A parade of potential predators in a small town

One potential predator thinks he’s chatting with our actress who’s posing as a 13-year-old virgin. We’ve hired her to play the role of a young teen on the phone and on a Web cam. Del from Perverted-Justice is typing on the computer.

He’s 26-year-old James Rutherford, screenname “iurutherford.” He’s been chatting online for more than a week with “prncessdanika.” 

Del, Perverted-Justice volunteer: He started off very slowly, trying to convince the girl that he could be trusted he ended up getting a Web cam.

And what does the 26 year old do with his Web cam? He starts putting on a show.  He takes off his shirt, flexes his muscles and even shows off his pierced tongue.

He tries to convince the decoy to do a bit of a show as well. Several times he asks the actress to show him her stomach.  She finally agrees and he says, “Nice tummy hun. I want to lick that.”  Then he says “I owe you something now don’t I.”

Del: And then he starts pulling the boxers down a little bit. Doesn’t go all the way down…

He’s actually talking to an actress (who he thinks is 13) as he watches her on a Web cam. As the chat progresses and plans are made to meet, he types “I’m so freaking horny... You know if you had me naked I’d want more right?”

But just before he gets in his car to come over, he calls...

Actress (on phone): I was really looking forward to it that’s not fair. I’m so bored here.

It appears the man is having second thoughts. Could it be that he’s actually having a change of heart and is questioning his own behavior? 

Actress: I was like, “Are you gonna call if you’re coming or not coming?” and he’s like,  “I’ll call either way.”

A few hours go by and we don’t hear from Rutherford, we assume he’s not coming—until suddenly someone spots him pulling into the driveway. His red Corvette drives around to the back of the house. The decoy goes out to wave him in.

(Hidden camera footage) A knock on door

Decoy: The door is open.

James Rutherford: (opens door) Where are you?

Decoy: Let me just finish getting ready, I’ll be right out there

Rutherford: Come here.

Decoy: No I promise I’ll be right back

Rutherford: No come here—

Decoy: Just wait you gotta be a little patient.

Chris Hansen, Dateline correspondent (walks in): Actually, I want you to come here

Rutherford: That’s what I thought.

Rutherford says he had a feeling this was a setup. Still, there was no denying what he’d been up to...

Hansen: Who did you think you were going to meet here?

Rutherford: Just this kid I’d been talking to.

Hansen: This kid.

Rutherford: I know she’s a kid.

Hansen: How old?

Rutherford: 13, 14

Hansen: 13, and how old are you?

Rutherford: Too old for a 13 or 14-year-old.

But there’s one thing he doesn’t want to tell us.

Hansen: What do you do for a living?

Rutherford: I’d rather not say. Who do you work for?

Hansen: I’ll get to that in a minute.

Rutherford: No, I’d really like to know, I’m sure I’m on TV or something right now.

Apparently the man has seen our investigations before and doesn’t want to reveal what he does for a living on national TV. So I ask him again.

Hansen: Why don’t you just tell me what you do for a living?

Rutherford: I’m a teacher.

Hansen: And what grade do you teach?

Rutherford: 6^th grade.

Hansen: 6^th grade. So you teach kids about the same age as the girl you were coming to see?

James Rutherford is a sixth grade teacher at a Catholic School in Cincinnati, where he also coaches track.  He drove two hours to get here.

Rutherford: I would never do anything (hand over face) I don’t know why I’m here.

Hansen: You were on your Web cam showing off in front of this 13-year old-girl and the conversation you had with this girl—

Rutherford: Was bad, I know, I know. I don’t know why, I need help.

Then the teacher offers this excuse:

Rutherford: I am going through a divorce. My wife Thursday told me she was leaving me.

Hansen: Yeah but that doesn’t make it right for you to…

Rutherford: I know.

Hansen: …to have this kind of a conversation.

Rutherford: I know I shouldn’t have.

The teacher admits he’s chatted with underage kids before and was worried that it had become a problem for him—a serious problem that was getting worse.

Rutherford: I thought about this a lot, for years, maybe I should just stop, maybe I should get counseling, maybe I should get help and I said “Well it’s not that big a deal, I’ve never taken it to this step.” I don’t know if this week just pushed me over the edge.

But fortunately, he’s fallen over the edge into our undercover investigation, instead of an encounter with a real child.

Hansen: Do you ever watch Dateline NBC?

Rutherford: Oh damn. I’ve seen one of those. That’s one of the reasons I thought “Why am I doing this?” This could be a setup.

Hansen: You’ve actually seen one of our previous programs on computer predators.

Rutherford: I didn’t think I was a predator. I wasn’t coming here for anything physical.

That’s a common excuse we’ve heard again and again and this man knows it. 

Rutherford: I know you’ve heard this, hell I’ve seen people sitting here and say the same stuff.

Hansen: You were suspicious. You had seen our previous stories and probably got a chuckle about what happened to some of these guys.

Rutherford: Yeah. Honestly, I sat there and watched and said “Those guys are sick why would you do that.” And that was what about a month, month and a half ago. And then here I am.

But what about the young students he comes in contact with every day? Has this teacher ever crossed that line? His online chat comes uncomfortably close...

Hansen: “I could be your teacher, would you flirt with me?” She says, “Wink at you and stuff.”

Rutherford: I never ever crossed a line like that with a person that was a student, I never even thought about it. I guess maybe online it was like they weren’t real.

Hansen: I guess the question that some people might ask is this, if you eventually evolve to the point to meet a 13-year-old girl after this…

Rutherford: It would have gotten worse.

Hansen... conversation, what point do you suddenly become interested in kids from the school?

Rutherford: Uh-huh.

Hansen: It’s a legitimate question.

He talked to us for more than 40 minutes.  Several times he asked, “Are the police outside? Am I going to get arrested?”  In fact, while he was inside detectives from the Darke county sheriff’s office had moved into place and were waiting to arrest him.

Hansen: Well, Jim I appreciate your time.

Rutherford: I’m sorry and tell that kid I’m sorry.

What started as a possible meeting with a child ends in an encounter with police—in which he confesses even more during interrogation.

Detective: I think you do have a problem.

Rutherford: Obviously.

Detective: And you’re admitting that ok. That you have talked to a minor before, 13 years of age. Do you masturbate while doing this?

Rutherford: Sometimes.

Detective: Okay.

Rutherford: I have yeah.

Detective: So you’re driven by this.

Rutherford: Sir, it’s not like it’s—

Detective: just listen to me

Rutherford: No, I think I feel like I should at least tell you, it’s not like I get on there specifically looking for kids.

Regardless of his explanation, the teacher is transported, just like all the other men, to the county jail, where he is photographed, fingerprinted, strip searched and thrown in jail.

From his jail cell he calls his employer. Rutherford's attorney tells us that Rutherford resigned his position to spare his students. What happens to him next is in the courts hands.

More on the investigation in Greenville, Ohio airs on Dateline Wednesday, May 3, 9 p.m.

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