by A mom was inside a Walmart located in Washington state. While walking in the sections of the store, she noticed a man and although noticing a stranger inside of a store isn’t unusual, this particular guy have a strange vibe about him.
Her instincts were not incorrect, as she noticed the man’s hand and what he was doing with his child. Then things got worse.
Kathy Wolcott was with her 3 year old son shopping when she noticed a man with a phone in his hand. Now of course, having a phone isn’t strange but she always discovered that the man was taking pictures of her little boy. The mother had noticed the flash on the man’s cellphone so she decided to confront him and when she did, she demanded to see the pictures on his phone. She couldn’t believe what she saw.
“I ask him to go to his camera,” Wolcott described when she had a confrontation with the pervert man. “I hit the gallery button, and I see row after row of children in Walmart that day that he was just taking pictures of.”
This strange man used his whole afternoon photographing innocent children in the store, while the parents were totally unaware, how sick. His had a collection of so many different children at his disposal. To make matters worse, there was nothing Wolcott or anyone else could do about it.
After being caught in his sick act, he freaked out and ran out of the store. Walmart employees had witnessed Wolcott’s interaction with the creep and took down his license plate number before he left the scene, then they called 911. When police arrived, the mother and employees were all taken aback by their approach to the matter.
Although Sequim Deputy Police Chief Sheri Crain wanted to reprimand the man, her hands were tied, since he wasn’t breaking the law. Because the photos were not pornographic, he was lurking and stalking within his right to do so. Evidently, strangers can take pictures of your children all they want, and it’s perfectly legal, even though it’s rather perverted.
“People have the ability to take photographs. Nowadays, when everybody has a cellphone, there’s a greater likelihood that photos are being taken,” Crain said with disappointment on the matter.
Even though officers caught up with this man and investigated the case, they didn’t make an arrest. This makes Wolcott feel violated and uneasy since her ability to protect her child has been stripped from her. “I feel like I can’t protect my son,” the upset mother said. “I feel like there’s nothing I can do to protect them.”
The law on this, or lack thereof, has once again been designed, perhaps by default, to protect the criminal rather than the child victim. It shouldn’t matter that the photos weren’t pornographic, they could easily be used in a way that is. With the ease and access of photo editing programs, any of these children’s faces could be superimposed onto another child’s body, photographed in a compromising way. After that is done, so will the damage be, once it gets posted to dark websites that promote such perversions.
Parents must keep a close watch on their children and an even closer watch on who is watching them. It’s important to be vigilant about all kinds of safety concerns and your surroundings without being overly fearful.
