Child sex-abuse charges dropped against St. George mom, dad

There are legitimate cultural differences in how babies are treated in terms of affection. One case I heard of was an Hispanic mother touching her infant son's penis in public. It didn't bother any of the other mothers around her (all of whom were also Hispanic). But standards around contact like that when the child hits toddler-hood is an entirely different matter among Hispanics as well as pretty much every other culture. But what if they are different? Or what if they are different when the child reaches pre-pubescence? Or later? What do you do?

So what bothers me here is that the US is supposed to be a single-standard-of-law country. Yet in the interests of actual justice, in practice it is in a place where it can't be. If certain standards must be applied in one area of law, then gee, should they also not be applied in others without distinction? If so then dispensations for cultural differences can't be made, right?

I agree that in this case, the couple was not rightly placed in jeopardy, but the officer acted in good faith (or appears to have done so), and likewise, the prosecutor in dropping the charges. The couple just got a shock-value lesson in American cultural norms, too. Like an unavoidable car accident, everyone gets traumatized but there is no blame.

Man what a pickle. Sorry, I don't have a solution for this kind of thing. (Reminds me of No Exit)

Your right, sexual abuse is a tricky one. What do you do to parents of a typical white upbringing but chose to belong to some nudist colony where nudity and touching of private parts aren't necessarily sexual. Then there are those with radically different views of the nature of sexuality (including with regards to youth), where they might not see it as invasive and controlling. Its hard to draw a line when considering individual, culture, and intention.

Different cultures do have different practices and different values.

the only solution to this type of problem that I can envision is two pronged system that on one side has the current system of enforcement and punishment and the other has more of a guidance and education focus for situations such as the one outlined where cultural misunderstandings lead to unfortunate situations for all. Problem there is deciding who is to go in which direction in the system.

Or, maybe we just need a system that does not look strictly for guilt but rather investigates both exculpatory and incriminatory evidence equally to avoid such a mess in the first place. I mean our current system seeks only evidence to convict and our system of defense is to poke doubt into that evidence rather then introduce evidence of innocence. Perhaps we need less law enforcement officers and more law inquiry officers who not only look for evidence of guilt but also possible evidence of innocence as well. Maybe we can avoid the trial altogether if the investigators were not on the side of guilt from day one.

Love it. Seriously, have you approached a local DA, judge, or someone else like that with this idea?

Conversations about sexual intent, culture, and who gets to decides can go on forever. My basic thoughts are if there is no sexual intent and there is no emotional or physical harm to the child, then no crime occurred. However, to see a man kissing his son's genitals would be shocking to me because I am not familiar with that culture. (Can anyone substantiate that this is actual Latino culture as the story suggests? My husband is Brazilian and has never heard of this).

I am not supporting the arrest, but I have mixed feelings about it being investigated. I mean what would most of us do if we saw such a picture? I would report it, but I loath the system and agencies in charge of such a task (If police or Child protective Services ever came to my door, I would NEVER let them in!!)

Here is another example of cultural difference:

During some Jewish circumcision ceremonies, the mohel sucks the blood off the penis with his mouth.

Aside from it being sexually disturbing to many people outside of the Jewish culture, one mohel infected several babies with herpes virus due to this practice (google: Rabbi Yitzhok Fischer). One of the babies died from the herpes infection.

It is ironic that kissing the genitals is enough to get you arrested, but cutting part of them off (circumcision) and then sucking the baby's penis is not.

I think every culture has some practices that would shock outsiders. Breastfeeding a child past one-year's old seems to shock a lot of Americans (some women have been arrested or asked to leave premises).

How does the saying go?.....Don't throw stones if you live in a glass house.......

PS- great post again, paragon.