A school social worker in a large Northern city was astonished when four brohers all under sixteen years old - young hoodlums, the eldest of whom had been arrested 81 times for stealing, mugging, and other violent offenses against elderly citizens - suddenly calmed down and behaved themselves for two months running. They started attending school regularly and doing a good work while there. The social worker reasoned that the explanation must be that some dominant personality had become involved with the young delinquents.
Her investigation found that a boy-lover (her term for pederast) had entered into a relationship with the family which was transforming the boys into good citizens. The social worker asked herself: 'Shall I ask the police to tail the man, who is the first constructive influence the boys have let into their lives in two or three years? How important is it to have this type of sex offender arrested, when the result may be a new reign of terror for the elderly of the neighbourhood?'