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Judge: Perverted Justice Founder 'Solicited Child Molestation'

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VON PERV Xavier
The pudgy, pasty, and exceedingly creepy founder of Perverted Justice, the online vigilante group that NBC News pays to lure in gap-toothed perverts for Dateline NBC's "To Catch a Predator," narrowly escaped a taste of his own medicine last week. On August 10, a judge in Oglethorpe County, Georgia, issued a previously unreported order finding that "there is probable cause to believe that Xavier Von Erck solicited ... child molestation, statutory rape, or attempted child molestation or attempted statutory rape."

Sadly, it's not quite as deliciously ironic as it sounds: There's no evidence (yet) that Von Erck is a secret pedophile. The case stems from a rather novel legal theory pursued by Robert E. White, whose son Robert Gerald White was arrested for attempted child molestation and attempted statutory rape after a Dateline sting in Harris County, Georgia, last year. The elder White thinks that Von Erck, by posing as a 15-year-old girl during online chats with his son, actually solicited the younger White into showing up at the Dateline house for sex. And in Georgia, solicitation is a crime.

Robert E. White's attorney, Gary Gerrard, went to a Georgia state judge last month seeking a warrant for Von Erck's arrest for criminal solicitation, and the judge, by and large, agreed: He issued an order stating that "there is probable cause to believe that Xavier Von Erck communicated with Robert Gerald White with intent that Robert Gerald White would engage in conduct constituting a felony." In other words, Von Erck wanted the younger White to break the law and tried to get him to do so, behavior that is usually considered criminal in Georgia. But the judge declined to issue the warrant, finding that there was no way the younger White could have actually committed the crime that Von Erck was soliciting him to commit—there was, after all, no 15-year-old girl to molest.

But it might not be that simple. Gerrard and other sources familiar with Georgia criminal law say the judge plainly got it wrong.

Georgia law clearly states that "it is no defense to a prosecution for criminal solicitation that the person solicited could not be guilty of the crime solicited." So if Von Erck were prosecuted for solicitation, he wouldn't be able to argue that he knew all along that no actual 15-year-old girl was going to be molested.

"The law says the impossibility of committing the crime is not a defense," says Gerrard.

What's more, White was charged with attempted molestation, a crime that he actually committed by showing up at the Dateline house. And that crime, the judge's order says, was solicited by Von Erck.

"It seems clear here that Von Erck did intend for this man to commit a felony," said Robert D. Leonard II, a Georgia criminal defense attorney who maintains a blog on Georgia law. "The felony would be attempted child molestation."

Gerrard says he is considering his options and may appeal the order.

In a statement, NBC said, "We believe our newsgathering and activities in connection with "To Catch a Predator" fully complied with Georgia law."

E-mailed for a response, Von Erck replied, "Thanks for contacting us for comment. Unfortunately, you're not a legitimate reporter, you're just a rather scummy fellow who writes for a tabloid rag. Other than being told that you're a scummy hack who resembles a stalker more than a journalist, we don't have any comment for you on this issue or any other issue."

PREVIOUSLY
Strange Bedfellows: Meet Xavier Von Erck, Star of ABC News
To Catch, Kill a Predator
'Predator' Svengali Caught On Tape
To Sue a Predator Catcher

Thank you, John Cook, for continuing to expose Phillip J. Eide aka Xavier Von Erck as the uneducated mongrel he is in real life.


Everyone knows Xavier and all the Perverted-Justice people have child porn on their computers for extended periods of time.

Being mere citizens gives them no right to create child porn by using pictures of kids taken from web sites to create fake profiles.

Greg Brainer aka Jay Alternative from Perverted Justice has admitted in court that he CREATES fake child porn profiles with photos taken from adoption sites in order to entice men with them.

Posted by: ChiquitaJuanita on August 17, 2007 3:48 PM

Come out, come out where ever you are, pedos. Try and use any legal tricks you can. We all want to know who you are and where you are, for we know what you are. You are the destroyers of lives and the robbers of childhood. You may think that in the post sexual revolution era, you can normalize your activities. Thank God, however, that everyone else understands the concept of "concenting adults". If any pedo wishes to remain in society, then they should find a way to control or inhibit their tendencies. If they don't, then I applaud any and all efforts to remove them from society. We see you, pedo, and there is nothing good about you. For everyone else, ask yourself this question. If you could cure all disease, but to do so you must torture to death one child, would you do it? If you answer no, then why would you tolerate anything from a child rapist? If you answered yes, then I truely hope that you are only a sociopath and not a pedophyle.

Posted by: listener1022 on August 22, 2007 12:55 AM

You have got to be joking. Von Erck is a "creepy, and exceedingly pudgy vigilante"???? I admit to catch a predator is creepy but duhhh - look at the content. It's about sexual predators. Really clever how you spin this around to make it almost seem like Von Erck is some sort of pedophile creep. It's almost as if you wish he would get caught red handed raping some poor child. It doesn't matter how these disgusting freaks get caught. Why do you care about the rights of pedophiles?? Would be or otherwise? These people destroy lives and all you can do is critique the entertainment value of the program. Don't you understand that if this program prevents even one child from having some monster destroy their life, it is well worth having to put up with CHris Hanson's nasally, hackneyed, repetitive performances. In other words, this is more important than art, ethical journalism (whatever that is these days), and media personality, or whether you find someone's physical attributes appealing or not. Perhaps John Cook would sing a different tune if one of his children, nephews, or nieces had their souls ripped apart by one of these monsters. I say expose and take these bastards down by any means necessary.

Posted by: fleshyglassbits on August 22, 2007 11:36 AM

Hey John Cook,
sounds like you might be a little scared you may be "trapped" next. Does Perverted Justice put a hold on any of your future plans?

Posted by: richiex67 on August 23, 2007 12:25 AM

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That dude totally looks like he has little girl panties in his pocket.

Posted by: Agent in SF on August 23, 2007 1:16 PM

Listener,
Your social cleansing aside, I think you should reconsider your "torture to death one child," philosophy. It has nothing at all to do with the present topic of soliciting felonies. What makes what this show different from a person soliciting a hit-man to kill someone? There is a difference between sociopaths and pedoPHILES. Sociopaths want to kill everyone who they deem "unfit to live," or in your case, "pedophyles."
"PedoPHILE," in the proper spelling here, is an incorrect term. It might make people think of terrible things like the word nazi, commie, or faggot; but it is not applicable. A person is only a pedophile if they are sexually attracted to pre-pubescent children. If the children are post-pubescent (12 or 13) then they are called Ephebophiles, not pedophiles. It is tough to actually use the correct word, especially when it doesn't immediately make people angry.

Fleshyglassbits,
I don't know how you were raised, but "Why do you care about the rights of pedophiles?? " Seriously? Do you think that pedophiles are not people? Don't they deserve every legal protection that you do? Or is it that you can't use logic and empathy to understand this person's problems? I am not condoning pedophilia or don't you think that they are similar to a thief or murderer, they ruined someone's life, and will be punished using the justice system we have. Not some vigilantes who would use "any means necessary" to stop what is a criminal of a very emotional crime?

I ask that you use logic and empathy instead of pure, knee-jerk emotion to consider these criminals instead of people who should forever be banished from society, or worse. We should not tolerate these terrible crimes, but we should not respond by the murdering and massacring these criminals.

Posted by: Beansca on August 24, 2007 8:16 PM