Judge approves "Predator" lawsuit against NBC

[Atomic Lib Smasher]

Judge approves "Predator" lawsuit against NBC

Tue Feb 26, 5:50 PM ET

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A $100 million lawsuit claiming that NBC prompted the suicide of a former Texas prosecutor who was caught up in its popular sting series "To Catch a Predator" is moving ahead after a ruling by a U.S. federal judge on Tuesday.

Louis Conradt, a 56-year-old assistant district attorney, shot himself in November 2006 after he was confronted at his Terrell, Texas, home by police officers. They were accompanied by an NBC news crew that was there to film his arrest.

"To Catch a Predator," a segment of NBC's "Dateline" newsmagazine program, lures men to a house with hidden cameras in the belief that they are about to have sexual relations with underage girls or boys. There, they are confronted by the program's host and promptly arrested. In Conradt's case, he was expecting to meet up with a 13-year-old boy.

Critics of the show say it is a form of entrapment, and they have questioned NBC's partnership on the series with an online vigilante group called Perverted-Justice.

Conradt's sister, Patricia Conradt, sued the network, saying "Dateline" was responsible for his death and the harm to his reputation. She grew up in the house where Conradt committed suicide.

I've watched the show a few times, yeah it's creepy but it gets sick ****in' pedos off the street fast, so that's good. But the guy who shot himself because he was exposed for the sick freak he is, good.... one less of them roaming the street or getting coddled by the ACLU. I have no idea why the case is proceeding... NBC is not responsible for the guy being a pedo or for commiting suicide, but I thought this would be a good article for a topic of discussion on entrapment and the like.

[Duke Nukum]

I guess what is entrapment?  Is it where you are coerced into doing something you wouldn't ordinarily do?  Or you wouldn't have committed the crime if the law enforcement agency hadn't have made it easy for you?

In this case, I think everyone knows preying on children is wrong.  Someone who wouldn't ordinarily prey on children wont prey on them if the law enforcement agency sets up a sting, IMO.

These guys are driving across town, it's not like Dateline and the police are having the children come to the predator's home to seduce them.

It would have been nice if the ADA would have had the thoughtfulness to blow his brains out before acting on his deviant impulses.  Anyone can commit suicide after they've been caught.

[Atomic Lib Smasher]

I guess what is entrapment?  Is it where you are coerced into doing something you wouldn't ordinarily do?  Or you wouldn't have committed the crime if the law enforcement agency hadn't have made it easy for you?

In this case, I think everyone knows preying on children is wrong.  Someone who wouldn't ordinarily prey on children wont prey on them if the law enforcement agency sets up a sting, IMO.

These guys are driving across town, it's not like Dateline and the police are having the children come to the predator's home to seduce them.

It would have been nice if the ADA would have had the thoughtfulness to blow his brains out before acting on his deviant impulses.  Anyone can commit suicide after they've been caught.

Dude, a couple of ones I've seen, the pedos have driven across the STATE to try to have sex with what they thought to be a 13 or 14 year old boy or girl.

But I'm in the mindset that this is not entirely entrapment. You're right on, Duke.... they were looking for underage sex anyway, the KNOW that it's wrong, yet they go to the houses expecting little Billy or little Jackie to engage them in their sick ass activities, and get told to "take a seat". But the family suing for 100 million dollars is just nuts. It'd be like the Dwyer family suing the state of PA after  "Bud" Dwyer killed himself after embezzling funds from the state treasury 20 years ago.

[DumbAss Tanker]

There is kind of an entrapment aspect to it since you don't know what kind of prep or come-on went on on-line to get the guy to come in, and kind of an unresolved issue of whether anyone on-line actually believes the person he or she is talking to is really what they claim to be versus role-playing, on the other I don't really have any sympathy for the dead asshole or his family either.