Suppose, for the sake of argument, a man had the MySpace software installed on his machine, and it indicated, with certainty, that the adult decoy pretending to be a minor that he was corresponding with was not a minor. Suppose, further, than in his communications, the adult decoy exhibits knowledge of events from before she was supposedly born, and uses sophisticated language and usage that would further indicate that she is, in fact, an adult.
Would this man be committing a crime by corresponding in a sexually explicit manner with an adult who he, in fact, thought was an adult all along?
He’s still a moron, I will grant you. A pervert even. But if he was genuinely convinced that the decoy is an adult and the decoy is in fact an adult, how can there be a crime?
No if he is sure it is an adult, he is clear. He cannot role play with a minor though. If she says she is 13 and he responds as if she is 13, he is in trouble.
My daughter’s friends were claiming to be 17. That would negate the crime. However, if the adult mailed a naked picture to the minor, it doesn’t matter how old he thinks the person is. It’s still a crime. That’s why you should never do it. It’s like giving beer to a minor.
I’m, for one, not going to argue with anything you have to say, you are, obviously, a big fan of the ACLU and they would never concede the obvious either.