‘Sesame Street’ professor caught with his pants down
This post was published 5 years 1 month 16 days ago and its content may not be valid anymore.A Brooklyn professor who works as an animator for several children’s shows, including “Sesame Street,” was caught in an Internet sting trying to set up a sexual liaison with an underage girl, the FBI said yesterday. Steven Dovas, who teaches commercial animation and graphic arts at Pratt Institute, was arrested yesterday for trying to meet with a person he thought was a 13-year-old girl.
I know steve. He was one of the only good teachers in the media arts department at pratt. In spite of recent news, my respect for him has not faltered. I’m sure he even appreciates the irony that this article has illustrated; although kid themed animation was definitely not his passion, it only paid the bills. It is sad that he has become more famous for his misdeeds than his art- but then again, there’s now such thing as bad publicity.
I know Steve really well. I also know the details of what happened here and the circumstances and all I can say is that if you knew Steve like his good friends do, you would understand that this is all complete BS.
A sense of humor that mixes the absurd with tongue in cheek and a bit of wicked deviation aka black humor is what happened here. I have known him for close to 10 years and met him, incidentally, online.
I also know that he is devoted to his wife on a level that borders on saint – like devotion and still very much in love with her. There’s just no room in his head or his pants for anyone else…
There is no conceivable way that he ever really believed that he was speaking to a 13 year old girl on the net. First of all, how many 13 year olds ( who are verbalizing like a hardened prostitute) ADMIT to being 13? Do you people know how many “professionals” there are out there trolling the chatroom looking for “customers”? I do…I have counselled a few in my day.
The whole “Daddy”-thing ( you be Daddy, I’ll be the bad daughter…step daughter…) is as common as the trusty “Wanna Cyber?” IM that I get EVERY time I log on using my “suggestive” user ID.
My colleagues and I used to make bets on how long it would take to hear the IM signal go off…it was a form of entertainment.
The last “13 year old girl” I watched in a chatroom was a 26 year old hooker from the West Coast.
Bad timing…bad judgement and I guess a sense of humor that most just wouldn’t get. However, let me point out to you that there’s NOTHING, absolutely NOTHING that would ever indicate anything like what’s being alleged by the FBI in Steve’s backround. NOTHING. Know why? Because he’s not the type they’ve made him out to be. Trust me.
Let me also add that I was a victim of sexual abuse as a child, have 2 girls, 8 & 10…hitting puberty as we speak, a step daughter who is 14, with a body and a face that makes Britney Spears look like a cabbage patch kid… I also am member of the healthcare profession and have worked with abused kids, teens, and exploited women. I consider myself to be and am considered to be by others an astute judge of character.
I am also considered by my friends to be Conservative and hate to admit it , but after living in Dallas for 6 years, voted for GWBush the first time out. (And there went the “astute judge of character thing, right? Let’s don’t go into that…I saw almost immediately that mistake in judgement…however, if GW had been a “toucher” I believe I would have picked up on it…)
Steve and I have talked about things that I am sure we haven’t shared with other people…he’s that kind of friend. If I thought for one moment, ONE MOMENT that he was capable of exploiting a pre-teen or luring one for the purposes of the perversion they have accused him of, I would have probably solicited that conversation, recorded it, and given it to his WIFE and authorities myself. Trust me, every incident that we’ve talked about concerning this type of thing…the disgust and disdain for the behavior has been real…
Don’t believe everything you read and hear without knowing the perspectives of all the players. The intention with which something was said…the “tone” of a conversation that can’t be determined by reading a transcript. This individual, this great guy, is going to be screwed for the rest of his life and miss out on some very cherished moments of his life because he was truly “playing” mindgames on the net…they had nothing to do with his crotch.
It’s “mindf**king”. Trying to outwit someone you know is lying and trap them in their own web of lies. He KNEW this chick wasn’t 13…
You know what? He was right.
Meanwhile, every day I send the FBI emails about files I find on peer to peer networks like WINMX that are out and out kiddie porn…All the info I can find, the usernames, yada yada…and I see the same people in this group continually distributing this filth. I did actually open a file to see if what the tag was was accurate…it was an 8 year old girl with the saddest face I’d ever seen seconds after having been violated, decorated and abused.
I actually threw up.
Then I deleted it and reformatted my hard drive. My daughter is pretty smart and can retreive a lot of stuff… Then I contacted the FBI. Guess what? It’s still circulating out there and the “peer” I got it from is still online every night distributing this crap.
But my friend is busted by the FBI.
Stupid boy, bad timing and a black/absurd sense of humor only another damaged individual like myself might appreciate.
And yet, I am glad the controls are there on the net to protect…Like I said, I have 2 girls just getting to that age and a step-daughter who blows Britney Spears away at 14. I’d leave any of them alone with Steve in a heartbeat. Too bad the real criminals are still out there and the safety net we rely on caught someone who should have known better in a Bush-fueled atmosphere …where Howard Stern has to go to satellite radio… to censor hinself and tamp down that sense of humor. Orwell would roll in his grave. I am still in shock.
Quit judging and pray or hold a good thought for this individual and for his family. For his wife, who knows him better than anyone else, is sharp as a tack and steadfastly supporting him through this like only someone who knows your soul could. Also…watch what you type on the net…if you think anything is private…you are a fool. The government had NO sense of humor, no perspective and no tolerance for variances in attitude.
I love you Steve and I’m going to miss your voice…your ascerbic comments and your maniacal Christmas Cards with dead rats on them!
W…
Whether he was playing around or not, this “sting” is in effect to protect children from getting raped and murdered. The FBI don’t try to entrap innocent people. This arrest may have prevented Steve Dovas from hurtinga child in real life. I mean, what the hell is an adult male doing talking to an underage kid on im? Does he have any brains at all? He could’ve avoided this by closing the chat. However, it’s obvious that he showed some interest in meeting up with a young girl. That is dangerous behavior and he deserved what he got. Perverted old fool!
I am friends with Steve and his lovely wife. I am a young girl and will state here and now that what is being said about him in the post and the web is repugnant.
He would never harm a child.
It is dissapointing that the FBI can’t tell a pervert from a kind quirky teacher, or that it just dosen’t care. Take it from the ‘real’ girl who actually knows Steve ‘in person’ and see this ’so-called-scandal’ for the set-up it is. The news just loves to dive into the story of a ‘Sesame Street Teacher’ with a perverted twist.
Steve is a considerate person with whom I always had respectful and intelligent conversations with. If I had ’solicited’ him online/offline (with or without revealing my identity) he might have inquired as to ‘Why I would be doing such a thing?’ – ‘ What made me feel like I should be doing that?’ – and (meeting or no) parted with warnings against perverts and offers of help – such as where I could go to get any help or assitance I needed.
Now my friend needs my help – and there are still all those pervs out there who try and take advantage of my friends and I. Nice job, Feds. Glad to know I’m safe with you looking out for me.
If there really is a 13 year old soliciting online SHE NEEDS HELP! Someone needs to talk to her and find out what is wrong before she is seriously harmed.
If someone wants to help absolve child abuse and child pornogrpahy on the internet – there are ways to do it and organizations you can contact for more information.
Please do not slander Steve when you do not know him nor what really happened. Keep in mind no actual girl was involved, let alone harmed. It is easy to just join in with the crowd of condemnation at the headlines without actually reading the article – let alone between the lines. Don’t judge someone else in a way you would not like to be judged.
Next time, it could be you – or someone you love.
Why don’t you listen to the phone calls he had with the 13 year old and read the instant message transcripts? I suppose the fact that he was arrested when he showed up to meet the 13 year old girl still doesn’t convince you that he is a pedophile. It’s amazing that you say he thought she was older when he had her picture and heard her young voice on the phone. If the evidence was so flimsy, why did he plead guilty and allow himself to be sentenced to several years in a federal prison? Maybe it’s all of you who doesn’t know a wolf in your midst. Pedophiles are not known to confide to their friends what they do with kids. Oh…did you miss the fact that he admitted having had sex with a real 13 year old girl before his arrest? It’s funny that you think that he was set up…really funny. You don’t have a clue how compelling the evidence against him is…obviously. It’s all a matter of public record. Go down to the courthouse and check out the disgusting things your wonderful friend said to someone he really did think was 13. Then again, maybe you’re all in the same club!
Steve was my teacher as well. I am not him, so I don’t know what he tried to do or what his intentions were, but I do know he is a good man. Obviously, there are two very different stories circulating about what happened. Personally, I think the truth lies somewhere in the middle. It always does.
You will notice the NY Post said he “admitted to having had a 13 year old lover…” note that they did NOT say he admitted to having sex with them. As the NY Post is a tabloid, it will carefully phrase things to throw you off. They didn’t say he had sex, but carefully phrased “13 year old lover” to imply that, so technically they didn’t point blank say he had sex with a 13 year old. It is certainly possible that he met with this person, said “what the hell am I doing?” and sent her away. That kind of thing is very common. I have read books on this subject, and many offenders go through “almost offending” episodes (like the possible scenario I just mentioned)until they actually do offend (meeting them the next time with the intention of doing more).
It is important to note that what I also read is that most of these people are not “bad” people, they are people who did something bad but treatable; this isn’t murder we’re talking about. Once in treatment, the vast majority are able to be taught to curb their behviors and never offend again. They are often sorry for what they have done. It is like being weaned off an addictive drug. Also important, that it is incredibly rare for offenders to do a “Megan’s Law” offense (ie raping and killing the kid). You only hear about these offenders because that is what makes juicy news. And, of course, kids are growing up faster than ever. Many 13 year olds act and look 18. I’m not saying this justifies an offender’s behavior, but it makes the whole scenario more complex than, say, if a 6 year old were involved. In short, this is a very complex and human issue and we need to recognize it as such. In Europe, most offenders are put into counseling, unless their crime is particularly dangerous, goes beyond consensual sex with a minor (ie raping and killing). I don’t condon this type of behavior but, like anything else, it is again, complicated. I can’t stress that enough. And I could go on more about this until hell freezes over about it, but I won’t.
Ultimately, what we have is an otherwise peaceful and productive man who may or may not have made a mistake, and can certainly learn from it, festering away in a jail cell while everyday, truly dangerous people are walking the streets.
You say that Steve is “sick” and “perverted.” You want sick and perverted? Look at the BTK.
“Anteater”
None of what I’m about to “type” is slander re: Steve. It’s all true and those defending Steve are wrong, but not through any fault of your own. Steve wants people to believe he’s some sort of funny, self-depricating – but harmless – guy. But he’s not harmless and he wasn’t before these charges were filed against him. He was habitually unfaithful to his wife, he had significant sexual issues, he’s a pathological liar, both with regard to his relationships, as well as in his career, and he (for years and years) spent a significant amount of time chatting online with utterly random females. Now, do any of these characteristics automatically make someone a pedophile? No. But knowing Steve the way I have all these many, many years, his arrest didn’t surprise me. It disgusted me, but it didn’t surprise me.
I’m not crazy about sting operations where law enforcement pose as children online to snare adults looking for kids to solicit sex chat or worse, it smacks of entrapment. However, in Steve’s case, I think it was necessary.
I’m terribly sad for those people he has misled over the years. But, I’m glad he’s been caught – not just with the online sting, either.
Okay, so if he has issues? Maybe he should get help instead of get thrown in jail? People are complicated, and he is not ruthless like the BTK. In what context do you know him, and how did you actually have access to his chat/and phone logs?
Yes, please tell us in what context you know him. You’d have to be pretty close to him in some way to know all these sordid details when many others who worked and studied with him side by side for many years were completely bamboozled into thinking he was, among other things, intensely devoted to his wife.
And also, if you are uneasy about those “pose” sting operations but think that in Dovas’s case it was necessary, all that could mean is that you regard Dovas as a pretty dangerous person. This, based on what I have to go on, just doesn’t seem to fit. There are so many predators out there who are far more dangerous (as in violent) than him. Please be more specific about your charges.
My connection to Steve? Not anyone’s business. Obviously I know Steve pretty well. People *are* complicated and my relationship with him only proves this theory more.
There are secrets we all keep from our students, our teachers, our spouses, our lovers, our parents, and our friends. Some people and some secrets are sicker and/or more private than others and we would never divulge them to most anyone… and in Steve’s case, his secrets (were sicker than most – and) weren’t divulged to just anyone. Does any of this make sense?
As for the sting operation, it’s a matter of legality and a sense of entrapment. When there isn’t a 13 year old female on the other end of the “line” in a chatroom, is a crime really being committed? The answer, of course, is yes, because it comes down to intent. Still not crazy about the whole sting thing. That said, Steve had some bad habits that needed to be reigned in. Would it have helped had he just admitted he had issues and sought therapy instead of continuing his bad habits? You betcha. But Steve chose a different path… one that landed him in prison. His choice. Is he dangerous? Not anymore. You think he belongs in therapy instead of jail? Okay, change the child predator laws.
Now, Steve isn’t here to defend himself, so I need to lighten up on him a little. Is Steve really a “pathological liar”? No. The definition of a pathological liar in the context of this post is too harsh because I don’t wish to back it up with sordid details. I went overboard in saying that about him, and I need to ease up a bit. I was typing faster than my brain was thinking. I’d rather say that Steve has some serious issues with honesty.
Again, the whole thing is sad for his wife and his family. His family has had a very rough go of it over the years, and this just compounded things.
I’m done defending myself. Believe what you want about him and I’ll do the same.
All I can say is this:
There are so many people who have sexual issues in this country and, as sad as it is, we demonize sex more than violence because of our Christian roots. Because sex is so demonized, people are afraid to get help with their problems. And then what happens? It manifests itself in a bad way… Does this excuse the offender’s actions? No, but it certainly clarifies things. It is a sad state of affairs.
I agree with you that he absolutely needs help and has issues; I’ve always thought so, even prior to this. I can only hope that he’s getting help in prison, and that ultimately his arrest is good for him. If what you say is true, then it is good that he got caught, but I think his getting caught should result in help, not being put in jail for 5 years (or at least put in a “drug rehab” type of enviornment, like they do in Europe). Statistically, people who are put in jail, and then get out after festering in jail without help, are more likely to have their problems grow when they get out, rather than having “learned their lesson.”
But…what is your definition of dangerous? Someone with serious sexual issues? Or are you implying something beyond that, like that he’s a rapist and killer, or something like that? Do you really think he’s out to hurt people? I don’t. Do you think he can get help? I do. And I hope so for his sake, as well as the sake of his wife and family.
I will say this: I, for one, know from firsthand experience how easy it is to screw up, especially from something consuming, and especially over and over again. Obsession is a very powerful thing that needs to be taken seriously. I also know how awful it is not to be forgiven, and to be wracked with guilt for things you have done.
That said, I hope that the people who know Steve well (and his aquaintances, like his students) will give him the benefit of the doubt and a second chance. He has problems, but I still find it incredibly hard to believe that he doesn’t love his wife, doesn’t ever have good intentions, and that everything he does is manipulative.
In short, I feel very angry at him, but I also feel bad for him because of what, based on what you say, is analogous to a drug addiction. Again, obsession is a very powerful thing. It too is a drug, albeit one that is often the result of an innate chemical imbalance, making it even more difficult to conquer and break the addiction of. Take it from someone who has had first hand experience in the matter.
Anteater (Anteatergirl@hotmail.com)
notafan: You have stated your case plainly and straightforwardly, and I will accept what you say, albeit with a great deal of sadness. I still maintain that it’s a bloody farce that people like him get jail time (with therapy not necessarily being a requirement) when violent offenders can potentially get off easier, but that’s not really the immediate issue. So the world turns…and some of us fall off. Shite.
Also, one thing I forgot to say…if Steve were a woman and did all these things, this thread probably wouldn’t be here, and the word “dangerous” wouldn’t be used.
Anteater
Anteater and Marbles, I agree with both of you that those who prey upon (or think they are preying upon) kids (and I think young teens still count as “kids”), need therapy and a lot of help. Prison won’t cut it. It’s not enough. But how do we change the system?! We don’t. We can’t.
Is he dangerous? Again, not anymore. However, anyone who knowingly and willingly attempts to engage in sexual activity – whether it’s physical or verbal communication, with a kid is dangerous to me. A kid, even at 13, really hasn’t the experience to consent to such activities with a full grown, 40+ year old. But, I’m not here to lecture. So yes, he was dangerous. Not in a serial killer kind of way. There are many variations of dangerous. Soliciting an adolescent (real or FBI posing) for sex is one of them (it’s called pederasty, not pedophilia at that age, I think).
Steve lived many lives within his outer shell of being a quirky, intelligent, talented man. And his devotion to his marriage waxed and waned – he would get caught for his indiscretions and become a devoted hubby again for a while, but he’d wander off again when it became too difficult or too boring. Funny, he never strayed from his love of animation, though. Even if it became difficult or boring at times.
I genuinely appreciate all of you allowing me to share my feelings. I think it speaks volumes that there are this many people willing to discuss Steve (the good and the bad). He’s a man who, while impacting so many in such a positive way, impacted a few in a horrible, terrible way. He fell very far very fast.
Sigh.
I think sex with children is wrong, of course, but I also think these days it’s complicated. Sex with a 13 year old is unacceptable, but it is very complicated since 13 year olds look and act much older these days. I don’t think being attracted to 13 year olds makes you a pedophile, but I think acting on it is still wrong. I think, for example, somebody is a pedophile only if they are attracted to obviously prepubescent kids. There are, also, of course, many questions that need to be asked, if a real kid is involved:
Why is a 13 year old kid looking for sex with adults?
Where are the kid’s parents when this is happening?
What about in Canada where the consenting age is 14? Is a 42 year old with a 14 year old suddenly okay because it’s legal?
What about a 90 year old and an 18 year old? Is that okay because it’s legal? If I were 18 and dating a 90 year old…or even a 30 year old… I KNOW my parents (who are very laid back and openminded) would think there is something wrong with that.
By the way, what about when many years ago, 13 year olds were married off to 50 year old men? Was that stopped because we realized it was wrong? Or did things just gradually change? Where these 50 year old men not perverts because this kind of marriage was a common practice?
Very complex and human issues here.
If it were my kid? I’d want to rip off the adult’s face and feed it to him. I’d have the adult’s ass hauled in. And next? I would ground my kid for a month and immediately unhook the Internet access in the house. And then for about ten years, I’d be haunted by this question, more than anything else: Where have I gone wrong as a parent that my kid felt they needed to do this? If it weren’t Mr. So and So they met up with, it would have been somebody else. In addition to teaching adults that sex with kids is wrong, we need to be teaching kids to be responsible for their actions.
By the way, notafan, your description in your last post sounds like a description that fits borderline personality disorder or bipolar disorder, at least from what I’ve read about the matter in books and online. I’m not a shrink, but…being somewhat damaged/imbalanced myself I find that I pick up on it very quickly when somebody has a mental problem. I always sensed that about Steve. Also, one year, at a summer camp that I was working at, for example, within ONE DAY of being there, I knew which kids had ADD or something related (their health files later confirmed it). It’s like a gay person and gaydar…something you pick up on.
I hope you are still supporting Steve and are willing to give him a second chance, despite everything.
At this point, I will continue to have faith in him that, since he is very intelligent, can get through this and come out a better person. I also applaud his wife for sticking by him through this (she is still, right?). I have never met her, but I like her a lot already.
Keep the faith, everyone.
Anteater
Get it straight. These are the facts: Pedophiles are sick and there is no cure. No amount of therapy will do them any good except to possibly convince them that they have to stay away from children whether they like it or not. It won’t cure their addiction.
Your good friend Steve went after someone he thought was a 13 year old inexperienced kid. He found her. She did not approach him first. He continued to go after her over and over until she finally agreed to meet him for sex. He had seen her picture and he saw that she looked very young. There was no mistake. There was no entrapment. Thankfully, the person he went after was not a real child, but he didn’t know that…obviously. Defend him all you like, but if you found him in bed with your 13 year old daughter, you’d be singing a different tune. It’s a good thing he was stopped before he did that to one more child.
If you think he is not dangerous, think again. Do you think it’s dangerous to put him in a room with kids now? He’s a pedophile. Once a pedophile, always a pedophile. You think 13 isn’t young? Can you picture a man his age in bed with a 13 year old child? You must all be in the same fraternity then!
Why don’t you do the research? You know nothing about this topic and are shooting your mouth off. How the hell would you even know if he saw a picture or whatever? At any rate, I am not defending him, I am merely saying that these situations are complicated but can be dealt with. You obviously lack the ability to read carefully AND to think for more than a nanosecond!
My posts are based on fact. If you don’t like the truth, don’t read it. It is a fact that pedophiles cannot be cured. Either they make a choice to stay away from kids or they continue doing their thing. No amount of therapy gets rid of their sickness. If you can’t understand that, compare it to alcoholism. It is a disease. Alcoholics have to stay away from alcohol…forever. They can’t consider themselves cured and start drinking again.
I know exactly what your friend saw and did. Sorry you can’t handle the truth about this situation. By the way, I believe that it’s all a matter of public record. Why don’t you go read the files before you shoot your own mouth off.
Okay, I don’t know completely what he said and did. But how would you know? Why not tell us exactly where you found everything?
And it’s not about a “cure”, it’s about teaching people to curb their addictions. There is a difference.
joseph—If you’re going to drop a bombshell like that, back it up, please. Some people here are privy to inside sources, others are not. You are talking to people who are pretty close to the situation, or speak regularly with people who are. If you are among Dovas’s acquaintances, or are an official involved in the situation, make it clear. (And don’t tell us that it’s “nobody’s business.”) Otherwise, you have no right to come riding in here on a high horse.
P.S. Based on your posts from both the last few days and from months ago, you frankly seem more interested in telling us how horrible we are than engaging in anything resembling a discussion. If you can’t be civil, please take your vitrol elsewhere, as the Internet is already a carnival of toxins.
Actually, reading my posts again, I am simply trying to give you the information. It’s more than you can bear, so you consider it offensive. I understand that. Yet, you consider Anteater’s post to me to be civil? Yes, I did make mention of the fact that if you understand Dovas’ behavior and feel that he got a raw deal, maybe you are all part of the same fraternity. But that being said, I was the one who was insulted on here.
I am not a friend of Dovas. But,I am close to the situation, so to speak. I am not making anything up and I am not trying to hurt anyone on here. The fact is that many times, the family and friends of pedophiles are their biggest defenders. That is because they have everyone fooled. Pedophiles are usually not those guys who lurk in the dark in trenchcoats waiting to pounce on a strange child. More often, they are family friends, teachers, coaches, scout leaders, etc, and even relatives. Nobody wants to believe it and most of the time, nobody is aware of what the pedophile has done until an arrest is made. So, this “great guy” got caught and everybody is feeling sorry for him and coming to his defense. So, he didn’t go after his friend’s kids and that gives someone on here the idea that it makes him innocent. He didn’t want to do it in his own backyard…he was smarter than that.
Frankly, I’ve seen these guys go down, one after the other, and it isn’t a pretty sight. They all have the same rap and they almost always confess right away. As with your friend, the evidence was compelling. It wasn’t a “he said, she said.” There was no way around it. He even admitted to having already had sex with another young girl. Unfortunately, the recidivism rate is extraordinarily high with pedophiles which is why they have to be on a registry. They need to be tracked because they almost always do it again. If you had seen and heard your friend in action, you would be disgusted. There is no doubt that he thought he was dealing with a young girl. There was no mistake. And, if he was innocent, he would have gone to trial, but he pled guilty only a couple of months after his arrest. He wasn’t railroaded or entrapped. He chased kids, not just law enforcement officers, until he found his next victim. Fortunately, it wasn’t a real child. But, that isn’t because he knew it. If there had been any doubt, his lawyer wouldn’t have pled him out. He was looking at 30 years for all of the crimes involved and he was lucky to get only 5.
Actually, reading my posts again, I am simply trying to give you the information. It’s more than you can bear, so you consider it offensive. I understand that. Yet, you consider Anteater’s post to me to be civil? Yes, I did make mention of the fact that if you understand Dovas’ behavior and feel that he got a raw deal, maybe you are all part of the same fraternity. But that being said, I was the one who was insulted on here.
I am not a friend of Dovas. But,I am close to the situation, so to speak. I am not making anything up and I am not trying to hurt anyone on here. The fact is that many times, the family and friends of pedophiles are their biggest defenders. That is because they have everyone fooled. Pedophiles are usually not those guys who lurk in the dark in trenchcoats waiting to pounce on a strange child. More often, they are family friends, teachers, coaches, scout leaders, etc, and even relatives. Nobody wants to believe it and most of the time, nobody is aware of what the pedophile has done until an arrest is made. So, this “great guy” got caught and everybody is feeling sorry for him and coming to his defense. So, he didn’t go after his friend’s kids and that gives someone on here the idea that it makes him innocent. He didn’t want to do it in his own backyard…he was smarter than that.
Frankly, I’ve seen these guys go down, one after the other, and it isn’t a pretty sight. They all have the same rap and they almost always confess right away. As with your friend, the evidence was compelling. It wasn’t a “he said, she said.” There was no way around it. He even admitted to having already had sex with another young girl. Unfortunately, the recidivism rate is extraordinarily high with pedophiles which is why they have to be on a registry. They need to be tracked because they almost always do it again. If you had seen and heard your friend in action, you would be disgusted. There is no doubt that he thought he was dealing with a young girl. There was no mistake. And, if he was innocent, he would have gone to trial, but he pled guilty only a couple of months after his arrest. He wasn’t railroaded or entrapped. He chased kids, not just law enforcement officers, until he found his next victim. Fortunately, it wasn’t a real child. But, that isn’t because he knew it. If there had been any doubt, his lawyer wouldn’t have pled him out. He was looking at 30 years for all of the crimes involved and he was lucky to get only 5.
Actually, reading my posts again, I am simply trying to give you the information. It’s more than you can bear, so you consider it offensive. I understand that. Yet, you consider Anteater’s post to me to be civil? Yes, I did make mention of the fact that if you understand Dovas’ behavior and feel that he got a raw deal, maybe you are all part of the same fraternity. But that being said, I was the one who was insulted on here.
I am not a friend of Dovas. But,I am close to the situation, so to speak. I am not making anything up and I am not trying to hurt anyone on here. The fact is that many times, the family and friends of pedophiles are their biggest defenders. That is because they have everyone fooled. Pedophiles are usually not those guys who lurk in the dark in trenchcoats waiting to pounce on a strange child. More often, they are family friends, teachers, coaches, scout leaders, etc, and even relatives. Nobody wants to believe it and most of the time, nobody is aware of what the pedophile has done until an arrest is made. So, this “great guy” got caught and everybody is feeling sorry for him and coming to his defense. So, he didn’t go after his friend’s kids and that gives someone on here the idea that it makes him innocent. He didn’t want to do it in his own backyard…he was smarter than that.
Frankly, I’ve seen these guys go down, one after the other, and it isn’t a pretty sight. They all have the same rap and they almost always confess right away. As with your friend, the evidence was compelling. It wasn’t a “he said, she said.” There was no way around it. He even admitted to having already had sex with another young girl. Unfortunately, the recidivism rate is extraordinarily high with pedophiles which is why they have to be on a registry. They need to be tracked because they almost always do it again. If you had seen and heard your friend in action, you would be disgusted. There is no doubt that he thought he was dealing with a young girl. There was no mistake. And, if he was innocent, he would have gone to trial, but he pled guilty only a couple of months after his arrest. He wasn’t railroaded or entrapped. He chased kids, not just law enforcement officers, until he found his next victim. Fortunately, it wasn’t a real child. But, that isn’t because he knew it. If there had been any doubt, his lawyer wouldn’t have pled him out. He was looking at 30 years for all of the crimes involved and he was lucky to get only 5.
I appreciate your clarification, and I will return in kind. I do wish that you would reveal just how you are close to the situation, “so to speak.” If you are in law enforcement, or work in legal affairs, I don’t see how it would hurt to tell us. How would we ever discover your identity?
We weren’t necessarily “defending” Dovas. Rather, we were expressing frustration with two issues. One, the completely arbitrary ways our justice system deals with sexual offenders, tossing off wildly different sentences for similar crimes, seemingly dependent on individual lawmakers’ gut reactions. Meanwhile, many people who have actually been found guilty of murder get out on parole after a year and half. That’s not justice, it’s a mockery.
The second issue is that many of these punishments are oblivious of any grays. And yes, I firmly believe that there ARE grays here. Please hear me out. Both drug law and sexual law are riddled with the blind application of black-and-white justice.
Don’t misunderstand me—in our society, as it has come to evolve, engaging in sex with a child is wrong. Period. No two ways about it. We have deemed that people under 18 (itself an arbitrary number, but roughly indicative of maturity) are not emotionally mature enough to handle sex. We’re not disputing that. However, I have to insist that there is a WORLD of difference between someone like Dovas who engaged in a messed-up, but consentual, affair with a 13-year-old, versus someone who jumps out of an alley at night and *rapes* a 13-year-old. In terms of the former situation, one can argue about how “consentual” such an affair can be with a young girl not firmly in charge of her emotions, but these two situations are still not even remotely the same, and to pretend that they are is both dishonest and destructive. One involves two emotionally stunted people who break the rules of society to create a mutually destructive situation, the other involves a violent predator who has willfully chosen to disregard the humanity of others. If someone calculatedly commits murder, violent assault, or rape, they have proven themselves to be, at least in part, sociopathic. (I use that word in the sense of lacking empathy.) A person who stalks a defenseless child and attacks them against their will, violates them without remorse and possibly leaves them to bleed or kills them, is a monster. I say this because I believe that once you have chosen to willfully harm others, you have lost all legitimacy. And killing them? Out of the ballpark.
You may well be correct that therapy cannot ERASE someone’s pedophilic impulses, but who is to say that it cannot deter them from ever acting on them again? If you can plant it into them that it is wrong to emotionally or physically damage children, and if they have enough conscience, they will want to stop. We do this for other criminals, and we should do it for active pedophiles. If they have not shown complete disregard for human life, they are not hopeless. That’s what I believe. You say the recidivism rate is high, but are the stats more specific than that in terms of (a. what kind (or kinds) of offenders are usually the repeaters, (b. what kind of sentences did they receive, and (c. did they in fact receive counselling while in prison?
I would like to know any patterns, if any exist or if you know any. It would also be relevent to see the figures from other countries, where the law deals with these matters very differently.
My point is, all pedphilic sex offenders are not created equal. To lump them all together is folly, just as much so as is lumping dope-smokers together with bank robbers. Save the strongest vitrol for the violent attackers, and hope for redemption for the jello-spined who cave in and find willing children.
(Hope for redemption, that is, after you beat the shit out of them. Yes, I hate violence, but I can’t say I wouldn’t understand the urge to do just that if it WAS my kid. I probably *would* do it, actually. I’m no saint.)
Well, it depends on what you mean by “harm.” There is emotional harm as well as physical. Generally, the physical harm is short-lived. But, the emotional harm leaves scars that can last a lifetime. Certainly, a violent pedophile will be punished with much more severity than one who brainwashes a child to agree to have sex with him or her. These predators are not “lumped together.” I wonder if you understand addictive behavior. You cannot just convince someone that their behavior is wrong and have them decide to stop. If that were the case, there would be no drug addicts, no alcoholics, no kleptomaniacs…I think you see where I’m going with this. It just isn’t that easy. That’s not to say that it is impossible to have someone change their behavior if they truly understand the nature of it and have a deep desire to do it, but it is not just a matter of them understanding that what they are doing is wrong. In fact, every one of the pedophiles that I am discussing here, including your friend, knew it was wrong. They are quick to beg the child not to tell anyone about their meeting for fear of getting caught and going to jail. You can do your own research. I am not going to spend my time educating you on a subject that is so widespread and so well-understood that only my own expertise might do it justice. The fact is that a 13 year old child cannot legally consent to a sexual affair. That, in and of itself, should give people like Dovas an incentive to stay away from them. If the fear of going to jail doesn’t stop them, what does that tell you? If they are so desperate for sex with a child, any child, that they are willing to meet some strange kid that they picked up on the Internet, then they are very sick. If it was just a matter of sex, they could certainly find that with a consenting adult, at worst, even by paying a prostitute. But, to go after a defenseless child is inexcusable. For you to go after the justice system for what happened to Dovas is a cop-out. I believe these guys should all be put on an island somewhere where they can’t get near children. They are the lowest form of society and, hopefully, in prison, they find out what it’s like to be one of their victims…a small defenseless child being taken advantage of by big, disgusting men. Sorry if I have no pity for them. After you see enough of them…all with the same rap…you pretty much lose hope that they can be helped. The statistics are real. These guys do it over and over and over. This is an ingrained depravity, an abnormal impulse for which there is no switch to turn it off. I don’t care about the other criminals who do things you say are worse. That sounds like the kid who gets in trouble in school and tells his parents that the other kids were doing worse things and they didn’t even get in trouble. Thankfully, your friend is where he belongs…locked away where he can’t get to children. Do you think it a coincidence that his profession involved children’s television programming, at times? What a surprise!
There is much in what you say. I don’t dispute that these people–all of them, whatever the degree of their crimes–are sick. Yes, they are more than culpable since they are fully aware they are breaking the law. Yes, the fact that they were aware of the overwhelming wrongness of their acts speaks volumes about the degree of their ingrained addiction. But I refuse to accept the notion that they need to be treated with the same severity accorded violent attackers. Obviously they need to be dealt with. I don’t have ideas, I admit. I need to further look into how other countries handle it. However, I have never heard anything about Western Europe or Canada being a hotbed of child abuse.
Surely there must be reliable methods of keeping tabs on released pedophiles. Controlling their Internet access? The bracelet? Megan’s Law? Do they really all fail?
I do not think it is a “cop-out” to point out the absurdly random nature of our justice system. It would be if I was attempting to rationalize or excuse behavior like Dovas’s, but I am not. I would have given him the same sentence he got–5 years. Plus heavy counselling, possibly even heavy testing, the outcome of which would determine what happens to him from there. (if such “testing” does not exist, perhaps it should, as I do not believe there is anything fascistic about it.)
One more thing:
“Do you think it a coincidence that his profession involved children’s television programming, at times? What a surprise!”
Leave the art of animation out of this. One’s love of this medium has nothing to do with anything being discussed here. If you’re in the business, you take whatever jobs you can get, as there are not many to be had these days. Also, although I shouldn’t have say this, Dovas’s profession would never have any reason to bring him into contact with children at all.
Pedophiles break the law. They choose to continue with their deviant behavior and they do it knowingly. The consequences are known by them before they go out and violate a child. So, that they have to go to prison is just what they deserve. There is really nothing else that will help them, so the point is to keep them away from children.
Your last comments are valid, but only to a point. I did not mean that graphic designers are pedophiles. That is not the implication. The point is that, no matter what the profession, these guys always seem to do something that involves attracting children. Either way, he’s a monster who preyed on children. He had to be stopped.
The problem with the current ways to keep tabs on these guys is that there are so many of them that it’s impossible to do that unless they cooperate. Many of them move and do not register again. Many of them still go out and do their thing while on the registry because the average person doesn’t check the registry for every person who is around their children and, even if they did, there isn’t any way to stop a stranger on the Internet from luring a child out to meet him. Internet access is restricted, but, how does that stop someone from getting an account under another name or using a friend’s account. I could go on, but there is really nothing more that needs to be said. Locking them up is a good idea. I have no sympathy for them. Let them see what life is like when they break the law. Maybe that should be their deterrent…unfortunately, that doesn’t even seem to stop them.
I would really like to know what your involvement in this case is.
My sympathy for Dovas has nothing to do with thinking that what he did was okay. It’s not. My sympathy for Dovas has entirely to do with that he is obviously somebody who is maladjusted, obviously somebody who fell through the cracks.
I am not going to give you my life story of my whole personal past, but I will say that if I were not lucky enough to have the parents I did, who knows where I would have ended up? Now, my problems weren’t related to things like sex, but they were related to maladjustment. Nature vs. Nurture.
I am also not pulling out of thin air that these people can be helped. I have read several books on the subject, and most of these people are disgusted with themselves but feel powerless to stop. Many have said that the best thing that ever happened to them was getting arrested and getting the counseling they need so they would learn to control themselves. Many have also said that had they known what resources they could go to for help, they would have done so before it was too late. I also read, in books and in TIME Magazine, that of non violent sex offenders who are caught only 13% reoffend. The 13% who reoffend are usually the ones who aren’t given help. My therapist also confirmed this.
Don’t get me wrong. A year later, I am appalled and disgusted with Dovas’s behavior. He is a good man who surrounds his goodness with a lot of garbage. This garbage needs to be dealt with. He is not a monster. He is someone with serious mental problems. Also, I do know the power of addiction. I have obsessive-compulsive disorder. As a kid, I got so horribly obsessed with things like movies that my life literally revolved around them. While I don’t have those obsessions anymore, I do have other very powerful obsessions. Now, again, this is a mild case of OCD. Take that and magnify it by 1000x and add sex into the equation, and it’s not a pretty picture. I am willing to wager that Dovas would have given anything not to be attracted to teens, and if hasn’t before, probably would now.
Again, my sympathy for him is based on obvious maladjustment and mental problems, which I strongly suspect were strongly nurtured by a bad early life. Obviously I don’t know, but I suspect it.
I hope that he can endure, get the help he needs, and find life– normal life– again, when he gets out. He is still a human being. I doubt he was wringing his hands and saying “Ha ha ha! I’m going to ruin this kid’s life!” He probably, sadly, convinced himself that he wasn’t doing anything “bad.” It’s very easy to convince yourself of things in the world of obsession.
Most of his friends and aquaintances feel the same way I do. They are disgusted with Dovas, and feel like punching him in the face. But they also are supporting him– not supporting his actions, but supporting him– because he is a human being WHO NEEDS HELP.
As for Europe, the sentence for this crime is 2-8 years (depending on the country) and heavy counseling. Unless true rape was involved, nobody looks at 30 years. In Finland, there is almost no sexual repression, nudity at pools, etc. is accepted, and thus very few people with sexual problems… and 5/7 rapes are committed by foreigners.
We could learn a lot from Finland, and Europe in general, to save these people from themselves and from hurting others.
AE
Also, I’d like to add that you would not be as adamant about Dovas’s “badness” if he were a woman instead of a man. Consider that. One has the convenience of not having an endowment when their sentences are considered.
I doubt Dovas fell through a crack! There were offenses there that warranted 30 years and maybe you should look up his case and decide how you feel after that. I wonder how many of his friends who feel sorry for him now would have him babysit their young children when he gets out of prison.
Your statistics are way off, but it is not my job to educate you about this, and to equate the fact that nudity alleviates sexual repression is absurd. I think you mean well, but you really have been getting a slanted point of view. Sexual perversion, acts of rape, molestation, etc…have more to do with a person having power and control over someone than sexual gratification.
I cannot help but wonder why you would have read several books on the subject of pedophilia. That is strange to me unless you are a therapist or someone who works with them in another capacity. Perhaps you have other friends or family members who have the problem?
I think you believe that Dovas is a “good man,” but, to me, he is a sexual predator, plain and simple. He may be sick, just like many other criminals out there, but that doesn’t absolve him of his responsibility for hurting innocent children. There is a reason why pedophiles are considered to be the lowest form of human being, even in prison. They prey upon the weakest and most innocent members of society. They are manipulative and cunning, which is why you think he is a good man. He has everyone fooled, as they all do until their arrest.
Your comment about how I would feel if he was a woman is without merit. I feel absolutely the same way about women who take advantage of children.
I applaud you in your efforts to overcome your problems, but keep in mind, that not everyone considers their maladies problems, nor do they want to overcome them. Dovas is a member of a very exclusive, deviant club. The members are many and they all sound exactly the same. It’s almost as though they have a script. He is not unique. I dount he is the one pedophile who can be cured. I doubt he is the one pedophile who will want to change. He is just another run of the mill pervert who finally went after the wrong “girl.” I’m sure he’ll come out of prison and make all the promises and motions of redemption that they all do…but, as with the rest of their rap, it’s probably just another part of the script.
Again, you are missing my point. Why did I read these books? I read them after Dovas was arrested, to try to make sense of the madness.
Again, what is your role in this case? How do you know so much about it? Exactly how many offenses did he commit that makes you feel he deserves thirty years?
I never said that any of his problems excuses him. What I am saying is that there is no substitute for personal responsiblity, but we have to understand what leads these people to act as they do.
I have spoken to many people from European countries (Finland, France, etc) where sex and nudity aren’t the forbidden fruit. Because of this, people are more open about things like sexual problems and sexual issues. As I said, the rape rate is incredibly low in Finland, and 5/7 rape cases are committed by foreigners.
AE
Hmm. We may simply be dealing with an optimistic view of human nature versus a pessimistic one. Ironic, since I always considered myself a pessemist.
Nothing makes me more insecure, personally, than learning about how absolutely vile humans can be. I try very hard not to let it negate my opposition to most kinds of black-and-white justice. (It’s not always easy, I’ll admit.) It seems to me that police, and others in law enforcement, often have the blackest view of humanity, and who can blame them for that? All they see is the worst, day in, day out. They see some of the best, in their colleagues, but it might not cancel it out for them. I don’t know.
Joseph, it really would benefit everyone here if you would tell us how you are connected to this situation. Even if you just say that you are in NYC law enforcement, in some capacity, that would clear up a lot of things. You keep telling us to “look up his case”, when we’ve already said that we are close to people in the know. If there are indeed things that could only be found in police sources (not banned from the public record), please share them with us. We already know that he was communicating with the “girl” for months, and that he saw a phony picture, and that he was unambiguously after her for sex. Is there anything we are not aware of that you are privvy to?
Between you and Anteater, there seems to be the potential to get into a debate over figures. Anteater has one set of stats, you have another. If either of you are interested in throwing numbers and sources back and forth, it might be enlightening for all of us, so long as you cite your sources.
I guess I don’t think the way you do. How close were you to this pedophile that you found it necessary to go out and read several books to understand why he molested children?
Moreover, rape statistics are more apt to be indicative of the way law enforcement handles the issue, as well as how many women actually come forward to press charges. And,I have no idea why you keep going on about other countries. Isn’t this about your friend? You seem to be saying everything you can to minimize his actions. So, nudity is acceptable in Europe and Finland isn’t handling rape cases the same as they do in other countries.
How about sticking with the issue? Dovas did a terrible thing and, thankfully, he was caught and he’s being punished. I don’t really see any point in going on and on about this. You have your own thoughts on the subject and I think we just need to leave it at that and agree that we do not think alike.
All I am saying is we could be handling these things differently in America.
He did a terrible thing, should be punished, but it shouldn’t end there. We should get him help and also restructure society a bit to prevent these things.
I still think you are missing the point, and I pray to the unresponsive heavens that you tell us roughly who you are and where we can find this file…
BTW, I too am a woman.
AE
Marbles, This isn’t about views. This is about a pedophile caught and convicted. It’s as simple as that. You seem to think that my identity is a necessity here. I don’t see your job description listed, nor anyone else’s and, if I did now,I wouldn’t really put much stock in it.
Being close to “people in the know” has nothing to do with what is in the court records. I doubt whether all of the people in his circle even know the truth unless they saw the evidence themselves. Since there was no trial, a convenient way to keep the truth much more private than had there been a jury and reporters, but, also an avenue for him to ensure a shorter sentence, I doubt whether anyone actually “knows” the truth about what he did.
Hypothetically, if I am in law enforcement and if there is something the public would not be privy to, I certainly wouldn’t post it here for you. However, as I have said before, it’s all a matter of public record. If you really want to be “in the know” go read it all. Then, come back here and give an educated opinion of the man you all think is so great.
Exactly how do you restructure society to change this portion of it? It is everywhere…in your schools, your playgrounds, your churches, your neighbor’s homes, your homes…what do you suggest? Do you think we should all walk around naked to desensitize ourselves of nudity? Should we think a pedophile’s molestation of children is ok as long as the child says, “Yes”?
I may be missing your point, as you keep saying in every post…but, I am pretty sure right now that you have completely missed mine. I really don’t see any reason to continue this. I am certainly not going to reveal my identity. I find it interesting that you all seem to think it is essential for you to know who I am while you all have fake names on your posts. I haven’t any interest in knowing who any of you are…
Maybe you could tell us where this public record is?
Since you are all in the know, I should think it wouldn’t be very difficult for you to make a few calls to find that out. I’ve said enough.
Joseph, this *is* about views. Your view is just as you stated, a pedophile was caught and convicted. Simple as that. Our view is that a one-size-fits-all-mentality doesn’t work. We do not believe that what Dovas did makes him a monster in the sense you describe. The real monsters out there are the ones we have both touched on before.
I don’t know where you stand on the death penalty. I will say that I am against it, but that I am fully aware that if someone I love was murdered in cold blood, I might just conveniently “forget” that.
Some will take the point of view that the only justice that matters is that in the eyes of the victims’ relatives/friends. If they desire to see the murderer die, it is nobody’s business to dissuade them. I can understand this, but I disagree. My view is that an eye for an eye leads to everybody being blind, and that we need to reign in our more destructive emotions for the overall health of society.
Those same strong emotions are at play concerning the guardians of a pedophile’s “lover”. THEY would want to string the guy up, or at least lock him up for 50,000 years. They are more than entitled to that. (Heck, it’s all right with me if, before the pedo is arrested, they beat the crap out of him.) But if we just keep treating these particular sickos like their much more vicious counterparts, we demonstrate a lack of mercy for the fallen. It may disgust you, and many others, that anyone could consider these “fallen” worthy of “mercy”, but that’s just how I see it. They need to be punished. In a way that hurts. But some of them may also warrant a second chance. As much as it pains me to say this, most people are not simply good or evil. Our most severe sentences should be reserved for the remorseless, the emotionless, the cold-blooded. Dovas is not evil. He is not a “good man” either, but he is not evil. He has enough good in him to make him at least worthy of consideration for a second chance. It all depends on what happens during the next five years.
The only reason I am asking about your connection to this is that you keep asserting that you know things that we don’t, but you won’t let on what these things are. But aside from that, you seem to be missing it when we keep saying that we KNOW what he did. We know that he arranged a sordid affair with what he thought was a 13-year-old girl. We have a pretty good idea what his conversations with the agent were like. (Probably straight out of a grade Z porno movie. ) We know that there was no mistake, from where he stood, about what he was doing. That’s not what we’re talking about.
In the near future I will look up the records to see what you are referring to.
I don’t have a “one size fits all” mentality. But, I am focusing on the facts in his case. It is you and the other person who gets into all of the other issues, i.e. rape and sexuality in Finland and Europe, the death penalty, etc…Your friend pled guilty knowing what his sentence would be and he knew it would be worse at trial, due to the evidence. He had a history and his victims were not “lovers” as you call them. You call him “fallen” and act as though he deserves “mercy” more than other criminals. You know your friend? You didn’t know this side of him, I would hope. This side is the one that deserves punishment. He did the crime. Why should we feel sorry for him???? Because he got caught??? He was a successful man who had a lot more going for him than most people. He threw it away for sex with a kid. It wasn’t a whim. It wasn’t just a one-time fluke or temptation. Why should he be treated like a poor, sick puppy? And, why does it “hurt” that he needs to be punished??? And, what exactly should he have a second chance with??? Another child? You think the system is so strick. I have seen the leniency these guys can get and I could tell you stories about pedophiles who got off with violations or the one who already had three convictions and then, got only 15 days in jail due to his “psychiatric problems” only to come out and do it over 20 more times!! Check out the difference between the state and federal systems. Talk about leniency!!!
I am more inclined now to think that there is more to all of your leniency towards him than meets the eye. I can’t keep defending the kids against you people. It is amazing that I even have to!
Come on, please don’t think like that. I’m not trying to argue against protecting children. If all of our issues are in fact illegitimate, than the children’s safety comes first. We just can’t believe that things are as cut-and-dried as you say they are. You seem to have a lot of experience in this area, and I respect that, but I just can’t believe that *everyone* in this category is so irredeemable.
I hate to burst your bubble. I really do. I don’t know what else to say. You want to keep your idealistic view that things aren’t as bad as they seem and that everybody is fixable. Maybe it’s best for you that you believe that. The unfortunate thing here is that there may be a couple of pedophiles who do go out of their way to get help and make a conscious decision to stay away from children, most likely because they have used up all of their chances, either with the authorities or their families, but for every one of them, there are thousands who don’t. So, you keep your eye on the couple who try to turn their lives around and I’ll keep my eye on the thousands who are slugs…
I still want to know where you got this “public record” file…
AE
Why don’t you make some calls? You’re an adult, right? It really doesn’t take a genius to find out how to access public records…
Can I ask why YOU even bothered to go out of your way to look them up?
You’re still trying to find out who I am. Sorry…I’m remaining anonymous just like the rest of you.
You don’t have to tell me WHO you are, but I would like to know why you were that bored that you felt it necessary to debate with students of Dovas on this message board? We didn’t do this because we were bored, we did it because we were CONCERNED.
As for who I am, roughly. I am a former student of Dovas’s, as is Marbles. I work at a phone company in Brooklyn, and Marbles recently graduated and is searching for work (I graduated in 03). There.
Oh, don’t worry. I’m not bored at all. I just felt it necessary to let you know that you really don’t know a pedophile…no matter how much time you spend with one. Do you think their wives and kids know what they’re doing? They often appear to be very nice people, which is why they are able to move in on kids so easily.
However, that said, I didn’t realize this was a debate. I guess you’re all still in the student mode. I thought we were having a discussion. It’s been nice chatting with you. You have to decide what to do about your friend. I just thought you should know that it isn’t as simple as someone making a one-time mistake or that he can just decide he isn’t going to be a pedophile anymore. If you believe he can do that, you might feel it safe to let kids be alone with him.
It’s been very nice chatting with you. Time to move on to the next subject.
Now did I say I would leave kids alone with him? Did I say this would be easy to fix? No, I am saying this is a complex issue, and I’m trying to treat it as such, instead of saying that one should disown him. Will he get better? I don’t know, but I think he can. I hope he can.
That said, I hope (again) this clears things up, and you’re not just selectively reading what I am typing.
AE
We’ve come to an ugly, dangerous land, my friends, a land from which there is no escape—The Land of Impasse.
Perhaps it is time to consider another destination, such as the Land of New Horizons. Goodbye, travellers….I will see you on the other side.
Just dropping by to see if anyone ever did look up the record…
The original complaint is online. If you Google “steve dovas arrested” (no quotes) it is one of the first hits (the PDF can be read as HTML via Google).
Since I knew Steve 20 years ago at NYU film school, I was interested in the final outcome. I contacted the US Attorney’s office before the holidays to ask them about Steve’s case (I assumed correctly that it was a matter of public record.) They emailed me the information after the holidays.
In a nutshell, Steve received a 60 month sentence, 5 years supervised release, and a $10,000 fine. He in in a facility (don’t know which one) where he’ll receive psychological care.
Very sad to see someone destroy their life this way.
I have seen the documents in question, I never denied that this happened. Certain people on the message board simply don’t read carefully.
I am very glad he will recieve psychological care. I think that is what he needs more than anything else. He is, by the way, in Los Angeles and is scheduled for release on 4/13/09 (it’s on the BOP website). Let us all hope that he gets his act together and is able to redeem himself. I imagine this is tough for everybody around him, but let us give him the benefit of the doubt, and commend all those who will be there for him throughout all of this. I, for one, am an optimist (most of the time) and this case is no exception.
Sad indeed but let’s all be hopeful. Let us now put this thread to rest and move on.
A.
well steven is my brother from another mother for real
since 1999 I have tried to get some kind of information on my father and half sisters. I know this has nothing to do with him being a pervert but if anyone related to me was to read this an e-mail me . I ended up in tx . steven was a real jerk to me
I was a student of Steve Dovas about a year before his arrest. To be honest with you, I never liked the man. He was rude, not only to myself but to other students as well. I remember how he was always trying to be funny with his negative humor that at times got very tasteless. Contrary to what anyone has said, Steve was not a talented artist and not suprisingly, never did much in the industry. He had to teach to make a living, no doubt embittering him; along with the elusivity of young girls. I only wonder what he’s going to do with himself once he gets out. I don’t think he’ll ever come back to Clinton Hill, but if he does…we’ll be waiting for him.
Props to people like joseph for keeping these pedophiles off the streets.
As for his unconditional defenders, Anteater was an lonely corpulent girl that had a crush on Steve. Besides, who else would give a shit about him. Not his humiliated wife for sure.
Actually, I SO do not have a crush on Steve. I don’t know who you are or how you know who I am, but I would appreciate it if you emailed me at anteatergirl@hotmail.com I also don’t like your desecription of me; leave my weight out of this. Lonely? Shows how little you know about me. Funny how you didn’t speculate who my friend Marbles was.
To be quite frank, I was merely defending him because I think these situations are very tough and complicated. However, a huge part of me (not the entire part) is glad he was arrested, despite what I have said before; he has done a lot of good in his life but also done enough fucked up shit to warrant his arrest… acting like a dick to people and, of course, doing THIS… he had it coming to him. Maybe I went too far in defending him in the name of idealism, but it frustrates me when people see these things (crimes and otherwise) in black and white. Honestly, at this point, I really don’t care what happens to him… I mean I don’t think he deserves life in prison, but whatever happens to him at this point is in his hands. I’ve been altruistic long enough.
Anteater