Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Child Solicitaion

I know a man who wants me to chaporone a date with him and his date, my problem is he's 29 and his date will be between the ages of 16 and 18. He said he would pay me for doing this and i told him as long as I would have the parents permission for her to go on this date with him i would. He said i would be in charge of dressing her and making sure she knew how to walk in high heels.Now i've never met this man before i talk to him only on the internet and all he likes to talk about is dressing up women well mostly young females and me being a mother of a 14 yr old i'm alittle creeped out. I did consider it for a moment because of the money offer but then i got to thinking and i think i would be commiting a crime if i took his offer. please tell me what you think. thank you


Asked on 12/19/06, 4:21 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Edward Hoffman Law Offices of Edward A. Hoffman

Re: Child Solicitaion

You're only a *little* creeped out by this? You're more tolerant than most people.

From a legal standpoint there should be no problem with following through on your agreement. It is a crime for a grown man to have sexual contact with a teenage girl, but not to spend time with her in a platonic manner. My sense is that he doesn't plan to have any sexual contact with the young woman; after all, ensuring that there is no such contact is what chaperones are for.

The main legal risk I see is that, if he later molests or otherwise harms the young woman, it might appear that you assisted him by helping him gain her confidence. You might then be sued civilly and prosecuted. I can't begin to say how likely such a turn of events might be.

Whether you want to take this risk -- and spend time with this man you apparently have not met -- is for you to decide. Lawyers can only tell you what is at stake. Even though what you are contemplating is not a crime, you have to decide for yourself whether the risk is worth taking.

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Answered on 12/19/06, 5:25 pm


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