Sex Offender 2

the more I think about it, the more Im deeply troubled about the plight of Helen Goddard

Im just going to throw out a few thoughts. They wont be fair (not claiming to be either), they wont be balanced. They should be thought provocing. thats all.

1) as long as I read about under 16s stabing each other in gang related crime, I think the police & justice should stop worrying about a 16 year old having consensual sex.

2) I mentioned that I feel the parents are the only ones who are benefiting from the conviction. that seems pretty harsh, doesnt it?
Well, lets re-examine the facts..
a) prestigious school in central london. child prodigy teacher etc.
Conclusion: wealthy parents.

Much more so that the parents of for instance Shakilus Townsend (randomly picked case). he was murdered in London. Every month someone underaged is murdered in London.
conclusion: root cause of teen killings not yet found. More work needed. (but they are too busy convicting someone of having underaged, consentual sex!)

So are we back to class justice? A small crime to a rich kid merits as much attention as a big crime to a poor kid?

3) At what age do kids in the UK on average have their first sexual experience?
Lets assume 16. (and I think that’s quite conservative, I lost mine when I was 12…).
In what percentage of this, is the partner 18+?
Id say more than 5 %. Especially if you accept that girls are more mature than boys at that age, and that having a adult boyfriend with a car (or at least a license) would be pretty handy. Being above the 5% threshold makes it (in scientific terms) significant.
So in convicting this girl for something which a significant portion of us have done ourselves, we’ve just made a sham out of justice. Would you (if you're one of the significant 5%) consider it fair or desirable if we went back to the partner you lost your innocence with, and chucked them in jail for it?

4) What harm is coming to the daughter? Does that justify the harm done to the teacher? And is this "justice" removing any harm? Who is feeling better now? (the pare..)

Who are we serving here? Cause there is someone paying a high price, so we’d better make pretty damn sure we know that its doing some good…

dont get me wrong. Im not saying the teacher should walk away scott free. She had an intimate relationship with a pupil, and thats not ok. Trust etc damaged, school rep hurt, not a clever or good thing to do, and some consequence should be attached to it.
But this seems more like a case for a reprimand, losing a job and having a damaged reputation. Perhaps a fine would be in order (seems too much to me already).
But JAIL???
Really, we think that in our society, someone who does this should be sent to JAIL?? For 15 months??