program does
But at what point do people say enough is enough? Imagine the possibilities of society; one possibility is a free society, a place that respects CONSENT, the consent of children as well, and on the other side is a fascist society, a society that entraps, that says children are tools for government and for entertainment.
Do not fool yourself, the debate about children and pedophiles has only begun. We've moved through the suppression of Blacks, of Jews, of women. One might say we are a very decent, educated, advanced civilization. But still there is this lingering ghost of evil in the guise of "protecting" children, and the present matter of this ghost takes the form of Perverted-Justice, an organization that by its very name takes pride in the fact that it perverts justice. "Perverted" is not an allusion to pedophiles, "Perverted", by this group, is very much a tip of the hat towards the type of society that can be best understood by looking at history, at Nazi Germany.
Read the hypocrisies in the interview:
Ok, so this girl works for an organization that actively attacks child models. PJ believes that childhood modeling is simply light porn for pedophiles. Yet in this very interview the decoy to catch pedophiles has made a living objectifying herself in front of the camera, since she was 7. This girl knew she was beautiful, she knew she was sexy since she was 7 years old. And she loved it. It was/is her passion. Can you imagine? If PJ were there at the time they would have entrapped the photographer, hauled him or her away as a pervert and turned the girl over to social services.
Think about it; what does it take for a little girl to know she is pretty enough to be a model? She was already in the mall for a pageant photo shoot, like Jean Benet Ramsey. I just googled Jean Benet, and the lithe, sexy little girl in a bathing suit popped up on a reputable website that talks about modeling. (The hypocrisy is so think we can almost cut it with a knife.)
Pedophiles are simply people who find children attractive, just like model agencies and good photographers. The only difference is that pedophiles don't live a world of fear where they are forced to go "Ewwww, yuck!" whenever the concept of a beautiful child arises. In many ways pedophiles are the honest ones here, and the rest of us are living in a repressed mindset that has so far done untold damage to our children.
There are some very twisted minds out here and I think I just got wind of one right now. To say the pedophiles are the honest ones? Work in law enforcement and you will know the truth. And it doesn't matter to them whether it is available on line, or not on line. They will go after children on the street, anywhere. Modeling and, pageants are not the catalyst here. But when the law is compromised by all the do-gooders who say, its out there for them, so they see it and they take it, they need help, who fights for the victim? Not one person on this site has mentioned all the children who have been victims, and yet, we will say the pedophiles have these inalienable rights? I can see how society has changed and its about time that we realize how unsafe we have made our children, and how shows like "To Catch A Predator" and orgznizations like "Perverted Justice" are a definite need in today's world.
"a definite need in today's world." ?? Really? Even when it is thought that stings by PJ actually exceed REAL luring of children online? Even when it turns out that PJ and NBC are creating the crimes for television ratings? Even when the PJ backed Adam Walsh Act is geared to target every preteen and adolescent boy as a sex offender and IF they do anything, even if one boy gives another boy of equal age a blowjob, they will be on the sex offender registries for life?
No, as a free thinking American, as a free human being, I reject PJ and their minions. I reject their criminal activities. I reject them completely. And as a teacher of elementary school children, I will make it my duty to teach these kids how to avoid punishment by PJ and the Adam Walsh Act. I will simply tell my students that their sexual lives are their business, not their parents, not their teachers, not the police--I will tell them that as a human they are in control of their own sexuality.
In the words of Sen. Joseph Welch responding to the communist hunter Joseph McCarthy, I quote: "Have you no decency, sir? At long last, have you left no sense of decency?"
And I say the same thing to PJ who gloats when they cause people to commit suicide, I say it to them when they target children for being sexual.
PJ, Have you no sense of decency?
is anyone else really disturbed by this comment:
"Oh no. It was comedy the whole time. We had a guy that was talking about anal sex with me so the whole entire time, they’d be joking and they’re like “Ooh Dani do you want some anal?” “Why don’t you go for that guy?” and it was just joking around the whole time."
nothing says comedy like people trying to seduce children, then having their lives publicly ruined...
As I said before, people are very twisted these days and any school teacher who is going to teach children that what they do in the privacy of their home is their own business, even if they are committing a sexual crime, than that is someone who shouldn't and probably wouldn't pass a pyschological if it were required for that type of position.
Don't condemn the people working day in and day out with these dirty, nasty pedophiles for joking around, even if you don't consider it in good taste. You would rather bash them , than take into account that sometimes facing what is there in front of them is harder than making a passing comment. Grow up and face the fact that the only thing that will stop pedophiles is tougher laws, and it's about time we passed some such as the Adam Walsh Act, or Megans Law.
That's just the point, it's NOT a "sexual crime" for a child to be sexual! And my goal is to get this message across to my students.
Bambi, people like you would have 10-year-old boys locked away and put on sex offender registries for playing doctor in their bedrooms. YOU are the one who is a danger to children.
If what you are referring to is understanding their own sexuality, and feeling free to ask questions, I agree that children should be able to explore this. However, not on line, not with people who are looking to use and exploit them. That is the whole issue. Unfortunately, as much as we would like this to be a society free of predators, it is not. Not only does a child have to learn to be accepting of their own sexuality, they have to know how to protect themselves, and what is right and what isn't. That is up to the parents to instill, and explain, as well as church and school to help enforce. Sexual predators are there, there is a limit to what "sexuality" for children is defined as, and no child should be "free" to explore their sexuality when it involves hurting others, especially other children.
So at this juncture we need to re-define exploitation. Currently under what seems to be your world view and the world view wrongly held by much of society, the protection you want School, Church, and State to place upon children is only succeeding in, literally, turning all children (especially boys) into sexual predators or potential sexual predators.
Thanks to you and your ilk the Adam Walsh Act was passed which, among other Nazi-esque things, it seeks to place children who are caught being sexual on sex offender registries for life. Indeed, this new law is so horrendous that it is currently being challenged on constitutional grounds by everyone involved with it: defenders, prosecutors, judges, cops, parents, and current persons who are listed as RSOs.
Under the current hysteria you are encouraging, children are quickly learning not to talk to any adult about sexuality because of the risk that they will be prosecuted (And who can blame them?). To me, this indicates something inherently wrong with your world view, it's crumbling and deconstructing before your eyes, you're just too darn stubborn to admit it--so you continue to torture children by keeping them in the dark, uninformed and so much more likely to engage in risky behavior.
Currently all the violent rhetoric about child sexuality and pedophiles that is enhanced by PJ and this abhorrent TV show only works escalate the problem. And it ALL hinges on the idiotic concept that sexuality is wrong, evil, and dangerous. Indeed the rhetoric is so manipulative, so slanted, so wrong that one might say we are living the Dark Ages, at least when it comes to the sexuality of children. Just look at what's happening: never before in history have children been so afraid to interact with adults, on any level. It's so bad in fact (go ahead, google it, I'm sure you'll find many, many news stories) that it is very difficult, if not impossible, to find men to tutor and mentor children. This goes on and on, and they are all symptoms of a sick society where PJ and To Catch a Predator are frightening aspects of the disease.
There is no reason whatsoever that this world needs to be like this. We could change everything tomorrow if people would just respect the rights and consent of children to be sexual instead of treating them like miniature perverts in the making.
"Yet in this very interview the decoy to catch pedophiles has made a living objectifying herself in front of the camera, since she was 7. This girl knew she was beautiful, she knew she was sexy since she was 7 years old."
Really? You don't think MAYBE just MAYBE she wasn't a child porn star... she was just modeling for text books or catalogs? And at age 7, you really think she knew she was beautiful or sexy? Most children just do what they like to do. They don't have the inhibitions you do as an adult, so the self confidence isn't always there... You don't need it at that age. Maybe she actually just knew she liked working at modeling. There is no reason to imply she was seducing anyone in any way or being "sexy" as you'd like to call it. That is RIDICULOUS.
By the way... did you ever read about this girl? She was raised at a Christian school. Meaning she was SHELTERED. And she's a Christian singer now. You think sexy really played into what she was doing at that age? She probably didn't even know what the word sexy meant. Check your sources before you speak.
Apparently you haven't seen YouTube lately. LOL.
You are a teacher? I hope you don't teach around my area.
why?
I agree with Trisha16. THe USA and it's laws are really messed up and this fascist state will result in lots of problems. These new laws...Megan Law, John Walsh Law, and the "Catch a Predator" show attack the very essence of sexuality and love. It's a shame the way we are going. In 2030, love will just be a memory. You see, single parent households don't work and that is exactly what these laws do...they create single parent families because these laws exclude men from doing anything with their families. These laws are an attack on men. These laws just create more evil and violence. These laws say, "sexuality is wrong". They are thought crime laws.
Ok.. Really? How is it possible ppl can be this ignorant? Men make their own "single family households" by trying to fuck 11 year olds or chat sexually with them over the internet. So it's ok they even have the thought in their mind to do so? That's wrong. All these men ACTED on wanting to have sex with an innocent child. Apparently, none of you have ever seen the affects that sexual abuse has on children as adults. Go to an SIA meeting, or a behavioral hospital and see. It's terrifying and it's wrong on so many levels that children be subjected to sex and any other inappropriate act or even just an image. It's traumatizing. Children should NEVER have to worry about that sort of thing. It is so sad that people defend these pedophiles and what they do. It makes no sense. It's complete ignorance. Children should have the freedom to learn about their own sexuality, yes. But on the internet? With grown men who KNOW BETTER and have families... and usually families with children. It's wrong. Period. Even if PJ quote on quote "ENTRAP" these men or seduce them in any way... What grown man should even have the thought on his mind to even talk to an 11 year old on the internet? They know better. And to talk sexually? How can anyone defend that? The second they hear 11 / Female / whatever state... they should be saying "see ya" not let me get in your pants. Complete ignorance. What is this world coming to? When people defend pedophiles.. ridiculous.
Good observations Dan25, reachin4thestars is just one of those who buys into the fascism, the type that gets some sort of jollies out of seeing 11-year-olds on sex offender registries, and schools void of any male teachers or influence. You hit the nail on the head, this is an attack children, but people like reachin4thestars is particularly attacking masculine sexuality (of both boys and men) in our society.
It is sad that these days boys are considered "sex offenders" before they're even 10-years-old.
Correct Trisha/Dan.
The other thing that comes to mind is that while
nobody would ever condone the behavior, the very underlying concept of this entrapment, or criminal sting operation or whatever you interpret it to be... it is based on the "child"
saying she or he, or whatever...is 11 years old.
Why would these perpetrators be convicted on the
basis of "believing" the victim is 11?
The victim is not 11, so Dan is correct in his statement that it is...in fact... a thought crime.
It would seem to me, that a lawyer would offer an explanation for the defendent that he didn't believe the victim was actually underage, and in fact she/he wasn't, which only substantiates the perpetrators "innocence".
I don't even know how, when performing in such a filthy arena, that PJ can appear to be using "dirty tricks", but it has some logical stink to it that makes one wonder how legitimate or lawful a manner this is to stop pedophiles.
Trisha, I don't know how many children you've molested/raped (maybe you haven't taken that step yet?), but it's glaringly obvious that you're a resolute pedophile. Your "logic" would be laughable, were it not in regard to a concept so hideous and nauseating (not to mention an idea which obviously provides you with sexual pleasure so intense, you feel the need to staunchly defend it).
The fact that there are people like you in close contact with small children is exactly why this show exists. Even if entrapment is utilized, I've got to be honest - I don't care. No sane, healthy man would ever find an 11-year-old "sexy", as you put it. You're not going to entrap anyone who isn't sexually attracted to minors.
In regards to the show causing "victims" to commit suicide - GREAT! One more "person" with unalterable, faulty wiring eradicated from society. If it were up to me, every sexual offender convicted with DNA evidence would be executed anyway.
If you're so proud of your beliefs, why hide your identity? You're obviously a man (your user name is a really cute and mild attempt at masking that, by the way). But come on, let's see just who you are! Maybe a website? How about the name of the school you work at? I'm just dying to know.
Marmot, why are you attacking the messenger? What don't you address the issues? Huh?
Do you support putting 11-year-olds on SO registries ?
Do you support giving children access to unbiased information about sexuality?
Trisha, do your current and future victims a favor - commit suicide. Or post your information here so someone can do it for you.
Seriously.
Marmot,
What are you talking about? I argue against putting little kids on SO registries; I argue for comprehensive sex education-- AND YOU TELL ME TO KILL MYSELF?
Are you serious, or just a troll?
This show proves how far civil liberties have sunk in this country. It's not bad enough that would-be pedophiles are baited and then criminalized but then subject to a television audience for derision all in the name of televised viewership to sell more crap.
What if people were baited to smoke marijuana? What if they were baited to "steal" in what is described a fool-proof scheme? Am I the only one here who thinks these are the early steps to a "Minority Report" type society where people are punished for thoughts and desires whether they are carried out or not? I don't see this going on anywhere else in the world-- we live in a police state.
And last night Chris Hansen and Perverted-Justice busted a fifteen year old boy. When the boy left the house the cops put a gun with a laser sight in his face.
I wonder how proud Dani is these days?
And how proud are you of the fact that teachers are being caught these days for having sex with their underage students? or is this what you would call "exploring their sexuality?" It is not programs like "To Catch A Predator" that bring this to light, but parents and students that have finally come forward and said it has to stop. It's not the TV program that is the problem, its the fact that people think they can get away with anything when they are in a position of trust. So now you think that it's the Pope's fault that so many Catholic Priests have been brought out into the open for sexually assaulting former students? ANYONE WHO VISITS AN UNDERAGE CHILD FOR SEX HAS A PROBLEM THAT NEEDS TO BE DEALT WITH OTHERWISE SOCIETY WILL BE RUN BY PEOPLE LIKE YOU, TRISHA16, AND THE FIRST WORD OUT OF A BABIES MOUTH WOULD BE "SEX" RATHER THAN MAMA OR DADA
Bambi, Huh? You're loosing coherence.
To Catch A Predator went after a 15yo boy. How do you defend that?
It's not pedophiles that scare you. You're afraid of sex.
As Frued said, "You have deeper problems than I can help you with."
I just hope you didn't loose the key for your children's chastity belts. LOL!!
This is ridiculous. So a 15 year old boy pretends he's 30 and that's perverted-justices fault? Who are you to defend pedophiles. Apparently to you ignorance is bliss. You don't know the show, and you OBVIOUSLY don't know the first thing about this topic. This has become so controversial over an article about the ACTRESS. Stop attacking a person who does not run the show, yes she SUPPORTS it but does not run it. Take it up to Dateline if you have so many issues with it. Nobody cares about your thoughts on here. Stop wasting your time bitching about how children should "sexually experiment". I'm sure your students' parents would love to see your views on their children.
No, I think I'll keep saying what I think. I'm not really one to back down just because a bunch of bullies come into the room.
TTFN
This is getting ridiculous and it is obvious that those who make comments on the Pedophiles who were caught do not know or possibly even have an idea as to why. #1) Anyone who is a male adult(in this case) who would contact a 12-13 year old female(listed on the chat log as f/12) and hold a conversation that includes sex, graphic language, and pictures has a problem. #2) That they continue the conversation and make reference to having sexual contact with this 12-13 year old female and #3) they make arrangements to meet this 12-13 year old female, indicates the adult has some serious problems and is willing to compound those problems and take a chance on meeting her. This is a problem that all parents should realize is out there, and shows that children are not safe, and we need to stop this problem in its tracks. Bringing it out in the open is a start. But people who back the pedophiles as being "entrapped" have as much a problem as the person who is contacting young, unassuming, teens or younger.
Nonsense, Bambi. The only thing more unpopular than Perverted Justice are the pedophiles themselves. Across the board from lawyers to police to reporters there is nothing but condemnation for PJ and their McCarthyesque tactics.
I don't have to agree with pedophiles to condemn the likes of PJ and that horrid NBC program.
Besides, who's to say what is more "twisted," the pedophiles or the bunch of beer-gut 30-somethings who do nothing but sit around pretending to be 12-year-old girls.
LOL!!!
I found this interview and the comments section a short time ago.
Very interesting, and brave, young lady.
One of the more exemplary items in the interview concerned the fact she's not one-dimensional. She's an actress, past(?) model, singer, and is/was studying to be a RN. And she doesn't strike me as a conceited person or someone who'll end up like some of the more tragic child-actors we've heard about--Dana Plato, Todd Bridges and Gary Coleman of Different Strokes all come to mind. Realistic plans for the future, clear-cut goals, modest.
Here's wishing her success in her endeavors.
I'm glad to see that at least some high profile persons are taking an active interest in sexual predators/pedophiles. Check out Oprah Winfrey's site to see her new undertaking.....To catch sexual predators and put them where they belong...out of society and behind bars. And she urges all citizens to help catch these criminals. Thank God for people like Oprah, Chris Hansen, Dateline, and decoys like Dani, who are willing to set our society right by actively working to get rid of the filth and garbage that we have allowed for too long to ravage our children and take away their sense of safety and youth.
I totally agree with Trisha16. This show was insane, brutal, cold hearted, devious, an insult to the very concept of justice and a disgrace for the States. Those who produced it were fanatical and unscrupulous people.
The suffering of innocent children doesn't justify approaches that include lying, manipulating, charming, humiliating, bullying, lynching and exposing as 'sick pedos' without trial or psychological assessment.
I was not convinced at all by the dangerosity of those so-called 'predators'(some were creepy, but others sounded normal, and sometimes even rather nice apart from the chatlog). The show was a complete failure since it brought many viewers -myself included- to simpathise with those they were supposed to loathe.
As for Dani Miura, like all players in this creepy witch hunt (inquisitors and sinners alike), the label TCAP will long stick on her back. Joining the show was a great mistake, and I would feel miserable with guilt if I had played any role in devastating the lives of those men. But she probably doesn't, because of the self-righteousness and sense of holy mission that plagued all those who took part in the programm.
I read a few articles about Xavier Von Erck, and I find this man really scary, cynical, arrogant and cold-hearted.
One of the person who commented here calls his/herself: reachin4thestars
This person seems to get hot pretty easily when it comes to Dani. This person apparently knows quite a lot about Dani. She advises those who 'defend pedophiles' to meet with abused children.
I visited Dani's website and discovered that her electronical adress was:
reachin4thestars126@hotmail.com
So I made the hypothese (possibly erroneous) that reachin4thestars was none other than Dani vigorously defending herself, using the third person.
If it is the case, it would have been more honest to tell your identity, but impersonation is a bad habit she may have caught working alongside PJ's cowboys.
If Dani happens to read this, I advise she takes a few days, in five years, to go and meet the children of those men who where exposed as 'pervs' and 'pedos' to see how it affected their existence, how they were bullied in schoolyard, how they suffered from it, because their parents divorced, lost their job, etc.
All the while, keep asking yourself: were they really pedophiles? What if we hadn't set up the trap? Would they ever had abused a child for real?
I bet some of them at least would never have harmed anyone and were good contributors to society.
I would be haunted if I had taken the responsability to damage the lives of dozens so brutally (including the family members), without even be sure that the 'predators' were a real threat to anyone. Without a fair trial.
Jonas, Paris
Jonas, I'm no fan of TCAP, but when someone as misinformed as you are spouts off I have to respond. And when I do, I know you'll attack me personally (big deal) and refuse to answer questions (I've dealt with your kind in other forums).
You say "...protecting kids doesn't justify lying..." Many of us believe it does. A child's innocence and trust in adults can be ruined by these guys and never restored. Inability to trust makes for few friends and bad marriages, if they even occur.
You say "...manipulating..." Like the predators don't play head games with the kids? Telling the kids they're "little adults" or that the predator "loves" them? They're being repaid in their own coin.
"...lynching..." An obvious exaggeration as no one was literally hung on an episode.
"...exposing without trial or psychological assessment." Hansen's interviews allowed the guys to hang themselves on national TV as they elaborated, first to decoys like Dani and then to Hansen, exactly what they wanted to do with what they took to be a kid. These guys hadn't been arrested yet, though they had committed crimes (such as Attempting to Commit a Lewd Act With a Child Under 14). The chatlogs of sexually explicit conversations are themselves illegal in many if not all states here. No one was under any moral or legal obligation to reveal what was going on or advise them to shut up.
This wasn't Dr. Phil. This was a news program, like the journalism exposing conditions in America's meatpacking plants 100 years ago.
You weren't convinced these guys were dangerous. Go to www.perverted-justice.com and read the chatlogs (links on home page near the top) of "fleet_captain_jaime_wolfe" and "DavieWants2." Davie tells how he likes to choke young boys as he's screwing them to see the fear in their eyes and hear it in their voices as they beg for their lives. Fleet_captain wanted a twelve year-old girl to become his lifetime sex slave that very night, telling what things she'd be doing (types of sex acts, several men at once, eventual pregnancy) over the next few years.
"...some of them sounded normal apart from the chatlogs..." That's why the show worked: it proved they can be deceptively normal. Our stereotypes that predators are only creepy guys in trenchcoats are proven wrong.
Don't diss the decoys because of what they did. Read Dani's interview. Her relatives were in law enforcement and she likes hands-on stuff and helping people, so this was a natural role for her. Many of them didn't know what they were getting into but probably would have done it anyway.
"...the decoys devastated the lives of these men..." No, the predators did it to themselves. No one forced them to go online, chat up a "minor," talk in sexually explicit terms with the decoy, try to talk them into sex (a crime), set up a meeting and drive to the house for sex. These guys VOLUNTARILY took those steps.
Xavier von Erck is a cold guy? I call him far worse than that but we agree he's not nice.
Dani should visit these guy's kids and see how it affected them? The dads brought it on their kids--Clifford Wallach (Ft. Myers, Florida) BROUGHT his kid along to the sting house, for Pete's sake! IIRC so did "onelostsoul" in Ohio. It's not her fault, or any other decoy's fault for whatever these kids went through since.
Would these guys have abused for real? WTF is wrong with you? Read the chats of what these guys said when they thought it was a kid on the other end. They weren't f------ around.
"Some might not have harmed." Maybe not, but we don't take the chance they wouldn't.
"Some were good contributors to society." This is the most irrelevant comment of your post. A guy in California was a cancer doc when he got caught in a sting (Dr.Maurice Wolin). He's soon to go on trial, may have lost his wife and daughters, his medical license is suspended, and he did it all to himself.
You'd've been haunted if you'd done this kind of work? I did it, in a scaled-down way, and ratted out a guy who ADMITTED he'd molested kids in the past. Am I sorry? Not in the slightest. Haunted? Nope.