Mary Kay Letourneau released from prison

[Guest JMA]

Mary Kay Letourneau released from prison

GIG HARBOR, Wash. (AP) — Mary Kay Letourneau, the grade school teacher convicted for having sex with a sixth-grade pupil, was released from prison early Wednesday, and her now 21-year-old victim is challenging a court order that bars her from contacting him.

 

Letourneau, who served 7 1/2 years in prison, slipped unnoticed past the hordes of reporters and gawkers outside the Washington Corrections Center for Women before dawn.

 

As a condition of her release, Letourneau, 42, can't contact former pupil Vili Fualaau, the father of two of her children.

 

But Wednesday morning, Fualaau's attorney, N. Scott Stewart, filed a motion to vacate the no-contact order. Fualaau "does not fear Mary K. Letourneau," the motion argues, adding that the sole basis for criminal charges was Fualaau's age.

 

"He is now an adult and, as an adult, is requesting that the court allow him to associated with other adults of his own choosing, specifically Mary K. Letourneau," it says.

 

The prosecutor's office is reviewing the motion, spokesman Dan Donohoe said, and had not yet decided whether to agree to it or request a hearing before a judge.

 

A friend, Noel Soriano, told NBC's Today show that Fualaau was "relieved that she's out of prison and currently he can't wait to see her."

 

Letourneau, who sang in the choir and recorded books-on-tape for the blind while in prison, wants to try to build a normal life, said Seattle attorney Anne Bremner, who struck up a friendship with Letourneau in 2002 and spoke to her recently by phone. "She wants to be a mother, she wants to be a responsible member of society."

 

As a sex offender, Letourneau will have to register with the state and receive court-ordered treatment. Authorities will notify her new neighbors — although the TV trucks will probably tip them off first. More than seven years in prison has done little to dim Letourneau's notoriety.

 

A small crowd gathered outside the prison gates on Tuesday night — a few families and some rowdy teenage boys flaunting signs that said "I'm 18, Baby" and "Take Me Home" for the TV cameras.

 

Letourneau was a 34-year-old elementary school teacher in suburban Seattle and a married mother of four in 1996 when her friendship with the then-12-year-old Fualaau mutated into flirtation and then sex.

 

The illicit relationship was revealed when Letourneau's husband, Steve, found love letters from the boy. Steve Letourneau later moved to Alaska with the couple's children and was granted a divorce.

 

When Letourneau was arrested in 1997, she was already pregnant with Fualaau's daughter. A judge sentenced her to six months in jail for second-degree child rape, and ordered her to stay away from Fualaau.

 

But the temptation proved too much for her to resist. A month after Letourneau was released, she was caught having sex with Fualaau in her car, a violation of her parole. She was sent to prison for seven and a half years, and gave birth to Fualaau's second daughter behind bars.

 

"This case is not about a flawed system. This is about an opportunity that you foolishly squandered," King County Superior Court Judge Linda Lau told Letourneau at her sentencing, referring to the lenient terms she had earlier imposed.

 

Letourneau's two daughters with Fualaau are now 5 and 7. They visited her in prison about twice a month. Her four older children visited a few times a year.

 

Letourneau may now want to tell her own story. A state appeals court ruled in 2000 that she may sell and profit from her story. She has also expressed interest in working for a group that advocates for the rights of mothers in prison.

 

As for trying to reconnect with Fualaau, Letourneau was mum. "I'm not allowing myself to think about being with him," Letourneau told Seattle's KOMO-TV earlier this week. "We had a beautiful relationship, and I value it for what it was."

 

Attempts by The Associated Press to reach Letourneau or her lawyers were unsuccessful.

 

Fualaau told People magazine recently that he'd like to reunite with Letourneau, but wants to take things slowly. He is unemployed and told the magazine he is working on his GED. His mother is raising their children. Fualaau's phone number is unlisted.

 

"I don't know what my feelings are right now," Fualaau told KING-TV on Tuesday, acknowledging he was "kind of nervous."

 

"But I know that I do love her," he said.

Edit: I was very wrong to say what I did here. I understand that now and am sorry.

[The Thread Killer 0]

Uh...what she did was fucking sick, and she deserved to go to jail.

 

If it was a 34 year old MALE teacher having sex with a 12 year old FEMALE student, the world would have called for an execution.

 

Child abuse is child abuse, and anybody who is so fucked up that they need to flirt with a 12 year old when they're in their 30's...and a TEACHER, somebody who is supposed to be a professional and look after the wellbeing of a child...she deserves to be in a mental hospital.

 

There, I said it.

[Downhome 0]

A woman shouldn't go to jail for raping a 12 year old?

[Highland 0]

Reverse the genders and you'd be saying the exact opposite.

On the other hand, since he's now an adult, I don't see how the court can prohibit contact between them if he so wishes to contact her.

 

Edit: replying to JMA's post.,

Edited August 6, 2004 by Highland

[Guest JMA]

A woman shouldn't go to jail for raping a 12 year old?

There was no forced intervourse; therefore, I wouldn't consider it rape.

 

Besides, if the guy WAS sexually abused, why would he be saying that he still loves her? He doesn't sound very much like a victim.

[Guest CronoT]

Yes, Stat rape does carry with it a punishment. That punishment has been served. The "boy" is now 21, which legally makes him an adult. So, he's free to make his own decisions. In my opinion, that means the court can go fuck ITSELF.

[The Thread Killer 0]

There was no forced intervourse; therefore, I wouldn't consider it rape.

 

Besides, if the guy WAS sexually abused, why would he be saying that he still loves her? He doesn't sound very much like a victim.

 

By odd coincidence, I myself am 34 years of age.

 

So by your logic...if I can talk a 12 year old girl into having sex with me...and I don't have to "force" her...then it's OKAY?

[Guest JMA]

There was no forced intervourse; therefore, I wouldn't consider it rape.

 

Besides, if the guy WAS sexually abused, why would he be saying that he still loves her? He doesn't sound very much like a victim.

 

By odd coincidence, I myself am 34 years of age.

 

So by your logic...if I can talk a 12 year old girl into having sex with me...and I don't have to "force" her...then it's OKAY?

Yes, there is a big double standard. In most cases, I would consider something like this wrong (whether it was male or female). But this whole situation seems to be about more than just hormones.

 

The fact is, they have children and should be allowed to be together if they so choose.

[Downhome 0]

My God, I can see where the logic in this thread is going. When someone says something as stupid as the following, it's just sad and pathetic.

 

I never thought Mark Kay Letourneau should've gone to prison in the first place.

 

She commited second-degree child rape, CHILD RAPE. That's fucking disgusting, and if it were up to me she would be in prision for a hell of a long longer than what she ended up getting.

 

Any adult who will have sex with a child... well, I better not say anymore.

[Guest JMA]

My God, I can see where the logic in this thread is going. When someone says something as stupid as the following, it's just sad and pathetic.

 

I never thought Mark Kay Letourneau should've gone to prison in the first place.

 

She commited second-degree child rape, CHILD RAPE. That's fucking disgusting, and if it were up to me she would be in prision for a hell of a long longer than what she ended up getting.

 

Any adult who will have sex with a child... well, I better not say anymore.

She didn't force him to do anything. So HOW was in rape? He pursued her, not the other way around. She just allowed it to happen. He WANTED sex from HER. Does that make her a rapist?

[The Thread Killer 0]

As far as I am concerned, the issue of them "being together" now is moot. The bottom line is this, a 12 year old boy is not capable of the same level of maturity and decision making that an adult is. This woman used her position of authority and trust over him, to manipulate him to meet her own perverse needs. That is disgusting, and unforgivable.

 

Of course he "loves" her. She had sex with him when he was 12. I don't even want to guess what kind of permanent psychological damage she has done to that guy. From a mental standpoint, he's pretty much fucked for life.

 

Now they have kids. There is some healthy parenting for you.

 

"Well son, you were conceived in a car, when Mommy was on probation for molesting daddy."

 

She's sick, and if she did this to him, I wouldn't put it past her to do it to her own kids now. Sex offenders have a repeat offense rate of over 90%, and if you don't think she is a sex offender, you're kidding yourself. She took advantage of a child, her gender is beside the point.

[Guest CronoT]

My God, I can see where the logic in this thread is going. When someone says something as stupid as the following, it's just sad and pathetic.

 

I never thought Mark Kay Letourneau should've gone to prison in the first place.

 

She commited second-degree child rape, CHILD RAPE. That's fucking disgusting, and if it were up to me she would be in prision for a hell of a long longer than what she ended up getting.

 

Any adult who will have sex with a child... well, I better not say anymore.

She didn't force him to do anything. So HOW was in rape? He pursued her, not the other way around. She just allowed it to happen. He WANTED sex from HER. Does that make her a rapist?

This is why the gray areas of the law suck.

[The Thread Killer 0]

She didn't force him to do anything. So HOW was in rape? He pursued her, not the other way around. She just allowed it to happen. He WANTED sex from HER. Does that make her a rapist?

 

Yes.

 

I happen to work with teenage runaway girls, for a living. Ex-hookers, etc. Aged 10-17. They make advances at me all the time. So should I be able to have sex with them (the idea of which turns my stomach...this is why I find this issue so replusive) and say: "BUT THEY WANTED IT!"

 

"...Abusive or improper treatment; violation..."

 

That is one of the dictionary definitions of rape.

 

You don't think that what she did to him was abusive, and a violation of the child/adult student/teacher relationship?

 

"...unlawful sexual activity and usually sexual intercourse carried out forcibly or under threat of injury against the will usually of a female or with a person who is beneath a certain age or incapable of valid consent because of mental illness, mental deficiency, intoxication, unconsciousness, or deception..."

 

EDIT: That would be another literal definition of the word rape.

[Downhome 0]

She didn't force him to do anything. So HOW was in rape? He pursued her, not the other way around. She just allowed it to happen. He WANTED sex from HER. Does that make her a rapist?

Because it was a young child, ugh.

 

If you had an 11 year old daughter and a 33 year old grown man fucked her, would you be ok with it if he told you that "she asked for it and wanted it"?

 

You are sick.

[Downhome 0]

She's sick, and if she did this to him, I wouldn't put it past her to do it to her own kids now.

Bloody hell, she certainly wouldn't be able to have her kids in the future, not after this I wouldn't think.

 

She shouldn't be allowed to even look at a child again.

[Guest JMA]

If you had an 11 year old daughter and a 33 year old grown man fucked her, would you be ok with it if he told you that "she asked for it and wanted it"?

No, it wouldn't. To be honest, I would hate the man.

[Downhome 0]

No, it wouldn't. To be honest, I would hate the man.

In your line of thinking you should hate your kid, not the man, since SHE is the one that wanted it so bad and pushed it on the poor "innocent" guy.

[Guest JMA]

No, it wouldn't. To be honest, I would hate the man.

In your line of thinking you should hate your kid, not the man, since SHE is the one that wanted it so bad and pushed it on the pervert.

You're right. I made a gross error of judgement. For that I apologize.

[The Thread Killer 0]

You're right when you talk about a double standard...there's no doubt there is one in society.

 

For example, if a 12 year old has sex with his teacher, it becomes a media sensation, whereas if the genders are reversed, it's just another child molester.

 

If a male teen sleeps with every girl in school, he's a player...if a girl sleeps with every guy, she's a slut. Society has totally different attitudes towards males and females having sex, especially at that age.

 

Hey, when I was 12, if my teacher wanted to have sex, I'd have been on her like Michael Moore on a Krispy Kreme, but that still wouldn't make it morally right for her. As the adult, she should be depended upon to do the right thing. As a teacher, she is a public servant, and I don't think that kid's parents paid their taxes so that their 12 year old son could be exposed to that kind of sex education.

 

My only argument JMA, is that as adults, we are expected to show discretion and morals when dealing with kids who are not emotionally capable of making the right decisions due to their age and impressionable nature.

 

This woman not only didn't exercise proper judgement, she violated the teacher student relationship...and then did it over and over again. If the kid had even been in high school I would have thought it was improper, but not immoral.

 

The bottom line is, when you accept the responsibility as a civil servant to work with kids, you have to exercise certain controls...and this woman didn't. I think she is obviously mentally disturbed, and now she has passed that gift on to her victim, and probably their kids.

 

Sad, and disgusting.

[Jobber of the Week 0]

I wish I had a teacher like that. Talk about doing a favor for somebody.

[Guest Jdogfour20]

If I was 12 and my teacher wanted it, She would get it.

[Guest MikeSC]

A woman shouldn't go to jail for raping a 12 year old? 

There was no forced intervourse; therefore, I wouldn't consider it rape.

 

Besides, if the guy WAS sexually abused, why would he be saying that he still loves her? He doesn't sound very much like a victim.

Of course, it is EXCEPTIONALLY rare when an adult male actually "forces" a young girl to have sex. The girls normally "want it", too. The ability of young people to assume that they are experiencing "true love" is quite impressive. That a teacher would believe that such crap is "true love" is just unspeakably pathetic.

 

Of course, we recognize that girls don't have the ability to MAKE those decisions at the age of 12.

Yes, there is a big double standard. In most cases, I would consider something like this wrong (whether it was male or female). But this whole situation seems to be about more than just hormones.

 

The fact is, they have children and should be allowed to be together if they so choose.

Of course, this ignores the AMAZING amount of damage to people that the teacher has done. You know, she HAD kids with her HUSBAND, too. They're fucked. This kid lost his childhood (at least, that's what he claimed WHEN HE SUED THE CITY AND SCHOOL DISTRICT OVER THIS). He's fucked. His kids have to be raised by his mom because he is too much of an insufferable twit to raise them.

-=Mike

[The Thread Killer 0]

Yeah, that's the one point I forgot to mention too.

 

The kid had no problem considering it abuse when he sued (and if I'm not mistaken, got a nice out of court settlement?) but now he doesn't think it's abuse.

 

That kid is pretty screwed up in the head now, for sure.

[Guest MikeSC]

Yeah, that's the one point I forgot to mention too.

 

The kid had no problem considering it abuse when he sued (and if I'm not mistaken, got a nice out of court settlement?) but now he doesn't think it's abuse.

 

That kid is pretty screwed up in the head now, for sure.

Actually, no. He didn't get one red dime. He lost his suit badly.

-=Mike

[Guest Agent of Oblivion]

The illicit relationship was revealed when Letourneau's husband, Steve, found love letters from the boy. Steve Letourneau later moved to Alaska with the couple's children and was granted a divorce.

 

Steve's my favorite guy in this whole fiasco. He found some creepy love letters, and was like, "Piss on this shit, c'mon kids, we're going to Alaska."

 

That's the greatest "Fuck That" ever.

[The Thread Killer 0]

Yeah, I guess he figured that even fucking Jerry Springer and The National Enquirer wouldn't go all the way there to stick cameras and microphones in his face.

 

Course...they probably did anyhow.

[2GOLD 0]

Actually, if I remember correctly his parents sued and he refused to testify for them so the case fell apart.

 

If he wants to see her and be with her now, he's 21 so I don't see what gives the courts the right to tell him no.

 

She should have been put in jail, but if she is out and he wants to be with her then I don't see how any of us can say "NO! HE CAN'T!"

 

He may not be as screwed in the head as we would like to believe.

[Guest MikeSC]

Actually, if I remember correctly his parents sued and he refused to testify for them so the case fell apart.

 

If he wants to see her and be with her now, he's 21 so I don't see what gives the courts the right to tell him no.

 

She should have been put in jail, but if she is out and he wants to be with her then I don't see how any of us can say "NO! HE CAN'T!"

 

He may not be as screwed in the head as we would like to believe.

The judge need to remove her parental rights from her. Mary Kay has already PROVEN herself to be an insanely shitty mother. Bringing MORE children to be in the care of this headcase is against our best interests.

-=Mike

[Highland 0]

Indeed. They should make sure she can never have children. If she were a male she'd be chemically castrated, so I don't see any moral problems with making sure she can't have children of her own.

[Downhome 0]

Well, she's now saying that she lusts for the young guy, and a judge has lifted the "no contact" order, so they are free to do what they want now. It's said they are to get married soon.

 

This is fucked up.

 

Watch the two sell their "story" for a film release and/or a book, and be made out like just two normal people in love, a love that was perfectly innocent and eventually won in the end. That will disgust me so much if that happens.

 

Second-degree child rape is not a beautiful thing, it's not something that people should be cheered on for, and it isn't something that should be glorified.