Child Pervert Reported at VB

[Maistre Gracey]

Originally posted by DawnHaan
The man yelled down from the patio at her.

This is precisely why I was doing my best to stay out of this thread. We are hearing a one sided, third hand account, over the internet, and even THAT story is not clear.
I really don't think we should lynch someone over this flimsy evidence.
I would think at some point we have all seen younger girls who from a distance, certainly look much older. Let alone after a couple of drinks.

PLEASE- No disrespect to the family involved, as I have absolutely ZERO tolerance for child perverts. I know you are relaying the story as you understand it.
PLEASE... I just don't want to be misinterpreted as not respecting what the OP has to say, or that I am defending the bad guys. I am just saying that without both sides, it is unfair to pass judgment. (I just knew I should have stayed out of this one... ).

 

[RJake1]

Two Things: Whether or not Disney "detained" the man is largely irrelevant. The police should've been called and a report, with description of the individual, filed on record.

I personally feel they could have informed him that the police had been called, were enroute, and "encouraged" him to await their arrival. There are ways that professionals handle these things without violating anyone's rights. Disney personnel should be trained in proper procedure.

If the man insisted upon leaving once informed that the police were on the way, the Disney personnel could've gotten a license plate number, etc. to aid in identifying him. The police could then have followed up as they felt appropriate.

To just toss the guy might be acceptable at 99.9% of the world's hotels, but this is DISNEY and I expect more from them when it comes to providing for the safety and security of our children. It would not have hurt to call police based on the mother's complaint. It would not have hurt to send a strong message to the community that Disney won't tolerate such nonsense in Vero Beach.

Secondly, I saw that in a later post the mom said the man just yelled down from a balcony. This is a bit different that the original description of his conduct. Nonetheless, the police should've been involved in this.

 

[ClarabelleCow]

Here are the two commeents from the Mom whose daughter had this problem. Though I feel this is serious, to turn this into a child molester or pervert at Vero is kind of off base. My interpretation is her duaghter was out jogging and this man yelled down fromt he bar to who offering her a drink in his room. Way back when this would have been referred to as a "Cat Call". But because of the world we live in, it is much more serious, I think Disney did the correct thing and removing the man from the resort. From above people do look older, or maybe he just had a few and realized how stupid he was for saying that. I'm not making light of what happened, but its not like the resort is over run with child molesters and perverts!!!

Problems don't stop at the pool We were at VB the first week of June.

My "newly 12 yo" daughter was walking to the pool from our Beach Cottage at about 7:00 p.m.. She was approached by an older man that was seated on the balcony of the Green Cabin Room to come to his room for a drink. She came running back to the house scared to death. She didn't want to tell me what was wrong. After finally getting it out of her I went to the front desk and demanded to speak to a manager. After speaking with the manager and explaining to her that I do not expect nor will tolerate this type of behavior from guests at a Disney Resort she went upstairs to see what was going on. She spoke with the bartender and other guests and found that he was also distrubing other guests. She asked the person to return to his room only to find out he was a local.

I returned to the house after taking my daughter to the pool to meet with others in our party and received a phone call from the manager that the man had left and that he was not a guest at the resort. She said that the bar is open to the public but that I need not worry about this type of behavior again.

I will think twice about reserving a beach cottage north of the inn again if I have young teens with me. We have been going to very since it opened and owned points there since 2001. We have never had a problem with too many people in the pool.

The man yelled down from the patio at her. I'll let my daughter run by herself again next summer. However, she may choose not to. Like I said before I have hopes that this was a lesson for all of us. My daughter would not have known to come back to the house, nor to talk to me about this had we not previously had discussions about strangers and being aware of your surroundings and the people in it. You have to WATCH people to be able to know who belongs where. In the early years of our Disney travel we used leashes on the kids. Not the harness kind that people use now but actual dog leashes color coded for boys (blue) and girls (purple). People gave us odd looks but my kids never ran more than 6 feet in front or behind me. Had I not taught them this I believe they would run everywhere. They both are responsible.

My suggestion would be to explain this scenario to your daughter and ask her what she would do. You may find that she too is responsible enough to come up with the same decisions my daughter made and you won't have to concern her for the trip.

We recently had an ADAM Alert come over our TV. My daughter new what this was for and I didn't tell her about it. So they learn stuff like this from somewhere else too. .

 

[ducklite]

Originally posted by RJake1
Two Things: Whether or not Disney "detained" the man is largely irrelevant. The police should've been called and a report, with description of the individual, filed on record.

For what? Yelling from a balcony and asking someone who was at a distance in the twilight if she wanted to have a drink?

There are credibility issues with the story as it's changed in material facts considerably. You're all trying to lynch someone who might have had no idea that the girl was only twelve, or possibly made a harmless remark which was very much taken the wrong way by a young and inexperienced girl. Also, there are some twelve year olds in my son's school that could easily be mistaken for 22, and it's highly probably taht this was the case here. The original hysterical way the story was told was almost like the person had grabbed the girl or really been very close to doing so. This guy had to have been a minimum of 20 feet or more away, in a very public, well lit, and well traveled area. If the OP was that worried, THEY could easily have called the police.

Anne

 

[CaptainMidnight]

I have seen the security officers making rounds at Vero, and I appreciated seeing them. I might humbly suggest that we might be going over the deep end a little bit in this thread, although safety and concern for our children should always be our highest concern, and if I have to pay more dues for more security, that's OK with me, I fully support it.

 

[ducklite]

Originally posted by Chadm

You are absolutely, unequivocally wrong in this and I can provide pages and pages of statutes and case law to prove it. I'm sorry, but there are many circumstances in which a person can be reasonably detained by a civilian. Maybe some states are more strict than others, but that fact remains.

Remind me never to go to LA. If a persons Civil Rights can be violated because a store clerk doesn't like the way a customer looks at them, I'll be spending my money elsewhere.

Anne

 

[Jimbo]

Secondly, I saw that in a later post the mom said the man just yelled down from a balcony. This is a bit different that the original description of his conduct. Nonetheless, the police should've been involved in this.

For yelling from the balcony of a bar? You really think the police should have been called for that? They threw the man out, and it sounds like they'll refuse entry to him in the future. I'm fine with that.

 

[PamOKW]

For those who aren't familiar with Vero, the Green Room is the bar/lounge located on the second floor of the main building. It has an outdoor balcony that overlooks the main walkway below. The beach cottages are located along this walkway. Some of them can be viewed quite well while sitting up on the balcony. From the description we have, the man would have been sitting out on the balcony looking down on the girl passing below. There would be no reason for a 12 year old to be in the bar on the way to the pool and she shouldn't be allowed in the Green Room without a parent/guardian anyway. This is why I don't think it was a face-to-face confrontation.

Basically, this is more akin to a construction worker giving a wolf whistle than a to a roaming pedophile. I think the heading on this thread is a little misleading. Of course, this is behavior that shouldn't be tolerated at the resort and I think it was handled well. If the person had refused to leave, then the police should have been called.

 

[ncligs]

Originally posted by PamOKW
Of course, this is behavior that shouldn't be tolerated at the resort and I think it was handled well. If the person had refused to leave, then the police should have been called.

 

[TIdoublegaER]

ncligs,

I swear you have a smilie for every occasion and thread! I knew you would come through!

 

[Sammie]

Originally posted by Maistre Gracey
This is precisely why I was doing my best to stay out of this thread. We are hearing a one sided, third hand account, over the internet, and even THAT story is not clear.
I really don't think we should lynch someone over this flimsy evidence.
I would think at some point we have all seen younger girls who from a distance, certainly look much older. Let alone after a couple of drinks.

PLEASE- No disrespect to the family involved, as I have absolutely ZERO tolerance for child perverts. I know you are relaying the story as you understand it.
PLEASE... I just don't want to be misinterpreted as not respecting what the OP has to say, or that I am defending the bad guys. I am just saying that without both sides, it is unfair to pass judgment. (I just knew I should have stayed out of this one... ).

Actually you are being very logical about the situation. Unless someone was an actual witness to the event, no one including the parent knows for sure what happened.

This is not to say that something did not occur, we just don't know for sure.

I have read many posts here about situations with Disney CM's. I have had the opportunity to actually speak with the CM being discussed and it is always very interesting to hear the "other" side of the situation.

Actually if the parent was convinced of wrongdoing, they could have requested the police be called.

 

[CaptainMidnight]

....I am just saying that without both sides, it is unfair to pass judgment.

Does that mean we need the "child pervert" to post in this thread and present his side before we discuss it further?

If so, it sounds like we are at a stopping place, I don't anticipate the "pervert" posting.

Is there really a bigger question here worth discussing? Is security at the Vero Beach resort adequate? Do we see the guards conducting rounds often enough? Is the camera system they have in place adequate? Is the kid friendly green cabin room really equivalent to a real "bar"?

 

[ducklite]

I think the security there is just fine. When we were there there were several security people who made the rounds on a regular basis. VBR can't be expected to monitor every square inch of the resort every second of the day, that's simply unrealistic. If that were the case it would be called "Disney's SuperMax Resort".

And yes, IMHO the Green Cabin Room is a BAR, which is why kids aren't allowed there without their parents!

Anne

 

[CaptainMidnight]

Originally posted by ducklite
I think the security there is just fine. When we were there there were several security people who made the rounds on a regular basis. VBR can't be expected to monitor every square inch of the resort every second of the day, that's simply unrealistic. If that were the case it would be called "Disney's SuperMax Resort"....

Ok, so I guess that's one vote for security at Vero is adequate, with a little sarcasm thrown in about "monitor every square inch of the resort every second of the day".

How do others feel? Do you see security often enough? Is it adequate?

 

[Laura24]

Originally posted by ducklite
And what would the police have done? The guy yelled down from the porch and offered the girl "a drink". He hardly "accosted" her. He was sitting on the second story porch, she was walking along underneath.

He didn't offer her alcohol. He didn't touch her. He didn't say anything lewd or sexual to her. He didn't take her anywhere, detain her, confine her.
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A crime wasn't committed fortunately and thankfully because "this child" had the presence of mind to know this was wrong coming from a so called adult...drunk or not. You can talk to your child till you are blue in the face about the evils of this world...some just don't understand. This man's next offer just might get him what he wants.....a child that doesn't understand the potential for evil.

 

[CaptainMidnight]

Was his conduct an indication of having too much to drink? Did a designiated driver drive him home?

 

[PamOKW]

I do not have a problem with the level of security at Vero. I also enjoy having adult activities at the resort including the Green Cabin Room. It is a lounge/bar and the sole source of "nightlife" at the resort. The incident we've been discussing is the first thing of this type I've ever heard reported. While not ideal, to me it is not something that creates worry or panic in my mind. It was handled quickly and efficiently.

 

[CaptainMidnight]

About 3 trips ago when we were at Vero, they were handing out fliers at registration cautioning guests on who they should open thier doors to. Seemed to us that they were responding to an earlier problem of a different nature. Did anyone else get this kind of flier a little while back? I don't think I saved it but I remember my wife and I discussing it. It was also the trip where there were 4 pretty wild boys in the pool who were climbing up the closed slide after dark, and security took a while to approach them. When they did, they learned thay were not staying or guests of anyone at the resort.

 

[Chadm]

Originally posted by ducklite
Remind me never to go to LA. If a persons Civil Rights can be violated because a store clerk doesn't like the way a customer looks at them, I'll be spending my money elsewhere.

Anne

Don't take this so personally, I'm only pointing out that the law is different from place to place than what you might be used to. That doesn't mean that this is some rogue vigilante society. I certainly don't believe not liking the way someone looks at a clerk would fall under "reasonable cause" or "proper legal authority." There are some firm conditions on who can be detained and for what. You don't see or hear the ACLU down here making a stink, do you? Believe me, if they thought anyone's civil rights were being violated, they'd be here in full force.

I had a long conversation about this subject with my attorney friend last night and we talked about a bunch of different scenarios. Basically, he assured me that the Louisiana law on this issue was very similar to most southern states (he is licensed to practice law in LA, TX, MS and AL), probably including Florida and others (however, do not take this as the gospel because I did not literally see all those laws).

If this is something that would make you not travel somewhere, then that's a shame. However, while you're boycotting us terrible civil rights violating folk in Louisiana, you might want to rethink your future trips south of Jersey because chances are some of those states have laws similar and/or worse than ours, including Florida. Are you going to stop going to Disney now?

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Originally posted by CaptainMidnight
Does that mean we need the "child pervert" to post in this thread and present his side before we discuss it further?

If so, it sounds like we are at a stopping place, I don't anticipate the "pervert" posting.

Captain, I guess my point is that we don't know that this person is a pervert. I know I would not want folks judging me on third hand, one sided information that has already been reported slightly different by the OP. (No offense to the OP, I know you are telling the story as you remember it).

I am really not sure what kind of security would have stopped this from happening.... unless there were uniformed guards within ear shot of every single person, making a potential trouble maker afraid to speak.

Anyway, I certainly understand, and respect the diverse opinions on this.