On Reporting a Horrific Crime

On the front page of The Times this week is a tragic story about a young Dayton man who is being charged with multiple counts of child rape. Besides being terrible for those involved, stories like this present one of the most difficult dilemmas that those of us who put out newspapers face.

This young man and the other people close to this story are obviously going through a very difficult time. Having the charges against him publicized on the front page of a local newspaper, even in vague terms, can only make the ordeal they’re going through that much harder.

As reporters in a small town, we’re very aware that the news we publish can sometimes make a painful situation even worse. But we have to balance that with our duty to inform the public of an alleged crime that is extremely serious.

In this particular case, the young man is legally an adult. He is 18, and he was 18 when the alleged crimes were committed. These are crimes that, if he’s convicted of them, could potentially send him to prison for the rest of his life.

When a local adult is charged with a Class A felony – in this case, five counts – it’s front page news. That’s not even a close call, regardless of who the accused is. Like all criminal cases we cover, we will continue to report its progress through the legal system.

That being said, we understand that the people involved desire their privacy, and we’ve made every effort to protect the victim’s identity and avoid giving details of the alleged crimes. We hope readers and others in the community will respect that privacy as well.

We also applaud local authorities in the Columbia County Sheriff’s and Prosecutor’s offices who are working to create a situation where this young man can get the help he needs.

Protecting victims and potential victims of pedophilia is the most important result that needs to come out of this case. But not far behind is helping this young man so he doesn’t do it again.