Severe punishment for unknown underage sex.

I feel the man has been judged harshly, it looks as though the girl obviously has previous form - at the very least there is more to this story than meets the eye. I can't help but remember what my friends and I got up to at 13 or 14 back in the seventies ?

Some reports are saying that they actually met in Instagram not a dating website. And the detective said the man would have clearly known she wasn't an adult.
Even if she was a legal age, he sent photos of her. Horrible creep. He deserves what he gets.

I think if a guy has any doubt whatsoever, he should walk away.

A 12 year olds body can’t have been developed enough.

Silly man.

Initially I felt the same way as KateF.

Then I decided to try to find out what sentence this man could have been given, as on the surface, 2years+ seemed a harsh.
Especially considering this seems to have been his first offence.
The sentencing guidelines start at community service and go up to 7 or 10years.

IMV Its looks like the judge was of the opinion that this man was not blameless, and as such has given him (imv) an appropriate sentence to reflect this.

Clearly if the judge thought the man was 'preyed' upon by a predatory girl who without doubt looked 19yrs, he could have been given a much lighter non custodial sentence.
He chose not to, for reasons we can only speculate upon.

To my mind, its a bit like the buyer beware caveat when buying second hand cars. Predatory men who think casual pickups are there for the taking should bear the responsibility if all goes wrong.

The girl was/is a vulnerable child with difficulties, and as such should always be protected from herself, her choices and others exploitation.

Just wondering what ss could have done to help prevent this, and why her family didn't have the house locked down if they feared for her welfare? She seems a danger to herself.

My DGD is 13 - she is taller than me and has a very well developed body in every way. Her mother has taught her to wear very heavy and "sexy looking" makeup, and I could easily believe that a young man would believe her to be 19.

Tangerine asks Even if she looked 19, would she have sounded 19 ? My answer would be, what does a 19 year old sound like ? They don't suddenly start "sounding" mature at a certain age. Plenty of women talk like little girls in my experience.

I have seen many 12/13 year olds that could pass for a much older woman and many 12 year olds who look 10/ 11 If you have a child with big boobs who them wears make up and clothes to enhance their body and then goes on a dating website I m not sure a man whose mind is in his pants would even think anything other than yes yes yes
Some men aren’t always very clever at deciphering ages
In the reverse there is a 13 year old boy lives near me 6’2 and built like a Rugby player he could easily be 19

I personally think meeting her on a dating site is the real hinge to this If he’d picked her up in a club or street or something I think the onus would have been on him to find out but a dating site really gives the green light surely

Well I've read this and can quite believe some of the comments I teach 3/4 year olds and the difference in some of them is amazing. Totally different thing I know but I've also got older grandaughters and again the difference in them at the same age is amazing. I have sons and cringed when I read this article.

There are plenty of 13 yr old girls that can pass for 18 easily and any young guy that has been “ groomed” by the girl will not be able to resist her charms. He will take the risk even if he is suspicious and if caught will suffer the penalty, because the girl set her profile up as a 19 yr old I think his penalty was very harsh
In the US girls like that are called “Jailbait” why do their mothers parent them to be like that, because you can be sure that mother did know how she dressed and behaved, maybe the girl was following mothers example.

Why do some people immediately blame the child, refer to her as a predator and others, immediately blame the child's mother.
We don't know where this child lives, whether she lives with her family/mother, or in some residential setting.
What we do know is that the man pleased not guilty, so there was a trial. That's his right of course, I'm not criticising that. The Judge will have sat through evidence from the man, the investigating police and possibly, though in this case maybe not, from the child
I trust the Judge to have considered all the facts, which we aren't aware of and of reaching the right conclusion, that a prison sentence is warranted in this case. Judges use alternatives to custody wherever possible, especially if its a first offence so the evidence in this case will be what led to HMP.

I am really finding some thinking on this thread shocking. I am not naive, I have 2 daughters, 2 grandaughters & 2 grandsons. I have spent a lifetime in schools/ youth clubs with young people so know the variation in size/ maturity etc. I know there there are girls who seek approval by confusing sex with affection. I know yheir are shy and vulnerable boys. I do not doubt this child was not coerced into the situation.
However she was still a child , he an adult man. As Iam has pointed out the court will have other information that the public is not privy to. The decision has been made on more facts than we have at our disposal.

He is twenty flipping seven.

Even if she WAS 19, he is shopping the junior section, looking for a girl far younger and more naive than himself.

He is nearly thirty FGS.

He's an ageing creep on the internet, and he was looking for jailbait, and got the jail.

Nil sympathy.

There is no law against being a creep though.
19 year olds are fair game.
Anyway, I'm sure the judge took all this and more that we're not privy to into account.

Some of the comments on here truly are disgusting

So we have to give men a pass because they are stupid!! And a 12 year old child is more intelligent than a man who is nearly 30 years old.

Even in medieval England, 12years old was considered too young to consummate a marriage.

No, Momo we expect men of nearly 30 to have better judgment , but we also have to admit that not EVERY girl of 12 looks, talks and acts like a little girl. though not every young woman of nineteen looks, acts and talks like a mature woman either. The judge used the evidence he had before him, his opinion of the man, and his own intelligence, to give a sentence which he believed suited the case.

Several of the posts on here describe very young girls who appeared to be a lot older than their years.

I don't think this man got a pass for being stupid.
He is on the sex offenders register for life, and has many other rules imposed on him.

"He's an ageing creep on the internet, and he was looking for jailbait, and got the jail".
This comment is ridiculous! My own husband of 40 odd years is 9 years older than me. We were 21 and 30 when we met. In no way would I refer to him as an 'ageing creep'! I know many couples with age gaps like this (in both directions).

But you were 21, not 12, GrandmaKT Age differences shrink as you both get older. They are at their most extreme when one of you is very young.

I wonder what will happen to this young woman. She's obviously out of her parent's control and accustomed to putting herself in risky situations.

She is not a woman she is a girl of 12 who is unable to consent

Who had a profile on a dating site listing her age as 19.

She probably thinks of herself as a young woman. She has had experiences that she believes make her a "grown woman", whatever our opinions are. Who knows what she will do with her future life? We know nothing of what her education and career possibilities are.

Remember that TV documentary about the baker and his wife with about 20 children? The mother was 13 when the first was born. They are definitely a couple (not a dating site casual relationship) and are living a pretty good life all together, so it is possible to start off with what is generally considered a bad beginning and still be OK. On the other hand, there are many precocious girls who end up in abusive relationships or in prostitution.

This girl has come to the notice of social services, so she will receive guidance. Whether she will pay any attention to it remains to be seen.

Hi Elegran. Sorry, I was replying to Muffinthemoo's post where she said "Even if she WAS 19, he is shopping the junior section, looking for a girl far younger and more naive than himself". The age difference between 19 and 27 isn't so great!

"19 year olds are fair game" wtf does that mean MissAdventure ? Sounds as if you mean whatever happens to a 19yr old is ok. Or have I misunderstood?