This story (I was unaware) should be as prominent as the Epstein/Trump story, setting off a million alarm bells! Cy Canterel wrote (on Substack, etc.) about The Zone of Impunity, and I’d like to share it with them (pronoun). I might characterize these as conspiracies within a zones of impunity.
I have been a forensic psychiatrist for three decades - a medical school instructor & resident supervisor for a decade - and the single best presentation I have heard was by a longtime faculty member who proposed a DSM-5 classification for what he termed "Paraphilic Coercive Disorder" that I have seen published in a volume on sex offenders. They describe the proposed classification as:
"The essential elements of Paraphilic Coercive Disorder could then be described as follows:
(A) Over a period of at least 6 months, recurrent sexually arousing fantasies, urges, or behaviors involving coercive sexual acts with nonconsenting persons, typially including genital contact.
(B) The experience of power, dominance, and control are sexually arousing because the sexual behavior is forced upon a person who is deprived the liberty of consent and would otherwise refuse the sex if given a free choice.
(C) The individual has acted on these sexual urges (committed sexual assault), or the sexual urges or fantasies cause marked distress or interpersonal difficulty.
(D) The disorder is distinguished from sexual sadism in which the physical suffering and/or psychological humiliation of the nonconsenting person is the source of sexual arousal.
To summarize, PCD as a diagnosis applies to serial rapists who demonstrate persistent , repetitive acts of coercive sex over time with multiple victims. At the core of PCD is the deviant arousal to the abusive power of sex with a nonconsenting person. Note that the nonconsenting person need not be actively physically resisting the sexual assault (fi ghting, struggling, etc.). In some rape situations a fearful victim may “surrender” and never physically resist, accepting that she or he would lose the struggle, and passively submit to the rape. This is particularly true of vulnerable victims who are small in stature, elderly,
physically disabled, or when the perpetrator uses weapons. In addition, PCD cam be present in serial rapists who target unconscious or mentally incompetent victims who are incapa-
ble of consent due to their lack of awareness that a sexual assault is being committed upon them. Whereas sexual sadists are erotically aroused by the use of force greater than neces-
sary to subdue the victim, the need for excessive force or the infliction of pain are not necessarily characteristic of PCD."
Having personally interviewed patients in the CA correctional system who seemed to, more or less, be aligned with these criteria, I further found them to be highly manipulative (e.g. faking "seizures" to obtain lower bunks or single cells); entitled; demanding; "service-seeking," (e.g. seeking transfer to the "sensitive needs" units where they could be segregated from other inmates because they claimed "whistleblower" status, when in fact they were simply frightened); medication-seeking (notably benzodiazepines, because they had "undiagnosed anxiety disorders," but, again, were suspected of merely being frightened); special dietary restrictions, etc. etc.
As far as I know, after twice being rejected for inclusion to updates to the DSM-5, there does not appear to be an active movement to again pursue inclusion. Nevertheless, it is easy to see where its application certainly seems to apply to this case and other similar cases, or at least seems to promote a a typology worth another examination.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and for your insightful comments. What you describe absolutely fits this case (and many others from various inmates I have interviewed over the years). I wonder why it has failed to gain traction?
As best I recall, apparently it was felt that the existing paraphilias already contained in the DSM-5 are sufficient. I would grant that the list is comprehensive - notably Sexual Sadism - but the proposed new category specifically distinguishes itself from Sexual Sadism, albeit for a minority cohort.
An excellent article. Money is innocent - it is an innocent amplifier. If you are a good person you can do more charity, if you are a bad person it amplifies this.
These are the guys Barron Trump admires and has cozied up to at Mar a Lago. So friends of dad too. What does that say about how Melania raised her son?
From a layman’s point of view….the boys acted the way they did bc (possibly) their own father treated their mother with contempt. Treated her like she was property, not human. The boys hated it, but took out their frustration on girls/women. Most people are products of their childhood.
A side bar: Pete Hegseth wrote an editorial for his Princeton student paper claiming that sex without consent (due to intoxication of victim) did not constitute rape.
So many women I know have been slipped a date rape drug- there’s lots of pathology out there!
Their mother was in court? Shameless. I don’t include the father because I suspect he did little to raise them. But their mother? I hope she never has a peaceful night. I hope they lose everything. I hope they are assaulted in prison (rich, white, and rapists? Meat for real predators).
This story (I was unaware) should be as prominent as the Epstein/Trump story, setting off a million alarm bells! Cy Canterel wrote (on Substack, etc.) about The Zone of Impunity, and I’d like to share it with them (pronoun). I might characterize these as conspiracies within a zones of impunity.
I agree - very very poorly covered, especially in the NYT, which had just one article that came out the day after the verdict.
I have been a forensic psychiatrist for three decades - a medical school instructor & resident supervisor for a decade - and the single best presentation I have heard was by a longtime faculty member who proposed a DSM-5 classification for what he termed "Paraphilic Coercive Disorder" that I have seen published in a volume on sex offenders. They describe the proposed classification as:
"The essential elements of Paraphilic Coercive Disorder could then be described as follows:
(A) Over a period of at least 6 months, recurrent sexually arousing fantasies, urges, or behaviors involving coercive sexual acts with nonconsenting persons, typially including genital contact.
(B) The experience of power, dominance, and control are sexually arousing because the sexual behavior is forced upon a person who is deprived the liberty of consent and would otherwise refuse the sex if given a free choice.
(C) The individual has acted on these sexual urges (committed sexual assault), or the sexual urges or fantasies cause marked distress or interpersonal difficulty.
(D) The disorder is distinguished from sexual sadism in which the physical suffering and/or psychological humiliation of the nonconsenting person is the source of sexual arousal.
To summarize, PCD as a diagnosis applies to serial rapists who demonstrate persistent , repetitive acts of coercive sex over time with multiple victims. At the core of PCD is the deviant arousal to the abusive power of sex with a nonconsenting person. Note that the nonconsenting person need not be actively physically resisting the sexual assault (fi ghting, struggling, etc.). In some rape situations a fearful victim may “surrender” and never physically resist, accepting that she or he would lose the struggle, and passively submit to the rape. This is particularly true of vulnerable victims who are small in stature, elderly,
physically disabled, or when the perpetrator uses weapons. In addition, PCD cam be present in serial rapists who target unconscious or mentally incompetent victims who are incapa-
ble of consent due to their lack of awareness that a sexual assault is being committed upon them. Whereas sexual sadists are erotically aroused by the use of force greater than neces-
sary to subdue the victim, the need for excessive force or the infliction of pain are not necessarily characteristic of PCD."
Having personally interviewed patients in the CA correctional system who seemed to, more or less, be aligned with these criteria, I further found them to be highly manipulative (e.g. faking "seizures" to obtain lower bunks or single cells); entitled; demanding; "service-seeking," (e.g. seeking transfer to the "sensitive needs" units where they could be segregated from other inmates because they claimed "whistleblower" status, when in fact they were simply frightened); medication-seeking (notably benzodiazepines, because they had "undiagnosed anxiety disorders," but, again, were suspected of merely being frightened); special dietary restrictions, etc. etc.
As far as I know, after twice being rejected for inclusion to updates to the DSM-5, there does not appear to be an active movement to again pursue inclusion. Nevertheless, it is easy to see where its application certainly seems to apply to this case and other similar cases, or at least seems to promote a a typology worth another examination.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and for your insightful comments. What you describe absolutely fits this case (and many others from various inmates I have interviewed over the years). I wonder why it has failed to gain traction?
As best I recall, apparently it was felt that the existing paraphilias already contained in the DSM-5 are sufficient. I would grant that the list is comprehensive - notably Sexual Sadism - but the proposed new category specifically distinguishes itself from Sexual Sadism, albeit for a minority cohort.
Very well written. I always appreciate your research and explanations. And why does a story like this not surprise me? Ugh!
No surprise here, either.
An excellent article. Money is innocent - it is an innocent amplifier. If you are a good person you can do more charity, if you are a bad person it amplifies this.
My goodness, I had never heard of this story before. Thanks for sharing this.
Between Epstein, the Tate brothers, and these guys, I am sick to my core.
Thank you for reading and responding, Angela. I felt similarly.
I hope that they get prison for life. Their story is absolutely sickening.
Thank you for reading and responding, Anna. The more I researched this story, the darker it got. May justice be served.
Very interesting. The system protecting these offenders is a big problem. Money talks, and it also corrupts.
Thank you. I’m trying to understand why society allows this to occur. Every post helps me in some way.
These are the guys Barron Trump admires and has cozied up to at Mar a Lago. So friends of dad too. What does that say about how Melania raised her son?
From a layman’s point of view….the boys acted the way they did bc (possibly) their own father treated their mother with contempt. Treated her like she was property, not human. The boys hated it, but took out their frustration on girls/women. Most people are products of their childhood.
A side bar: Pete Hegseth wrote an editorial for his Princeton student paper claiming that sex without consent (due to intoxication of victim) did not constitute rape.
So many women I know have been slipped a date rape drug- there’s lots of pathology out there!
Their mother was in court? Shameless. I don’t include the father because I suspect he did little to raise them. But their mother? I hope she never has a peaceful night. I hope they lose everything. I hope they are assaulted in prison (rich, white, and rapists? Meat for real predators).
I don’t imagine prison will be a good experience. Commissary money can only get you so much.
The family that preys together stays together. 🤣
The social dynamics described here do not apply ONLY TO SEXUAL ABUSE. They begin in bullying, long before sexual awareness.