In a case that offends our sensibilities, two men are being
charged with seeking to enact their twisted fantasies to kidnap, rape, and then
devour women and even family members. This is the case of Michael Vanhise, 22,
and the “Cannibal cop” Gilberto Valle. They had joined a website for discussing
dark sexual fantasies. It has 37,000 members, and after Vanhise’s lawyer joined
it, for research, within 24 hours she had received messages from many who
wanted to “hang me, rape me, torture me, and eat me.”

Nevertheless, she sees her client as simply exercising an extreme form of the first amendment. Fantasies are not prosecutable. As she said, the “case will test the boundaries of what the First Amendment means.”

Whether the sensationalistic case will actually test that remains to be seen. After all, Michael Vanhise offered Valle $5,000 to kidnap a woman for him to rape and kill. The defense claims that such details are merely further parts of the game, the fantasy, not real.

Yet Vanhise had referred to raping his own newborn daughter, and also offered his 7 and 8-year-old nieces up to members to be raped. He shared pictures. How much are we willing to give on free speech?

The court case probably won’t fully address or define what is permissible to say regarding raping family members, but as for making plans that involve money, the case becomes more clean cut.


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