Home: Sick
Note to journalism: When trying to convey the tragedy of a young person's sexual exploitation, it's probably best not to insert incredible hilarity into the top half of your story.
A former youth minister was sentenced this afternoon to 120 days in the Manatee County jail and two years of probation for secretly videotaping girls as they undressed in his homes in Bradenton and Ellenton over a two-year period.
Matthew Porter, 31, was found guilty of nine counts of voyeurism, a misdemeanor. He had admitted to hiding video cameras in his bathroom and bedroom and taping girls between the ages of 12 and 16 changing clothes. Porter was a pastor at Bethel Baptist Church in Bradenton.
“It has hurt her very bad,” said the mother of one girl. “I saw that she posted on her MySpace page she would never trust a pastor again.”
No offense, but ell-oh-ell, seriously.
The only actual news contained in this story is:
1. Parents now check their children’s social-networking pages for news of their post-violation moods (‘What emoticon are you right now, Jessica!?') and
2. There are still people who trust youth pastors.
