Is it sad that offering someone a ride can get you arrested?

Is it sad that you could be punished these days for just offering someone a ride? (AP Photo)

After a father of three was charged with disorderly conduct
for offering a ride to two teenage girls in the snow,
some are saying it’s sad that a potential good deed goes
punished because of society’s fears of creeps.

“In a million years I would never give some kid a ride
because you’re just asking for trouble. But isn’t that sad
though? Isn’t that sad about our society,” asked host Luke
Burbank in a discussion of the case on 97.3 KIRO FM’s Ross and Burbank Show.

Burbank said he thinks society is potentially
overcompensating against the potential risk.

“My mom, a really cute 17-year-old teenager in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, used to thumb a ride
everywhere,” said Burbank. “I don’t think we live in a
more dangerous world that we used to right?”

But co-host Dave Ross said there is ample proof that
dangerous people are out there.

“It’s unfortunate but it’s a fact of life,” said Ross.
“We’ve seen more than enough evidence of people that troll
neighborhoods looking for kids to pick up.”

Burbank acknowledges bad people do exist, but he said in
most instances the people in question are OK.

“There have always been creeps. There have always been
murderers. And it’s always been the case also that most of
the time, when you’re dealing with someone else, they’re
not a creep and not a murderer,” said Burbank.

Ross said even if you think most people are good, these
days it’s not safe to assume someone else will think that
just by looking at you.

“You can’t afford to just think that way. You can’t think,
‘I know I’m a good guy so nobody will ever suspect me of
doing this, therefore I’ll give this person a ride.’ I
don’t think that,” said Ross. “I think how would this
look to someone who has no idea who I am.”

Rodney T. Peterson, the man that pleaded guilty to the
disorderly conduct charges after the two teens called the
cops on his offer calls the event “a good deed gone
wrong.”

“I don’t know what was going on in this guy’s heart. He
may have actually had bad intentions. I don’t know. But
the fact that just simply asking someone if they need a
ride is now evidence enough to charge somebody with
something, it just makes me feel sad,” said Burbank.

Listen to
discussion Luke shares story of when he offered woman a
ride

By JAMIE GRISWOLD, MyNorthwest.com Editor