Accused Child Molester's Life Ruined

[Fletch]

Did I mention he was acquitted?

This one makes you think twice about coaching kids, teaching kids, being involved with kids, and possibly even having kids. It has everything: lazy cops, a broken "justice" system, persistent belief of guilt in spite of proven innocence, Maude Flanders screaming "won't someone please think of the children?"...

Fairfax teacher Sean Lanigan still suffering from false molestation allegations - The Washington Post

Lesson: We are all one vindictive 12-year-old away from ruined lives, lost income, and soiled reputations. Innocence is no defense when hysteria's involved.

Cases like this make good arguments for a split trial system and anonymity for the accused.

 

[SEIndSAM]

That's a shame. Stuff like this makes it hard to find people that are willing to coach kids activities.
Both of my daughters were heavily involved in school activities and I managed teams for both of them. I ALWAYS made sure that I was never alone with any of the kids so that nothing like this could possibly happen. Even if we were just waiting for one of the kids parents to pick them up, I made sure somebody else was around. You hear of this happening way too often

 

[shibumiseeker]

Had this been posted here before the acquittal, most of the folks responding in the thread would have been calling for his blood.

 

[ArmedProgrammer]

This mirrors a case that I'm familiar with in rural Northern California. Scary. And awful.

 

[ArmedProgrammer]

Had this been posted here before the acquittal, most of the folks responding in the thread would have been calling for his blood.

Or the woodchipper, as I recall....

Quick to judge, quick to anger - slow to understand...

 

[PatriotPride]

Had this been posted here before the acquittal, most of the folks responding in the thread would have been calling for his blood.

You are correct. Most.

 

[Hoosier9]

Tough break.

Gotta admit, though. A teacher who likes to pick 12 year old girls up and "twirl" them for fun is just kinda creepy to me. I'm not saying he molested anyone. I am saying that it's a lot easier to make accusations against someone who is known to be a touchy-feely type with kids. Weird.

 

[shibumiseeker]

Tough break.

Gotta admit, though. A teacher who likes to pick 12 year old girls up and "twirl" them for fun is just kinda creepy to me. I'm not saying he molested anyone. I am saying that it's a lot easier to make accusations against someone who is known to be a touchy-feely type with kids. Weird.

Which is too bad, because kids, by their nature, are touchy-feely. So they get to be raised in a culture of adults who are afraid to touch them

 

[Kirk Freeman]

The girl, angry at Lanigan about something else entirely, had made the whole thing up.

Unpossible, we all know children are incapable of falsehoods.

Why doesn't he move? Change your name and leave.

That's what many involved in these cases do, including the members of the Rodney King Four, one of whom relocated to Indianapolis.

 

[printcraft]

Or the woodchipper, as I recall....

Quick to judge, quick to anger - slow to understand...

Meh. My opinion has not changed.

 

[sadclownwp]

The bratty 12 year old that accused him should be killed and her parents should have to deal with her death by writing the wrongfully accused a check for his losses. There should be no tollerance for wrongfully accusing someone, no matter how young.

 

[Scutter01]

Tough break.

Gotta admit, though. A teacher who likes to pick 12 year old girls up and "twirl" them for fun is just kinda creepy to me. I'm not saying he molested anyone. I am saying that it's a lot easier to make accusations against someone who is known to be a touchy-feely type with kids. Weird.

That's called "playing" and it's what adults used to do with kids before everyone automatically assumed they were molesting them.

 

[nate1865]

"The first person to tell a story seems right until the second comes along."

Guilty before proven innocent is a lost practice in our legal system.

I've seen lives seriously damaged by false allegations. It is easy to manipulate events to paint an incorrect picture and get free legal service from public servants. Prosecutors are free. Defense attorneys are not, and you have to fight a very big and powerful system that assumes you're guilty and doesn't punish false accusers often enough.

 

[96firephoenix]

stuff like this is why I'm kinda reluctant to be a teacher... Give a kid a bad grade, they go and spout **** off like that.

Had this been posted here before the acquittal, most of the folks responding in the thread would have been calling for his blood.

sad thing is that you are probably correct.

 

[Benny]

A guy who I went to high school with, whom is mutual friends with several of my friends(all good judges of character) is in a (sort of) similar situationright now.

His wife's sister is an absolute POS that has 4 kids and they adopted all of them...The 14 year old accused him of molesting her, the news ran the story and now that it looks like she was full of ****. The news no longer cares, so a follow up probably won't even happen.

 

[level.eleven]

That's called "playing" and it's what adults used to do with kids before everyone automatically assumed they were molesting them.

Years before I was born, my father was involved in youth baseball coaching. He coached the 9-12 year old group and worked closely with the local high school coaches to spot and develop talent. Needless to say, he coached me and my friends as well. He coached kids from split homes and kids who literally had never met their father. He would bring watermelon and sodas to camps and practices. He would even go as far to drive out to the country to pick kids up who had a mother that worked swing shift so they could make a game. And it wasn't because he liked to win either. I shudder to guess how he would be perceived today.

 

[Benny]

That's called "playing" and it's what adults used to do with kids before everyone automatically assumed they were molesting them.

Yes, very sad.

 

[indykid]

Watch the new on TV in the evening. Any time the police pick someone up, the news people already pronounce them as guilty. No trial needed. Athlete accused of doing anything off the court, guilty even if proven innocent.

Pretty sad that in so many times, the innocent get hung before the trial, and the truly guilty get set free to do their evil over and over.

 

[edsinger]

This is sick, first I have no tolerance for child molesters PERIOD. That being said I have no tolerance for LIARS either. He should be allowed to sue the parents of the accuser for the legal fees.

Plus, if I was him, I would not want to would I work for that school district again.


Where was the sex in this? A comment can cost you 40 years?

This is what this nation is becoming...selfish..what is in it for me.

The accuser has NO consequences for her actions? None? She can destroy ones life and "oh Well" no big deal?

BS

 

[Que]

Unpossible, we all know children are incapable of falsehoods.

Why doesn't he move? Change your name and leave.

That's what many involved in these cases do, including the members of the Rodney King Four, one of whom relocated to Indianapolis.

Didn't he attend law school in Indianapolis? Hmmmm...