Keeping us safe from sex offenders

KUTV, the CBS television affiliate in Salt Lake City, reported yesterday that the Salt Lake City District Attorney charged an eight-year-old boy with an act of lewdness with a minor — his 14-year-old female babysitter. The sexual misconduct, it seems, occurred during a game of “truth or dare” initiated by the babysitter, who dared the boy to touch her breasts. Prosecutors said that while the babysitter made the first move toward contact, the boy was a “willing participant.”

The irony is that the boy had told his mother about the incident (“He just came right out as if nothing was awry,” she says), and she’d gone to the police and child protection workers. Shortly after, her son was charged with lewd conduct.

Prosecutors have since dropped the charges against the eight-year-old, but Salt Lake City residents can rest assured that the State remains vigilant for teeny-tiny sex offenders.