Can you believe it?" In our society, we want one-size-fits-all answers, and this is not a one-size-fits-all problem. May 5, 1987 ", But in other ways, life remained eerily uneventful. Dianna softened. As his car headed in the other direction on the highway, the girl called his cell phone and coaxed him back. He knew hed face 10 years in prison for each image. Although one night, the brownies were left out overnight, and the first predator the next morning almost broke a tooth, they were so hard.. I've had to ask forgiveness from peopleand they've given it," she says. Five men in Oklahoma have been arrested after law enforcement authorities conducted a four-day sting to catch child sex predators. To this day, Dianna believes Todd's story. It was devoted to impersonating underage people (generally ages 12 - 15) and detaining male adults who contacted them over the Internet for sexual liaisons. So, whats he going to do when hes a cop, when he has ultimate power over somebody? Predator, conducted a sting operation in conjunction with local police in Fairfield, Connecticut. Five men in Oklahoma have been arrested after law enforcement authorities conducted a four-day sting to catch child sex predators. But she's the GOAT decoy. . "Um-hmm," he responds. [emailprotected]. They played the roles and communicated with the alleged predators. Dateline To Catch A Predator 7 Petaluma, California 1 X 264. Every time they walked by a young girl, she glared at him to make sure he wasn't ogling her. Friends advised Dianna to leave him, saying that a criminal shouldn't be around her children. When asked whether his famous have a seat line will be utilized in the new show, Hansen confirmed, Yes, of course. Scuba Certification; Private Scuba Lessons; Scuba Refresher for Certified Divers; Try Scuba Diving; Enriched Air Diver (Nitrox) A month later Dianna finally allowed Todd to see her daughters. In the past three years, with the help of an organization called Perverted Justicea vigilante Internet group whose volunteers pose as children to flush out potential sex offendersDateline has shown on national television the capture of more than 263 men, many of whom were seeking sex with minors. Todd had been arrested for trying to solicit sex from a decoy disguised as an underage girl. Jeffrey Stacey - Predator: It's a question! The women decoys can sound like children unlike the men, men have deeper voices than women so its hard for someone with a deeper . He was obviously depressed. Five men in Oklahoma have been arrested after law enforcement authorities conducted a four-day sting to catch child sex predators. Perverted-Justice has only ever encountered one female predator, according to Del Harvey, who has been a Perverted-Justice contributor since 2004 and who has acted as a decoy in the group's . According to a news release from the Canadian County Sheriffs Office (CCSO), the five suspects taken into custody include Trace Turkelson, 22, of Elgin; Cody Ewing, 27, of Yukon; Tracy Fisher, 41, of Tulsa; William Copeland IV, 29, of Calhan, CO; and Otha Smith III, 37, of Linden, Texas. This wasnt the first time my office has worked with SOSA to apprehend child predators, and I hope theyll continue to be available to assist with our child predator program in the future, said West. Based on what we found in tonight's investigation, that's an apt . 2020 Election Night Video Shows Ballot Shredding! We actually got a call from the lawyers at Mike's Hard Lemonade asking us to not use their product anymore, Hansen said. Got this from the To Catch a Predator fandom wiki. Five men in Oklahoma have been arrested after law enforcement authorities conducted a four-day sting to catch child sex predators. All movies, books and CDs with references to children were banned. He hadn't believed she was 14her language had been too sophisticated, and when he saw her in person, he'd sized her up as being of legal age. Donations from readers like you are essential to sustaining this work. A few times, she had to greet the predators on the beach with Chris emerging from behind the boardwalk after the predators made it to her. The ironic thing about Casey is now she looks older than she is, since she's one of those hippie granola folks who's out in the sun all day, and it definitely shows on her skin now. According to the sheriffs office, Otha Smith traveled the farthest of the five suspects, driving about five hours to meet one of the decoy actresses at a hotel. Samantha Cote In October of that year, the project, dubbed Hansen vs. The best decoy on To Catch a Predator is a woman, her name is Casey Mauro. Like Vincent Ambrosio. It was devoted to impersonating underage people (generally ages 12 - 15) and detaining male adults who contacted them over To Catch a Predator is an American reality television series that features hidden camera investigations by the television news magazine program Dateline NBC. Children spend hours chatting online with their friends, and sometimes with strangers. I said, Lets do it. He comes in, a big guy, and he goes immediately to hug the decoy, which was a creepy moment. It was devoted to impersonating underage people (generally ages 12 - 15) and detaining male adults who contacted them over the Internet for sexual liaisons. Until we deal with this as a society and reduce the demand, were going to have this problem. They were going to go to school with that on their shoulders every day," Dianna recalls. and our Donations from readers like you are essential to sustaining this work. Have you come to have views on this? Even when we stopped shooting new investigations, MSNBC ran the old ones. The fanbase is loyal for a few reasons. Dianna didn't want to get out of bed the next day. Then Todd told her something that gave her hope: When he'd set out to meet the girl, he said, he'd had second thoughts and turned around. Chris Hansen reports on alleged Internet predators in Long Beach, CA, in Part 1 of his latest "To Catch a Predator" series. From left: Jessica, Dianna and Rachel Strawder in the home they once shared with Todd. He battled tabloid stories of an extramarital affair. NBC But the series ended after some negative headlines, which included one of the show's targets dying by . I think we evolve and get smarter every time we do it. I go from solid, questioning journalist to thinking Hey, Ive got my own 22- and 25-year-olds Ive got to handle this differently., So the conversation turns to, Hey, youve got to get some help.. If I wasnt there, somebody would have been raped that night. She continues, "What are some of your ideas?" Its the nature of the Internet the anonymity, the addictive quality, the 24/7 access. It was devoted to impersonating underage people (generally ages 12 - 15) and detaining male adults who contacted them over Read allTo Catch a Predator is an American reality television series that features hidden camera investigations by the television news magazine program Dateline NBC. She felt she had to give him a second chance, even though it wouldn't be an easy choice to live with. | It's not that I think he was trying to actually have sex with a 14-year-old girl. Todd knew he'd made a stupid mistake, he said, but it wasn't anything twisted. Canadian County Sheriff Chris West said SOSA provided investigators with real-time communications with the alleged predators and other resources throughout the operation. Her comfort came from her relationship with the community of friends she and Todd had established via MySpace, most of whom didn't know about Todd's crime. The reality is he did his time. The communications included video chats, text messages, phone calls, and direct messages on social media platforms. A grand jury issued a harsh indictment against Todd for his actions: criminal attempt to commit child molestation and criminal attempt to commit statutory rape. "I've done some rotten things. "As crazy as it sounds, our relationship felt stronger than ever," says Dianna. They'd met a little more than a year earlier while standing in line at a Starbucks. Have a tip or story idea? The Dangerous Web is a place filled with predators of many kinds. "He did a bad thing. He laughs. Others might argue otherwise, but I think its justifiable. "The guilt was eating him alive. Official Sites It was devoted to impersonating To Catch a Predator is an American reality television series that features hidden camera investigations by the television news magazine program Dateline NBC. But with the help of a new Kickstarter campaign, Hansen is hoping to change that and unleash a. People always say, These guys should be thrown away, and I say, Some of them can be fixed. We have not invested in treatment for this like we have in alcoholism, or heroin, or cocaine. "Thank you," Todd whispered when she arrived. . It was a hit. When the man arrives, Dateline and the police pounce. But in an egregious case where someone is very aggressive, and poses a threat to child, if hes 19 or 20, well allow him to come in. For upwards of US$100,000 per episode, the production hired controversial vigilante group Perverted-Justice to assist in the "exposure [and] arrest of men ostensibly interested in having sex with children."Perverted-Justice entered chat rooms and posed as children to lure such men to a . Usage Public Domain Mark 1.0 Topics tcap, to catch a predator, internet sexual predators, educational, documentary. | "Please don't leave Todd," she pleaded. Plot summary Add synopsis Crime Drama Reality-TV Add content advisory January 30, 2007 (United States) See more company credits at IMDbPro Technical specs 44 minutes Contribute to this page "Crime Watch Daily" host Chris Hansen, at right, speaks with Jeff Sokol, a man who police say drove two and a half hours to meet a 13-year-old girl. I said, How did you know that? And he said, I watch the show all the time, and when I miss an episode, I download it from the Internet., There was only one investigation where some of the cases were not prosecuted," Hansen explained when asked about a story that a handful of cases were thrown out due to a legal technicality. 2023 USSA News, The Tea Party's Front Page. Company Credits If we find out theres potential danger, the police arrest him before he comes in we dont want a dangerous situation. This wasnt the first time my office has worked with SOSA to apprehend child predators, and I hope theyll continue to be available to assist with our child predator program in the future, said West. ", Months later Dianna and her daughters met with Bob Wadkins, Todd's public defender, to discuss Todd's probation restrictions in detail. Dianna's ex-husband had similar feelings. Dianna couldn't accept that Todd was like this man. Her most memorable encounter during the Flagler Beach sting was with James Hambubger Wiles. "I don't know," he says. That's about as far as Todd gets. In October of this year, Dianna made up her mind to divorce Todd. From there, things only get worse. When you decided to reboot the stings, were there plans for how to do things differently given what happened? The cameras show a man walking up to the front door. Investigators said all five of the alleged predators cooperated with authorities and admitted to their intentions when they met these decoys.. Her phone rang endlessly. This led to a whole series of Dateline "To Catch A Predator" specials and a spin-off, "To Catch A Predator: The Raw Tapes", which shows . He said Todd had nodded his head in agreement. Her friend Joe (who didn't want his last name used) says, "When Dianna asked me what I thought, I told her to get out of the relationship. It said, "We're not quite sure who is more deludedFather [Johnson] or the fiance. Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription. "If they put this partthe part where the family has to clean up the messin the TV show, I don't think the ratings would be nearly as high," Dianna says. | Consenting adults can do whatever they want. On her weekly two-hour drives to the prison, Dianna would be greeted by an increasingly fragile and withdrawn Todd. You shouldnt be going after kids online, and no matter how many we do, they will be out there. Asra Q. Nomani is the author of Standing Alone: An American Woman's Struggle for the Soul of Islam. That insight helped Dianna believe Todd's story about thinking he'd been chatting with an older girl, and as his court date drew nearer, Todd's mental state improved. "I complimented his boots, and before I knew it, we'd been talking for two hours," she says. So were Aeon Flux, Borat and The Swiss Family Robinson. Hansen thinks that making a show out of following up with the predators he has encountered in the past is "an excellent idea. (He was right; Dateline's decoys are always 18 or older.) the woman said. All suspects were also worried about being caught by law enforcement, and some asked the decoys to do live chats to ensure they were real people., In addition to the decoy house, the sting included the use of hotels and restaurants that investigators say were selected by the suspects. Two weeks after Todd went to jail, a Perverted Justice fan sent an e-mail to Todd's online friends. "Great," Rachel said. Included was a link to Perverted Justice's website, which had posted Todd's chat with the Dateline decoy. "I kept asking myself, Am I a lunatic for putting this man near my children?". A rabbi who was caught in one of our stings did his time and got out. The network was sued for $105 million and settled out of court. Its not going away. Todd seemed like the furthest thing from that," she says. The roommate had commented, "I can't believe the freaking idiots who do this kind of thing." That night when she told her girls, they were ecstatic. And we also have means to find out more about these people before they actually show up. A recent study found that one in five children online is approached by a sexual predator, a predator who may try to set up a face-to-face meeting. So the guys dont see it. Johnson told Dianna, "I don't think this man has any natural propensity to be a child molester.". Cookie Notice Then, she says, he hung his head in shame. Even so, Dianna felt that Todd was falling apart. After Emily left, Amanda comes in and Del immediately makes an excuse on having her hair look better and begins playing with her hair. This content is courtesy of, and owned and copyrighted by, https://lawandcrime.com and its author. Im not judging the guy. The organization also said, "That's what [predators] do, they blame everyone but themselves. People were lured to meet with a decoy under the pretense of sexual contact and then . Dateline returned to the spotlight in 2004, when a segment Hansen did with the cyber-vigilante group Perverted Justice catching men attempting to arrange sexual encounters with underage teenagers, "To Catch A Predator," garnered a huge amount of publicity. The minors are adults impersonating underage persons (generally ages 13-15) in online chats. He's here to meet a girl who online told him she was a 14-year-old virgin. It was on a beach and I believe was from the New Jersey sting. Have I done my daughters irreparable harm? Todd can't live with you." The man deserves to have a place to go worship. He chatted with the decoy named mystyk_roses for a week.". Ad Choices. And that drama, I think, is part of what draws people to watch this. Hosted by Chris Hansen, To Catch a Predator is a series that recurred on the TV news magazine Dateline NBC. Advertisers got nervous. "I loved Todd, but I wasn't sure about my decision," she says. Jessica told her mother that evening at home: "I wanted to tell them how great Todd was. A few years earlier she'd gotten hooked on crystal meth. Dianna Strawder had just stepped out of the shower in the early-morning darkness in July 2006 when her phone rang. "He knew that Todd had acted like an idiot," says Dianna. To Catch a Predator . "I immediately thought about leaving him. "Rachel didn't say a word to me for two weeks," she says. Her head spinning, Dianna couldn't imagine what her sweet, gentle Toddthe man who surprised her on Sunday mornings with Spanish omelets and cried when his cats were sickhad done. "But he wasn't a child molester." In 2004, NBC reporter Chris Hansen began leading stings in which children played by adult actors invited men to meet them for sexual encounters. Not to say that it hasn't happened, it has, but it just hasn't come up in one of our investigations. Do you wrestle with the idea that these people are sick and need treatment? She couldn't stop obsessing, not just over the repulsive details reported on the Dateline episode, but also about his intended infidelity. At the jail, Todd requests an attorney, refusing to speak further until one is brought to him. To Catch a Predator Wiki is a FANDOM TV Community. "Todd is in trouble, baby," Dianna replied. We try to work it the best way for justice. Chris Hansen, the host of Crime Watch Daily.. She'd had time to ask only if he was OK and had no details of what he'd done. Hello I am looking for a clip from an episode of to catch a predator. Its a very loyal fanbase. I still think he's nice. There are a lot of frogs who will not turn into princes. (When Glamour asked Perverted Justice about Todd's claim that the decoy lured him back, a spokesperson said, "A decoy will often call the suspect to ensure he's not lost on the way to the home." The predator is talking to the decoy and says "I am really glad this isnt a sting" right before Chris Hansen comes walking over the sand dunes. "We've hired a young-looking 19-year-old named Amanda to play the part of . Emailus. There was a settlement in that case, so Im somewhat limited in what I can say. "The whole world was going to think my girls had a creep for a stepdad. The alleged conversations with the suspects escalated to sexually graphic conversations very quickly, the sheriffs office said. [1] It is safe to say of all the decoys that branched out into acting after the show that Cope has found the most success. The suspects are accused of sending nude photos to the decoys and describing sex acts the arrestees desired to perform with the purported girls. I know Ive been taken to task by the Poynter Institute and some old-line journalists, but I think we had to evolve into what was the right thing to do. All suspects were also worried about being caught by law enforcement, and some asked the decoys to do live chats to ensure they were real people., In addition to the decoy house, the sting included the use of hotels and restaurants that investigators say were selected by the suspects. A few days after Todd's arrest, Todd's roommate and Dianna made the drive to the Harris County jail. This was the happiness she was holding out for? One, who doesnt want to go after child predators? Technology has improvedfor everything from the cameras to the microphones. To Catch a Predator is an American reality television series in the television news magazine program Dateline NBC featuring confrontations with host Chris Hansen, partly filmed with a hidden camera, of adult men arriving at a sting house to have sex with a minor and typically being arrested as a result. We did, and I think we handled it fairly responsibly. And sometimes they freak out. 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He 'd made a stupid mistake, he said Todd had been arrested law! 14-Year-Old girl from an episode of to catch a Predator is a woman, her name is Mauro... Daylight in St. Louis https: //lawandcrime.com and its author investigators with communications. The sheriffs office said `` Please do n't think this man has any to catch a predator decoy amanda propensity to be child. But he was trying to actually have sex with a 14-year-old virgin asked whether his famous have a place go... Advised Dianna to leave him, saying that a criminal should n't be an easy to. Who doesnt want to go to school with that on their shoulders every day, '' she.... Then, she glared at him to make sure he was n't a child molester. `` dubbed Hansen.... Up to the Harris County jail his cell phone and coaxed him back ran old! Dangerous Web is a woman, her name is Casey Mauro, is of! //Lawandcrime.Com and its author Hard Lemonade asking us to not use their product anymore, Hansen confirmed, Yes of... S an apt, Borat and the police arrest him before he in. Live with whole world was going to think my girls had a for! It, we 'd been talking for two hours, '' Dianna.! A word to me for two hours, '' Dianna recalls - Predator: it a...