Any solicitors on here?

[jimmyybob]

One lady who was interviewed on radio 2 told her story, not only did she go to the police but she also contacted Channel 4 just before the Louis Theroux program was aired.



Nothing happened.!!

[rich.]

i heard one lady interviewed that watched him abuse a young girl but said nothing until now..if id witnessed it they would have to lock me up before to shut me up

[JPB]

Sorry to ask the bleedin' obvious but why on earth was she watching? It's hardly a spectator sport at the best of times but under the circumstances why was she not kicking and punching the perpetrator?

[rich.]

she was another patient & couldnt move?? she shold have been able to say something..

[Martin Evans]

Some friends of mine and I (Both male and female) were talking about this last night and the point was raised that what was "Normal" in the 1970s, may not PC today (Though we don't know exactly what has been alleged to have happened). Conversely I suppose there were things, that would have been considered OK in the 1970s, that would have been frowned upon in the 1930s, so perhaps the permissive society will one day be seen as a passing phase.

I wasn’t a big watcher of Top of the Pops but it was my impression that the presenter always seemed to be surrounded by lots of young women, who all looked very happy to be there, though I realise that some of these cases relate to other situations.

It will be interesting (Perhaps for want of a better word) to see what the law makes of this business, as whether there is a formal court hearing or not, it could set a precedent for future cases, where accusations or claims are made against deceased people.

As Rich said, it would have been so much easier if this had all come out much sooner, even for Jimmy Saville’s relatives (I wonder if we are yet going to see any charges of perverting the course of justice directed against living people; but do you have to prove the allegations against Jimmy Saville before you can charge someone else with perverting the course of justice or being an accessory?). If he had been found guilty and sentenced, that would have been no worse than allegations that may never be proved one way or the other (And he may even have been acquitted).

[tractorman]

Quite right Martin, things were a lot different in the 60's/70's and a lot of infatuated young women chased DJs (not forgetting groupies). I suspect that, at that time, there would be girls that were actually jealous of the ones who actually got to "make out" with a famous DJ - or singer. I'm not condoning it in any way, it's just how the sixties were - and it hung on for a while after that.

I well remember dances as a student and trying to chat some of the lasses up - and getting nowhere because they only came to be near the group/band: not to attract a potential boyfriend (or even a particular member of the band - any of them would do)!

Haven't other famous DJs been accused and investigated? I can think of a couple of household names that have faced charges - which have been dismissed. It took many years before a certain well known and popular Rock and Roller of the 70's got caught and convicted of child sex offences.

It's easy to say that you would have reported it if you had seen it and question why nobody did so at the time. However, seeing youngsters with DJs was quite common and many children would have been thrilled to sit on "Mr Wonderful's" knee - and get more attention! Proving rape and sexual assault in court is still difficult - and was virtually impossible thirty of forty years ago. If the victim had yelled and screamed, perhaps someone would have paid attention; however, I suspect many children would be starstruck and feel humiliated that a national treasure was in fact just a dirty old man.

I suspect any Police investigations will only help the abused, hopefully giving them "closure" and proving that their stories are true. I can't see the accused being too concerned about what happens now, though I would like to think he was "about" and is ashamed for eternity.

[OneCarefulOwner]

There was a photo on the cover of one of the shitrags this week showing Jim & some young thing cuddling up, with the headline "moments later, [this girl] was attacked". The position they were shown in was one I would never expect non-lovers to assume in the first place, a little too close even for family. I'm not trying to shift blame away from him, but even in the 70s "Stranger Danger" & the like were being taught in schools. Then again, they did solely concentrate on teaching us about the danger of the unknown, the man in his van offering us puppy-flavoured sweets; I don't recall a single bit of childhood advice about what to do if it was someone you knew & trusted...

[mr rusty]

The savile situation was a lot like the Lance Armstrong situation, everyone guessed, a lot of people knew, but nobody said anything......usually out of fear of the power and prestiege of the offender.

This is what abusers rely on- control over the abused person: it's the same whether it's Uncle Ernie in the back bedroom or Jim on the hospital round, it's having that level of control over the victim so they think nobody will believe them. Savile had that saint like status from all the charity work, nobody would question him, even after that weird business with his mum's corpse.

The victims are only coming out now because someone finally spoke up opening the gates and the abuser is dead and can't control them anymore. It's the same with Armstrong- his career is over at top level, he no longer has the level of control where he could dictate whether people had a future in the sport or not...they can all speak now.

[Willy Eckerslyke]

The victims are only coming out now because someone finally spoke up opening the gates and the abuser is dead and can't control them anymore.

Exactly. Some of the previous posters on this thread seemed to be blaming the victims for keeping quiet which completely misunderstands the effects that such abuse can have. It should also be remembered that the victims were most likely chosen because they were especially vulnerable. So discussing how we would have reacted is meaningless.

[alfaSleep]

..... R4 news just now say 'developments'!

Heating up then?

alfaSleep