Geoffrey Leonard

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Action shot from the original viral interview

Geoffrey Leonard (born 10th January 1934) is an Australian former Barrister, writer and amateur philosopher who began writing on boylove after being convicted for voluntary sexual activity with a 16 and a 13 year old boy in 1990. He is known for having given a series of explosive TV interviews following "controversies", seemingly brought about by the complainant family's presence in his community and his publishing activities, which included a website. He is regarded as a cult figure in Australian folklore, lives in Hornsby, NSW, and has published numerous books in which he opposes the use of sex laws except in cases of violence.[1]

Famous interview and meme

In 2005, Australian Broadcaster Channel 9 pursued Leonard after it was discovered he was living in the same community as the family who complained about his relationship with the two boys. The resulting interview, in which he and his dog were dramatically chased by interviewer Ben Fordham and his sound man, became an internet meme over the coming years, earning him the nickname "crazy pedophile". Later pieces focused on his online publishing activities. Leonard had previously been accused of loitering near choirboys at St. Andrew's Cathedral and sending a book he wrote called Sex and Gender in 2001 to a 16 year old boy. In Australia, convicted sex offenders are prohibited from loitering near schools or places that are frequented by children. These accusations were later determined to be unfounded, although he was nevertheless banned from church.[2]

A YouTube channel going by the name of Not Geoffrey Leonard[3] has since carried out a series of candid and sometimes surreal interviews with the elderly MAP, revealing his human side. Leonard is thought to be suffering from dementia in his advanced years and is unable to give interviews for his many fans.

Website

The website (linked below), launched in September 2005, caused public outcry and it was criticized by the "anti-pedophile" group Bravehearts. Due to the public outcry over his website, people turned up at his house, threw eggs and called him him a "dog", while Hetty Johnston of the aforementioned charity compared him to a "terrorist".[4] Australian police alleged that Leonard uploaded witness and victim statements onto his personal website, describing his personal sex acts with the teens. This led to a raid on his house by the Australian Federal Police and the child protection and sex crimes squad in March 2006. As a result of the raid, Leonard had to appear in court and he was charged with one count of using a carriage service to make child sex abuse material publicly available and one count of using a carriage service to make child pornography publicly available. Leonard plead not guilty to both charges.[5]

See also

  • Jack McClellan - another MAP who excelled at not being taken seriously.

External links

References