It's a small thing, but it really makes all the difference. Dennis Hastert is, I'm sorry to say, NOT a convicted child molester. He was never convicted of any sex offenses. What he was convicted for was "structuring"(basically a way of hiding money from the government) and "making false statements". Neither of those were sex offenses.
Now...why do we know he's a child rapist? Well, because the "structuring" charges concerned money that he was using to pay off one of his victims for their silence. In the course of the trial, facts and testimony came to light that, in the eyes of the state, confirmed that Dennis Hastert raped multiple young boys while a coach for a high school. This was information pertinent only to proving that Hastert hid the hush money he was giving to one of them. Ergo, he only went to prison for, basically, defrauding the government. Because the information came out past the statute of limitations on reporting the crimes he committed to those boys, there's no way of prosecuting him for any of it. Effectively, he was taken down much the way Capone was - not for what everyone knew he did, but the fact that he denied the government money in the process. Because in the end, that's all most of them care about - their cut.
So, once again, Dennis Hastert was NEVER convicted of raping children, but he IS in prison because he raped children. Some may think this not an important distinction, but accuracy is important because it establishes our credibility. It also helps show how corrupt and broken our system is in prosecuting these types of crimes.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dennis_Hastert#Criminal_prosecution_and_child_sexual_abuse
edit: Further, there are a lot of rumors I've seen from unsubstantiated sources lately that suggest that things may happen in the very near future. We may see a number of politicians with legal troubles. Keep in mind that some may be dealt with in terms that are similarly deceptive in terms of their crimes. If we see Senators going down for strange, out-of-nowhere charges...we may well be watching the closest we'll ever get to pizzagate prosecutions.
abcdefg222 ago
So he can still be charged? Why no actions taken?
IPleadThe2nd ago
Because these pedos in high places pass laws putting a statute of limitations on pedo crimes. By the time a child grows up and can speak out about it, it's too late to prosecute most of the time. This needs to change.
AreWeSure ago
Statues of limitation are clear protections for individuals accused by the state. They are a tool of liberty in a country when there is a presumption of innocence and a burden the state must meet before they deprive you of such liberty.
How would you defend yourself if you were charged with a robbery that happened 10 years ago? How good would your memory be? How good would the memory of the witnesses against you be?
Some crimes are so egregious like murder there is no statue of limitations.
The DC statue of limitations on first degree child sexual abuse is 15 years.
https://beta.code.dccouncil.us/dc/council/code/sections/23-113.html
DarkMath ago
Hey great. Thanks for clearing that up madmanpg. We can now also say Al Capone wasn't a mafia boss either. He was a tax cheat...........
Seriously dude wtf is your problem? What's your deal here? Everyone knows what Dennis Hastert and his fellow Chicagoan Al Capone did. We're not the problem here.
YOUR WHITE-WASHING IS.
madmanpg ago
This isn't a white-washing. It's simple fact. If you choose to remain ignorant that is your choice. Dennis Hastert was not convicted of child molestation. If you claim that he was, you are lying. Your reference to Capone indicates to me that you didn't even read the post.
If so, why did you bother to respond?
DarkMath ago
Because your comment had no reason to exist. Everyone knows what Dennis Hastert did. Saying what he was actually booked into jail with is meaningless. It doesn't change anything and more importantly doesn't help us find evidence on other child rapists.
madmanpg ago
You're one of the mental midgets who doesn't care about the difference. You have no reason to be part of pizzagate if you can't grasp nuance.
badastrid ago
True. And Al Capone went down for tax evasion. You get them where you can.
DarkMath ago
Holy moses, I wrote the same thing and didn't see this one until I scrolled down to see the comments. Too funny......
remedy4reality ago
He 'got' 15 measly months and Capone 'served' his time in luxury..
JUSTICE ?
badastrid ago
Nope.
2impendingdoom ago
it was a crime that he legislated, so he extra deserved conviction.
shoosh ago
Franklin Scandal went down a similar way. They avoided pedo charges and focused on finances.
duhiki ago
Same could be said of Marc Dutroux.
remedy4reality ago
...and only ONE perp, Larry King.