

It's a sickening tale, compounded by the sheer numbers of students involved, not to mention his 30 years of tenure. It raises so many questions that may never be answered, and it shows the enormous fissures in the educational system of poor school districts.



While it is still unclear if the students were sexually abused through touching, oral , or intercourse, the introduction of Berndt's semen ups the ante for his prosecution, and for the odds that something sexual did take place. , as with many sexual addictions, escalates over time. It is likely that Berndt's initial photographs were more benign, and as he delved deeper into the bondage pictures and literature found in his home, his desire to recreate those pictures grew stronger and stronger. I would suspect that the semen he brought to school (that was both spoon-fed and put on cookies) is a recent development, the link between the bondage and torture and the sexual that went along with it.

Seriously, the man baked cookies and put his semen on them. This is a grotesque form of molestation, and it is harder and harder to keep typing the word semen without gagging just a little... The students are being tested for sexually transmitted diseases, although it is my sneaking suspicion that Mark Berndt hasn't had sex with a grownup for a very long time.

So, what drives a man to systematically blindfold, bind, and sexually assault dozens of elementary school children? If he did not have sexual intercourse with them, does he still get labeled a pedophile? Pedophilia occurs on a stratum, the very mildest being internet, movie and magazine based, and the worst being the torture, mutilation and horrific rape of their child victims. With the information given to date, Berndt would be classified as a low-grade pedophile.



Some say this is worse than murder, as that is usually a spontaneous act of , done once, complete, and usually perpetrated without meticulous thought. This crime was premeditated, ritualistic, and on a grand scale. Twenty children at a time were being victimized, and because most were blindfolded, many could not speak English and some are suspected to be illegal aliens, the acts weren't discussed outside the classroom.







Initial seizure of Berndt's property only turned up adult , and only time will tell if his computer renders any child porn. Which brings up the question: in a digital age, why on earth would



In my , I have dealt with multiple cases of pedophilia; I have heard stories much more violent than this one. I have heard stories of mutilations, beatings, rapes, you name it. But I will say I have not heard of something occurring right under the nose of authorities, in a classroom, without anyone questioning it. That's new to me. And just because I have heard worse, doesn't minimize what has happened to these students, and however many students that came before them.



Thank goodness they are finally safe today.