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Janitor cleared in Revere indecent-exposure investigation
By adamg on Thu, 01/22/2015 - 2:36pm
Authorities will not pursue any indecent-exposure charges against a custodian at a Catholic school in Revere after determining that what happened was the guy was simply using a urinal in a school restroom for its intended purpose when a young student happened to enter the room at the same time.
According to the Suffolk County District Attorney's office:
The investigation revealed that a 64-year-old male assigned to the school's custodial staff used the boy's restroom, which was across the hall from his office, on several occasions in December and early January. One boy reported to a parent that he had observed the adult using the urinal during this time. No child reported that the adult engaged in physical contact with them. No child reported that the adult used sexual language around them. No child reported any action by the adult that would support criminal charges. The adult met voluntarily with investigators and submitted to an interview with detectives. The interview likewise did not yield any evidence to support charges.
Revere Police detectives and members of the DA's Child Protection Unit spoke with a parent of the boy to explain their findings. She supported those findings, expressed relief, and did not wish to proceed with any criminal case against the adult. As a result, the investigation has been closed without charges.
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Comments
Was the janitor....
... fired?
As a school custodian myself
As a school custodian myself I know it's not smart to use the kids restroom when school is in session. I'm glad the guy got cleared though.
Probably not, but...what?
There was an investigation because some kid mentioned that an adult was taking out his penis to use a urinal?
Did I read that right?
A little late for the three forced to resign...
While I understand the church needs to err on the side of caution, I saw at least two parents on TV saying they didn't believe there was anything to this. Still, a teacher, principal and pastor resigned, under pressure no doubt. Time for the hysteria to end.
The individuals resigned
The individuals resigned because they failed to report the allegations in a timely manner. Given the Catholic Church's recent history with regard to sexual abuse, I would hardly characterize that as "hysteria".
Moral panic
Allegations which have now turned out to be nonsense.
If I were any of the four people involved in this - the three who resigned, or the janitor - I would be looking at suing the school. As a comment above said, it's time for the hysteria (the sociological term is "moral panic," or more colloquially, "witchhunt") to end, and if it starts costing these institutions as much to go after potentially false allegations as it did to not go after real allegations, they'll be more cautious in the future before they wreck people's careers and reputations.
What were the allegations here?
This story doesn't say other than possible indecent exposure.
A guy should be able to use a bathroom for its intended purpose without being accused of something. A kid can walk into any toilet in a ball park, movie theater or any other location and spot a guy with his hand on his junk doing his business. How many shakes does it take before it becomes a crime?
I know
I had to go to South Station at lunch, and I used the rest room there. And like clock work, I was flashed by a homeless guy coming out of the stall. Again.. yes Again.
I don't know why but I must have a big sign that says 'SHOW ME YOUR DINK' on my forehead because it happens all to much.
There is a big difference between flashing
In a stall and pulling a taylor swift (shake it off) at the urinal.
Besides, at 3 years old I was smart enough not to use the mens room at SS.
ya I know
but I had tooo much coffeeeeeee... i had to peeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Then walk up to Independence
Then walk up to Independence Wharf. Their bathrooms are singles.
C'mon, they're now airport
C'mon, they're now airport quality restrooms!
Can't decide if your
Can't decide if your experience is better or worse than the time I walked into a bathroom at Faneuil Hall mid-morning to find a homeless guy washing his underwear in the sink.
I think I got you beat
I was in the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport once and a US Senator was trying to limbo dance under the partition between his stall and another, with his pants around his ankles.
Minn.-St.Paul airport
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fuQBmi6Ca4
(actually filmed in the ladies room at a theater in NY)
So, three people were forced
to resign because they falied to report a person who the pointelss and expensive investigation determined "was simply using a urinal in a school restroom for its intended purpose when a young student happened to enter the room at the same time."
Past Church issues aside for a moment, that to me seems to fit the textbook defintion of hysteria.
Unless you think these three
Unless you think these three individuals had the ability to see into the future, nobody knew, at the time the allegations were made, whether the allegations were true or not. Thus, the investigation was not "pointless", the investigation was *necessary* to determine whether any wrongdoing had occurred. Sorry if this concept is too complicated for you to figure out.
You may be comfortable allowing authority figures to decide unilaterally whether a crime has occurred or whether an investigation is warranted, but that approach hasn't really worked out too well for the Catholic Church (or its members who are children), now, has it?
And you're comfortable
with automatically presuming that a crime MUST have been committed because an adult male used a friggin' BATHROOM. And you're comfortable with a system that requires people to automatically report normal behavior (using a friggin' BATHROOM) instead of allowing responsible and mature adults to use their judgement and common sense.
And, uless I'm mistaken, the "allegations" in this case were that an adult was in the bathroom at the same time as a child. Wonderful basis for forcing three people to resing their jobs and dragging the janitor's name and reputation through the mud.
Are you, in fact, an idiot?
Nobody has claimed that a crime MUST have been committed, your capital letters notwithstanding. That's why you have an investigation. Seriously, is it that hard to understand? If you have some magic powers that allow you to instantly determine whether a crime has been committed without doing an actual investigation, then you should be working with the police rather than wasting your time on an internet message board.
Except that
there was no evidence that any crime may had been committed, apart from the concidence that the janitor and the boy were in the bathroom at the same time.
Do you really want a society where we force people to resign their jobs and conduct investigations solely on heresay and concidences?
Missing the point
If it was the responsibility of the church/school officials to report the parental complaint (and it seemingly was), and they did not do so, they screwed up badly -- regardless of whether it was ultimately determined that nothing "bad" had actually happened (after the investigation finished).
^^^This
It's not rocket science, people.
the real cost of the hysteria
is that good people with good intentions
are afraid to be seen in the same zip code as your kid.
Came up on my friend's Facebook recently
The article about "free range kids" was linked and they said that the busybody who called the police on the kids walking home from the park without their parents to shepherd them should have just gone out to ask the kids if they were okay instead.
I said "As a single, middle-aged man I say to hell with that advice. Then some other busybody would call the cops claiming there was a pedophile molester talking to kids on the street."
#MensLivesMatter
Its not just black men viewed with suspicion everywhere, all men are (mostly by women)! As potential child molesters, rapists, muggers etc. Black men are just viewed with greater suspicion than white men on average, depending on how one appears.
Next thing you know, men will need a carry permit for a penis!
*****
*****
Edit: I removed what I said about you because it was inappropriate. It was not positive. Try keeping more stupid opinions to yourself.
Sounds like somebody
needs to replace the battery in their sarcasm detector. OTOH, considering the source of the post you responded to (Marrkkk), you may have a vaild point.
You think he was joking?
Really?
My bad
as I didn't pay closer attention to the username (Marrrrrrkkkkkkkkkkk!) before posting. So you're probably right
thanks
I was all fired up to argue against getting into a meta-discussion regarding one fool's obstinate recalcitrance. Tua culpa ;)
Detachable Penis
...for those unfamiliar with the hit song or command to leave home without it when going out with the boys. Also helpful to getting the humor is knowledge of 1970s+ feminist theory on how the penis is a weapon of oppression, translated at retail to less-phallic dildos for womyn politically incorrect enough to allow any penetration.
Go away
Just go away -- now.
Law vs. policy
It could very well be school policy that adults use different bathrooms from students. But it's not the law. So there's no reason for the police to get involved, but still could be reason for people to lose their jobs.
Law vs Policy
I sort of agree with you that it seem excessive to get the police involved however, schools need to be careful and police are a good 3rd party to conduct the independent investigation.
It's sad
As a man, I find it necessary in 2015 to be very, very cautious around kids not my own. And this is a really pathetic story; I feel bad for the janitor, and the people who lost their job. Totally unnecessary all around. I honestly don't know how men, especially, work with kids, it would stress me no end. All somebody has to do is day you did or said something, and you're reputation can being ruined. And iy's sad, because the teaching profession, especially, could use more men.
Here's one for you
One of the teachers in junior's day care is a dude. I haven't, nor will I ever, talked to him about it, but I would imagine that he has gotten shit about his career choice ever since he chose it.
Seems like a good guy. He is good around the kids. But yeah, my guess is that people look warily at him.
It's a minefield
So I'm at the grocery store, at one end of the cereal aisle, and just as I pick out my box of Grape-Nuts, I feel something clamp onto my leg. I look down and see a toddler with his arms wrapped around it, looking up at me with delight. Not my toddler, or one I've ever seen before. I'm thinking Oh boy, my life is about to change for the worse, when I see a woman who's just appeared at the other end of the aisle. I say to the little one "Is that your mommy?" He lets go and toddles off toward her. All the time he's making this journey, she's giving me the Death Glare, like it was all my fault she lost track of the kid. The rest of my stay in the store, I half expected cops to swarm me like the decontamination squad from Monsters, Inc.
I really, really wish all those pederasts would confine themselves to anime porn or something, and leave the children alone. It would make life easier for the rest of us.