Warminster Police: Weekend Child Luring Attempt a Prank
An Upper Southampton man has been cited for disorderly conduct after he drove up to a child and offered candy.
Warminster police have cited a 19-year-old Upper Southampton man for disorderly conduct following an investigation into a child luring attempt on Saturday afternoon.
Police say that Paul Joseph Smith, from the 200 block of Williams Drive in Upper Southampton, drove up to a child on Meadow Drive in Warminster and said, "Hey, buddy, do you want any candy?" and left the area when the child ran to the back of his house. After police tracked down Smith's gold van, he told officers that the incident was a prank and he had no intention of harming the child.
The citation will be filed with District Judge Daniel Finello. As of this point, Warminster police believe this was an isolated incident.
Kathleen
4:33 pm on Monday, March 12, 2012
Our latest graduates now consider traumatizing a child a joke?
nascarqtt
4:51 pm on Monday, March 12, 2012
Why in gods name would ANYONE ever do this. I think he should get a night in a jail for this.
Alex R.
8:27 pm on Monday, March 12, 2012
He's only saying it was a prank because he got caught and getting off for a "prank" is easier then trying to get off for kidnapping a child. The teenagers these days are absolutely horrible the crime rate is up like crazy. And now a young child is traumatized due to their immaturity and disrespect for anyone. Happy the child knew to run away.
Tina L
10:14 pm on Monday, March 12, 2012
Watch out, tomorrow he's going to rob a bank but it's cool, when the police come, he'll just tell them it's a prank and they'll let him go.
Eric S
11:04 pm on Monday, March 12, 2012
Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.
But I'm wondering the same as others...was it really a bad joke or something more?
HONEST MOM
8:24 am on Tuesday, March 13, 2012
While I totally agree that this joke/prank was in no way funny I do believe that the police would have never let the young man go if they believed in any way that it wasn't an immature man's idea of a joke. I'm sure they have gone over this person with a fine tooth comb before making their decision. I also have no doubt that the police along with the judge will make sure this young man remembers this incident for as long as that poor little boy will by making sure his punishment is just.
My prayers are with the little boy and his family that they will get through this somehow. It is a very traumatic experience for all of them I'm sure.
Again I totally disagree with what this young man did to this innocent child. I also don't think it's fair to assume that the young man is a child predator. In reality he made a very stupid decision for which I'm sure he'll be paying for a very long time.
I also have to disagree that teenagers these days are absolutely horrible. I honestly have had the pleasure of meeting far more wonderful teenagers than horrible.
This teenager made a huge awful decision. I'm sure he'll be treated accordingly by our courts and learn a very valuable lesson.
Beth Hun
9:44 am on Tuesday, March 13, 2012
joke or no joke, my children were told about this, we made special provisions for them to be taken to and picked up from school, then they refused to go outside and play, this so called joke scared many children and many parents....how do we or the police even know this was a joke ? because a 20yr old immiture "adult" told them it was. He should have the book thrown at him, period, one needs to learn what is and isnt funny. You dont play with the law or the lives of others.
linda
12:52 pm on Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Not really sure if I believe this was a joke... Wondering if the child had gone up to the car instead of running into the house, what this "person" would have done! Joke or no joke,for him to even think of something like this,makes me uneasy. Hoping the police will be keeping an extra close eye on him.. yes he deserves the heat! I would say he owes everyone involved and apology,even our township,but I'm not quite sure if anyone would believe him.
Debbie A
1:32 pm on Tuesday, March 13, 2012
???? Was it a prank or a is he lying?????
larry8
4:00 pm on Tuesday, March 13, 2012
What happened to the article titled "neighbor: Readers overreacting to child-luring incident" ??
James Boyle
6:45 pm on Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Since the source was anonymous, my editor advised me to pull it. If the source decides to go on the record, I will repost it.
Kevin J. Kennedy
7:57 pm on Tuesday, March 13, 2012
I'd like to respond too; I spoke to the individual who wrote this article and exposed the name of this kid. This, as was posted earlier, is inappropriate and should never have led to the level it has reached. With a small amount of investigation, (due diligence) this would never have enraged so many people. However, with the cat out of the bag as it were, what’s done is done. He wrote this article, took it to the top of the mountain, ripped it to a thousand pieces, and let the wind take it away. Now how are you going to pick up all those pieces Mr. Boyle?
My aim is not to blame anyone here but collectively none of us is without fault. Just because you pass a certain age doesn’t suddenly enable adult reasoning and any of you with kids in this age bracket can attest to this. I hope more than one lesson has been learned with all this banter but hopefully clearer minds will prevail, at least that is my hope. It just saddens me to know that nobody posting these heated remarks is objective enough to realize the harm that this does in all these children’s lives. My other hope is that the “Bubble Boy” syndrome passes quickly for those who created this madness in the first place. These are kids’ people who live within blocks of one another, who grew up playing on the same streets where they’re now being accused of nefarious crimes. These are kids who are friends since they first understood what friends are. Don’t be so quick to judge lest ye be judged.
Veritas
7:49 am on Wednesday, March 14, 2012
The author of this article was in no way wrong in posting the name of the person who was guilty of pulling this stunt. He is over 18, is considered an adult, and the police report and associated charges are a matter of public record. Do you harbor the same feelings for WPVI and WCAU who have also posted his name and the disorderly conduct charge?
VoiceOfReason
5:37 pm on Tuesday, March 13, 2012
This is absolutely blown out of proportion. For one thing, the "child" that was allegedly lured made a rude gesture to the boys in the van.The boys were annoyed by the gesture and made a very stupid remark in return to the kid.
Is everyone on this discussion board innocent of ever making a dumb remark? I think not.
I understand that in this day and age, a remark of this nature is taken very seriously, but to bring a person up on charges for a comment taken out of context is inappropriate, as well.
As a taxpaying citizen, I feel this is a waste of money. I think the police have more important things to do that to carefully watch a dumb 19 year old for making a dumb remark.
Kevin J. Kennedy
7:16 pm on Tuesday, March 13, 2012
To Jim,
That is not what you said to me earlier but I'm not afraid to go on the record if that's what it takes to clear the air.
Veritas
7:49 am on Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Where exactly are you the voice of reason, Planet Moron? One of the classic ways of accomplishing damage control is to discredit the accuser. You should feel proud in knowing that you’re attempting to assassinate the character of an 11 year-old boy. Good for you! Furthermore, being eleven years old he is indeed a child- no quotations are necessary. Regardless of whether the child made some gesture or not is irrelevant. As “adults”, those in the van could have responded in a hundred more appropriate ways. In reference to your comment: a waste of money to follow-up on a possible child luring. Are you INSANE? Tell you what- walk into a bank and say, “This is a hold-up” and see what happens. Do you seriously think that the police wouldn’t follow-up on it? The bottom line is that this child reacted appropriately to a perceived threat and calling the police was the right thing to do.
Vic Monaco
12:47 am on Wednesday, March 14, 2012
My first reaction to this story was "If it walks like a duck, it's a duck."
"Want candy little boy?" equals child predator.
But after reading these comments, I'm totally confused.
Sure would be nice if the cops would explain this better. Rather than, 'he said it was a prank, so we said OK."
And whoever made public the child's name, regardless of what happened, shame on you.
Joe
2:23 pm on Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Child's name? 19 is not a child and he deserves to have his name put out there. Just like if he store a candy bar from a 7/11 or got arrested for a DUI. Hopefully he has learned his lesson and can grow from this.
Concerned Resident
5:07 am on Wednesday, March 14, 2012
This is not a prank. That is completely illogical regardless of the circumstances. Now at least the children & parents in our town are forewarned & the police can watch this adult male for other inappropriate or suspicious activity. He should be charged with something for this action.
Veritas
7:50 am on Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Wow- where to begin? After reading the posts by ‘Voice” and Mr. Kennedy, it is quite obvious they have some relation (parents?) to those that were in the van and are trying to do damage control.
In the court of public opinion it doesn’t take a genius to realize who will be on the short end of the stick when it comes to a 19 year-old accused of child luring versus the 11 year-old victim. All the two of you are doing is fanning the flames instead of extinguishing them. I humbly suggest you put the keyboards away and let the incident die on the vine. The more you post, the more the incident stays in the forefront of people’s minds and you’ll just keep digging a deeper hole.
Kevin J. Kennedy
9:38 am on Wednesday, March 14, 2012
I was only trying to point out that all these kids knew one another. This is not a case of stalking, child endangerment, luring or anything as nefarious as it's being characterized. I'm not blaming Mr Boyle for reporting the story, I'm simply pointing out that with a bit of investigation this story was not news worthy. Everyone involved here live within a three block radius of one another and Paul is at the 11 year old's neighbor every day over the past decade. I agree that what was said was not good judgment, but I wasn't there to have heard it. I do apologize to any one that was confused by my statement. Also, I'm not trying to hide anything, that is why I used my name.
Kevin J. Kennedy
12:03 pm on Wednesday, March 14, 2012
One last post: I would like to apologize and restate: All the kids in question had familiarity to one another but did not specifically know each other by name. We parents have spoken and we will settle any further discussions on this matter between ourselves.
Lavender Green
3:54 pm on Wednesday, March 14, 2012
When it comes to the safety there is no joking around. If a person is not smart enough to not do such an act then the person should be taught to speak correctly to children. People do not realize that some children are normally trusting and are normally surrounded by good, so when asked if they want a piece of candy by a stranger they should have a "red" flag go up. If the person who did this claims it was a joke they still need to be punished so they and others can remember that a child's safety is no laughing matter, sad that the powers that be have allowed this to go without consequences, sad that this person has not the sense to not joke about such issues, but kudos to the child for being the adult in all this.
linda
9:19 am on Friday, March 16, 2012
Wow.... I believe the author of this did the right thing in the beginning...19 is not a child and we as concerned township people have the right to know what the heck is going on in our community.This is how we take care of each other,so to speak! I feel really sorry for everyone involved,as this adult male ,assuming he was joking,should have thought before he spoke. The world we live in is a much different place today ...we all read the news... Now everyone is paying some sort of price..his parents,the child,the author of this story,the township people. Please stop lashing out on the people who were only trying to protect our children in the community. I could see how this "joke" could have turned into a heated argument between neighbors,thus the police being called out of anger. Even so,a comment like that is TO BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY!