I been thinking these thoughts reading about the Belgian R.C. bishops
The Belgian police raided the bishops having a meeting in Brussells and locked them in – while other police went to their bishopric offices to go through their files for evidence of covering up CHILD ABUSE.
Clearly there is abuse. I’m aware because I go to conferences on these matters and other gay related matters. My “loose views” will be  attacked  particularly from Australians and particularly Australian women including lesbians there is real bitterness that priests abused boys and they want the perpetrators pursued a bit like dirty war criminals are in Argentina until the end of their lives.

I read about Milwaukee – there clearly is abuse – child abuse. In  Milwaukee an R.C. priest – I think his name was Fr. Murphy and he ‘s dead now – he  was headmaster of a school for the  deaf and it is alleged he did abuse  to hundreds.  That’s not abuse  That’s beyond abuse.  He’d got a disease.
And I got thinking these thoughts reading lurid headlines in local papers
in Britain - ABUSE   PERVERT   PAEDOPHILE  CHILD again as proceedings are taken and cases put together to take to courts all over the country.

Now our website has attended the last ten years scores of these sort of cases – in some we befriend the accused and in some just monitor.
And  there are three litmus test questions we have always asked when cases come to us or we notice because we do both.

1. What is the sex ?  What is the abuse ?  And if it’s rape we walk away. Not equipped to deal with that. But very rarely will you learn of what exactly was the abuse not until the case unfolds.

2.  What is the age of the person abused at the time – and if it’s 8 or 10 we will walk away.  We’re not equipped. But remember “a child” can be quite old in English law – See the taxi driver story written in full on our website as  DON’T TOUCH A THIGH.

You see in this story – in these events because they happened for real the taxi man – mini cab driver did regular mornings and one of the contract jobs – this is an ex-mining community on the eastern side of the North of England – he’d pick up this lad about 15 and drive him 20 miles or so to a special school because the lad had been disruptive: and had Terets syndrome which is no real big deal.  Had a Manchester United goalkeeper only few years back with Terets. There you go.  This lad went to a special school.  He came from a family that were broken.  His Dad had left.  His Mum acquired a new step Dad to him as didn’t like him. The lad would sit with the taxi driver in the front seat and the driver who had a lisp was both gay and had had a brutal time in his own childhood. One day in the taxi on the way to the special school the lad broke down in his unhappiness and the driver said come on I had a bad time too and put his hand on the lad’s trousered thigh.  That is all.  And a bit of a cuddle at traffic lights – come on. Anyway the taxi driver was a regular evening boozer in the local Wetherspoons, sitting in the window often with own lover/ partner – same sort of age 40ish.  And the lad on his bike would go in and try tap up Lispy Len for a cigarette or 50p. for chips. And sometimes Len would and sometimes not. One evening the step-Dad sees the lad with Lispy – who was a known gay – together in or outside smoking outside the pub. He – oh this is standard syndrome the step person over protecting the son or daughter they’ve got in the cuckoo’s nest from previous affairs.

The step Dad confronted the lad. What were you doing with him ?  Has he ever touched you ?  Yes once he gave me a cuddle – Right and step dad calls the police.  Now do understand fellow citizens if you call the bill on an issue like this in the 21st century you’ve rung a multititude of bells: opened up a right can of worms. Lispy is charged – abuse of a minor because he was a carer. And a taxi driver is “a carer”  and a carer can’t sex of any kind even touching a trousered thigh until the young person is well over 16 – with Terets the legal age of sex might be 25.  Lispy loses his taxi license as at moment of being charged and his livelihood.  Lispy gets in touch with us.  I get him the best lawyer in town – which is mine when I’m in that town -  Johnson Partners. I’m with the main man Digby but for this in an outlying district we get a good local girl – but nowt can be done to stop an inevitable progression – we go to magistrates court and none  no J.P. will touch it.  They never touch the cases. Often they have the power but but as soon as the magistrates hear of sex in the 21st. century – they send it up.  So in the fullness of time we in the big city at Crown Court and the barrister’s off the train from London and we’re in court of a Monday 10. 45 and on time we start. Lispy Len stands but no jury yet.  The barrister just off the train from London says to the judge – can I have an adjournment until 12  I want to make some phone calls. Oh – we got a grumpy elder judge.  I don’t necessarily mind them.  Oh I suppose so – be back for 12. Then I say what’s happening.  The barrister smiles – just watch.

We file into court and Lispy into the dock.  No jury. The barrister explains he has phoned the lad, the lad’s step father, the lad’s mother and the lad’s real father and none want a prosecution to proceed.  All accept now nothing happened.  Oh says Judge Grump – couldn’t this have been done earlier.

Apparently not.  Oh – stand he calls Lispy – apparently you’ve done nothing wrong and you’re free to go. We have some mutterings in the corridor about compensation but in the time between charge and Crown Court Lispy has had a kind of stroke and isn’t yet fit to try for his taxi license back. His life been ruined  by one paedie rumour. Not even a rumour – an implication of imagination by an interfering overprotective step Dad. Me and Lispy retire to a local pub and do much sighing.

So the age of the victim at the time is important and if under age normally we don’t touch the case.