The Lombardi Law Firm Blog

Wrong is wrong, but not everything that is wrong should be a crime.

Should everything that is “wrong” be a crime?

Society decides what is right and what is wrong. Society has now decided that consensual sex between adults is wrong. A 28-year-old woman and an 18-year-old man had sex and now she is a sex offender. She was an Iowa teacher at the time of their relationship.

Shocking isn't it.

How much are we spending prosecuting this woman?

So now a 28 year old female teacher who had a relationship with an 18-year-old student is a criminal. Something is wrong with this picture. Not everything society might think wrong can be a criminal act.

A teacher that used to pay taxes now is a tax burden.

If I were the judge I would have sentenced Erin M. Rohwer, 28 to write on the blackboard 500 times, “Good people do stupid things and that doesn’t make them a criminal; just stupid for a minute, but not a lifetime. In the future I will strive to be a better person; and I will remember students are off limits.”

And the boy, I would have sentenced him to washing teacher’s cars in the parking lot without the pleasure of an iPod and a cold shower. I would have called the football coach and asked him to design a physical education program that would have taken the legs right out from under him and making him too tired to be chasing his English teacher.

The boy’s mother and father I would have sentenced to confession. Give the teacher and the boy a break for God’s sake; do you think your boy had no part in making this happen?

Iowa needs to grow up and get over their aversion to anything sexual. Get over it, this is an adult man-boy who society can register and send to war where he can be shot to death and sent home in a body bag. If he wants to sleep, with what I’m sure is about 90% of the young men’s dreams at Dowliing, then let him.

He’s 18 and she’s 27. Get over it they are adults. The real criminal act is not the doing of the teacher. The criminal act is the act of society in trying to make every conservative’s hang-up about sex a crime.

The Court’s then compound the ridiculousness of making this a criminal act by ordering the woman to stay away from the boy. What if they are really in love? Can society and the courts order hold their loving hearts in contempt? The Courts have enough to do without managing a teenager’s love crush.

Does the fact she’s a teacher mean she controls the boy’s raging hormones?

Is every sexual relationship between a teacher and student always a bad thing?

Consider the following.

Yesterday morning I was talking to a colleague who I’ve known since law school. We are good friends. I know his wife she’s a wonderful woman. They have been marred since law school and have raised some wonderful children. Today on the phone we weren’t talking about this Dowling situation, but he reminded me that Beth is ten years his senior. It was scandalous at the time they met and started going out together, because he was only 18. Scandalously beautiful I’m sure.

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Labels: Sex Crimes sexual abuse sexual relationships teacher-student