Woman Avoids Trial in Child Sex Case - Updated

(West Palm Beach, Florida) The charges against Jill Goldsmith were amended from felony lewd and lascivious acts to a reduced count of battery on a child. As a result, Goldsmith qualified for pretrial intervention.

A Wellington woman charged with harboring runaway boys and having sex with at least one of them agreed to a one-year pretrial intervention program Monday, and a felony charge will be dropped if she completes its simple provisions, authorities said.

Jill Goldsmith, 31, must undergo counseling with a psychiatrist or psychologist for a year, and she must attend Palm Beach Community College or Keiser College. If she does, the state will drop a charge of battery on a child.

According to defense attorney Jim Eisenberg, although she's 31 years old, Goldsmith has the maturity and mental state of a teenager. Consequently, even though she had sex with the boy "too many times to count," Goldsmith walks away without jail.

It's probably been used before but it's the first time I've heard of the "immaturity defense" deflecting culpability in child sex crimes. I'm guessing it won't work when a 31-year-old man gets jiggy with a 15-year-old girl and murmurs, "Goo-goo, please be my mommy."


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Florida Woman Accused of Sex with Boy
[Previous 3/21/08 post bumped]
(Palm Beach, Florida) A 31-year-old local woman, Jill Goldsmith, was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly engaging in sex with a 15-year-old boy.

Goldsmith has been charged with lewd and lascivious battery, child abuse and making false statements regarding the relationship with the boy. Police suspect there are two more victims.

Goldsmith's relationship with teenagers first drew investigators' attention in May, when two teens under criminal investigation told detectives that they had sexual relations with Goldsmith, according to a detective's report.

They said Goldsmith would buy them clothing in exchange for sex and would provide them with alcohol, marijuana, Ecstasy and cigarettes, the report said. Goldsmith denied the allegations.

The two also said Goldsmith was having sex with a third teenager, which Goldsmith acknowledged. She told investigators that she found out later that he wasn't 18 yet. [ ... ]

[D]etectives went to the teen's house. They told his mother he was having sex with a woman twice his age, the report said.

The teenager told detectives that Goldsmith gave him money, alcohol and cigarettes and smoked marijuana with him. He said he lied "because he thought it was wrong and did not want to get Jill into trouble," the report said.

Goldsmith was booked into custody and released on $8,000 bond.