Authorities say a missing Ohio teen was recovered in Florida after she logged in to an online video game at the home of the man who took her.

Authorities say a missing Ohio teen was recovered in Florida after she logged in to an online video game at the home of the man who took her.

    • Ð Greıt Þu̇mpkin@lemm.ee
      731·
      10 months ago

      Probably in reference to underaged spouses, basically you can’t be charged with anything related to having a kid in your home if said kid is your spouse

        • ikidd@lemmy.worldEnglish
          221·
          10 months ago

          This might surprise you, but not all that long ago there were plenty of married (and childrened) 16 year olds. Like, more the rule than the exception.

          • june@lemmy.worldEnglish
            5·
            10 months ago

            My mom married my 21 year old dad when she was 16.

            In 2001, my ex gf married her 25 year old boyfriend like a month after she turned 17, which turned into a whole spat of men in their 20’s marrying girls in their teens at my church for about 3 years. It was fuckin gross and predatory and we just sat there and watched it happen. God damn fundamentalism.

    • captainlezbian@lemmy.world
      67·
      10 months ago

      Oh yeah minors are allowed to marry adults in Ohio. It’s real fucked up. My girlfriend was a victim of it as a teenager, and it did quite a bit of damage, partly because it means your spouse is your guardian and you still don’t get all the adult rights.

      • Duamerthrax@lemmy.world
        8·
        10 months ago

        When we update our laws, we’ll need to make sure there’s no loophole where parents can’t just sign off guardian rights to a suitor. I can see religious fundamentalists just “marring” off their kids and skipping the common law part. Too much sketchy shit already happens in those isolated communities.

        • Jorgelino
          4·
          10 months ago

          loophole implies this is was just an oversight from the lawmakers. Nah, man, it was quite intentionally made this way.

          • Duamerthrax@lemmy.world
            2·
            10 months ago

            My point is just making underage marriage illegal isn’t enough when they can just sign over guardianship. These transfers need to be vetted and recorded. The child should also have the right to sue if they believe the transfer was done in bad faith, including whatever government official if they all conspired.

            • Jorgelino
              1·
              10 months ago

              I agree. What i’m saying is this wasn’t an oversight. It was made this way intentionally because the laws were written by backwards thinking religious nutjobs.

        • TurtleJoe@lemmy.world
          2·
          10 months ago

          This is basically what is currently happening in many states.

          Many parents will also travel if their home state won’t allow it. Iirc, Missouri Kansas is a popular choice, because they will allow a child as young as 14 15 to be married to an adult.

    • PM_Your_Nudes_Please@lemmy.world
      25·
      10 months ago

      America still has a large problem with child marriages, as long as the parents consent to the marriage. It’s mostly a fundamentalist Christian thing; Young girl gets pregnant from an adult, then gets forced into marrying said rapist by her parents. Because now she’s not a virgin, the parents don’t want a bastard in the family, etc… Many states also have exemptions for things like statutory rape if the rapist is married to the victim, so the rapist is allowed to continue the abuse.

    • Blaster M@lemmy.world
      203·
      10 months ago

      It’s one of those situations where it makes it so an 18 and a 17 can marry and it not be illegal, but that doesn’t make it any less creepy when the age gap stretches further.

    • Nythos@sh.itjust.works
      82·
      10 months ago

      Dragonflight has been an amazing g expansion compared to the previous so two so it’s a little less torturous right now.

  • meant2live218@lemmy.world
    581·
    10 months ago

    First, I’m glad they found the kid. No one deserves to be manipulated and taken like that.

    Second, dude, wtf? He’s in his 30s and thinks that this is something he should do? The kid is literally half his age, and he seems to think that they’re in any position for a genuine romantic relationship? Gross.

    • stevedidwhat_infosec@infosec.pub
      193·
      10 months ago

      Male role models are had to come by and harshly spoken of as highly as the “successful” or “richest” ones are. Just look at Tater Tot’s if you really, in 2024, need a concrete example.

      Blame it on some of the worlds addiction to insatiable consumption

      • mateomaui@reddthat.comEnglish
        211·
        10 months ago

        Just look at Tater Tot’s

        Not sure what this is really in reference to, but I defaulted to Napolean Dynamite.

        • ArachnidMania@lemm.ee
          25·
          10 months ago

          I’m assuming the human trafficking ‘influencer’ Andrew Tate. Flaunted as a male life advice guru, showed money around, bragged about having expensive cars. But is now awaiting a human trafficking charge, because surprise, he’s a horrible human, and that’s what is a ‘role model’ to some people.

          • mateomaui@reddthat.comEnglish
            6·
            10 months ago

            Ah that makes total sense. Yeah, I know who he is, I even booed him on a different post about the judgement regarding his property, but didn’t make the connection.

  • ReverendIrreverence@lemmy.world
    141·
    10 months ago

    Dude “faces felony charges of traveling to meet a minor to engage in sexual activity and interfering with child custody, as well as a misdemeanor charge of sheltering an unmarried minor, according to jail records.” And yet his bail is only $6k. WTF!

    • Tyfud@lemmy.world
      161·
      10 months ago

      Bail is set at what would make it expensive/hurt for an individual to flee their court appearance.

      It is not restitution or a fine. It is only to encourage you to show up at court.

      So, given his finances, the judge probably ruled that 6k would be enough to enforce that.

    • GlitzyArmrest@lemmy.worldOPEnglish
      6·
      10 months ago

      Hmm, wasn’t paywalled for me, but here you go:

      DUNNELLON, Fla. (AP) — A missing Ohio teen was recovered in Florida after she logged in to an online video game at the home of the man who took her, authorities said.

      Thomas Ebersole, 31, was arrested last Wednesday at his Dunnellon home, according to the Marion County Sheriff’s Office. The area is about 80 miles (130 kilometers) north of Tampa. Police in Lima, Ohio, about 80 miles ( 130 kilometers) northwest of Columbus, had reported the girl missing on Dec. 28.

      The FBI had contacted the sheriff’s office earlier that day to request help in locating the missing 16-year-girl. Investigators determined that her World of Warcraft account had been used at a local address, which turned out to be Ebersole’s home, authorities said. His World of Warcraft account was also accessed at the location. World of Warcraft is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game.

      Investigators made contact with Ebersole at his home, and he initially denied knowing the girl, officials said. But he eventually admitted that he had driven to Ohio to meet the teen and brought her back to his home, authorities said. Ebersole also told investigators that he was in a romantic relationship with the girl and was going to hide her in his home until they could get married.

      Ebersole provided detectives with online messages that further outlined his plans to meet the girl in Ohio and have sex with her, despite knowing that he was committing a crime, officials said.

      Ebersole faces felony charges of traveling to meet a minor to engage in sexual activity and interfering with child custody, as well as a misdemeanor charge of sheltering an unmarried minor, according to jail records. He was being held on $6,000 bail. Jail records didn’t list an attorney for Ebersole.

      • Cosmic Cleric@lemmy.world
        1·
        10 months ago

        Hmm, wasn’t paywalled for me, but here you go:

        Thank you for that.

        Yeah, it was definitely one of the obnoxious ones too that covered up the whole screen, so I couldn’t even read it in a half-sized view area.

        Edit: I just went back and checked the link again, and it wasn’t paywalled the second time, so something changed between the two viewing attempts. When I tried initially I got the paywall multiple times, even after opening/closing tabs.