Too feel devastated for the wife of the teacher who has run off to France with his 15 year old pupil?

[chipsandmushypeas]

What on earth went through his head when he decided to do this?! The poor woman has taken all her social networks down out of humiliation I presume. link

Crazy.

"The reason it is a good idea to get the terminology correct, and for the whole thing to be played down as much as is possible at the moment (though that seems pretty impossible any more), is that the police want him to let her go home voluntarily.

The don't want a "we are doomed so must take drastic action" scenario to unfold. Which if she thinks he will be tarred and feathered, called names and stuck in jail for the rest of his life will unfortunately be a stronger possibility "

I couldn't agree more.

Right, ok it has now been explained to me he isn't a paedophile and is in fact a sex offender.
But what he did is still sick.
I hope she comes home safe soon and i do hope he loses his job.

Ah, not read the thread since bed time last night, but can guess at the usual MN bollocks being tastefully expressed......

Ok so he's not a paedophile.

But he is a conniving, manipulative, dishonest ( need I go on ) man that has potentially had under age sex with a girl, broken the trust of everyone concerned.

If this were your dd would you be so concerned with the correct term.

pumpkin - I think he will be having to rely on his stage career to make his way in the world when they eventually do return.

Lets hope he doesn't get to work with children again.

Anold - but we are not her parents, so we don't have that immediate pressure, and so can be careful about terminology. And should be.

Also agree with bupcake's agreement.

At the moment, I suspect that Megan views the pair of them as star-crossed lovers running away from a cruel and unsympathetic world. Even if she is besotted with him, the practicalities of staying in France without being discovered or the relationship coming unstuck is remote.

But if you add widespread and hysterical accusations of paedophilia (and the very serious consequences that come with that accusation) the more reason the couple have to take potentially tragic action.

Not referring to him as a paedophile doesn't lessen my disgust for the man in any way AnOldie.

That's what I'd be frightened of it it was my daughter. They can do whatever the hell they like with him; the priority must be to get her home safely.

The law can't take a 'What if this was your daughter', 'What if this was your son' view of matters. The law needs to be dispassionate. Using incorrect and emotive terminology does little to help the situation.

They are most likely no longer in France. They could easily be in any tourist resort in Spain where they would easily blend in with thousands of other holidaymakers, or in any european city.

And to be honest, as she went willingly, and is so close to the legal age of consent, the police are not going to be pulling out all stops to try and find them either.

If this were your dd would you be so concerned with the correct term.

Yes, because one term would mean my DD was a small child, and one would mean she was an older teenager. I think that would matter quite a lot to me, actually.

Quite agree OP. Hideous.

What possessed the man? Twat!

looking at photos that have been linked his wife and megan look quite similar.

But whatever term is used, correctly or not it doesn't detract from the point that he's had underage sex with a girl of 15.

Does it?

"And to be honest, as she went willingly, and is so close to the legal age of consent, the police are not going to be pulling out all stops to try and find them either. "

So the poor parents are worrying whether their fifteen year old is dead or alive.

I don't think that Jeremy Forrest, is a paedophile, but he is a dangerous man. He certainly does not have Megan's interests at heart to run off with her to france like this. Taking a child to France without the concent of the parents is kidnap.

It makes it more hysterical to attach incorrect labels. As if it isn't dramatic enough, and you need to make it seem worse.

Is it illegal for someone 18+ to have a 15 yr old girlfriend if the relationship is not physical?

Well I hope that there will be a concerted effort to find Megan because she is in thrall to this man and at risk of whatever hysterical, self-mythologising escapist impulse he dreams up next.

i am glad i missed tht jeremy vine feature
my dd is 15 and i am really upset for this girl. she has been taken advantage of by a predator who was in a position of trust and authority. words cannto describe how i feel about him

As far as I can see, even if there is no physically sexual relationship, he is still guilty of sending sexually explicit messages to and about her, he has broken child protection guidelines that all teachers are expected to adhere to, and he has broken the UK law by taking a child under 16 out of the country without the permission of her parents.

That Nina woman is a mega twat with her victim blaming.