BishopAccountability.org
	Crime & Justice Predators, Justice System Alike Abuse Public's Trust Editorial Naples Daily News [Florida] October 27, 2006 http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2006/oct/27/editorial_crime_justice/?opinion Though there is a common thread of perverted sex and molestation, this is about trust — and violating it. Former U.S. Rep. Mark Foley says he was molested as a boy by a priest. Whether that is to distract inquisitors of his e-mail propositions to teen pages or to build sympathy, the explanation from that now-retired clergyman speaks to the insidious nature of child molestation: It becomes habitual, rationalized behavior. While describing an intimate and fawning friendship with Foley that included nudity and even fondling, the priest says there was nothing sexual or inappropriate. That is doubly dangerous coming from someone in authority — someone who purports to act on behalf of God. That priest violated trust placed in him by the Foley family and the church. Foley in turn violated trust placed in him by voters and the parents of congressional pages. Parents of other priests' victims wonder if the church is violating their trust by taking quick action to censure Foley's molester and seek other victims while other allegations languish. Is it because Foley's is a high-profile case of the rich and famous? The Naples-area case of Mark Branson, former marching band director extraordinaire at Barron Collier High School and Collier County Teacher of the Year in 2001, harbors similar themes. While Branson did not molest one of his own students, he did prey online on a 12-year-old, sexually insecure boy he knew from a church music program. Branson violated the trust of legions of students, parents, fans and fellow educators. In pre-trial interviews, he wavered on whether his actions with the boy — including sexual relations on eight or nine occasions, through age 13 — were all that wrong or even Branson's fault. His sentencing is yet another violation of trust. The court system had Branson in custody and instead of leading him off to prison on Tuesday gave him until after the holidays to turn himself in. His sentence: 12 years — or 45 years if he does not show up on Jan. 2. Actually, if he does not show up on Jan. 2, he might serve no years. By awarding Branson such favorable terms, the court gives a sign how seriously it regards child molestation. This treatment seems to apologize to Branson for the inconvenience. The violation-of-trust examples in the news continue outside the realm of predatory sex. There are the still-unsolved cases of two minority men last seen in late 2003 and early 2004 in North Naples. They were given purportedly helpful rides by the same, veteran Collier County Sheriff's deputy, now fired due to inconsistent testimony in an internal investigation. The disappearances pose a violation of trust so severe that it would be risky for anyone to get into a patrol car — until the missing men's families get the answers they deserve. There is a charge of kidnapping, worth up to eight years in prison upon conviction, dropped against a homeless man who investigators say held his estranged wife and two children at knifepoint and hit her over the head as she was forced to drive all of them around town. While the prosecutor indicated to an agreeable judge that the man was due a break for helping crack another case, she later said to a reporter that actually there was insufficient evidence to proceed. That is a violation of trust. All of these are violations of trust.
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.