Kids Porn Cases Take Heavy Toll on Cops

"Victims" who don't get much recognition in kiddie porn cases are the investigators who uncover horrors done to children. "The crying, the screaming on the videos are embedded in your brain forever," said one cop who has been investigating child porn for 4 years. "The screams are complete terror. The eyes, they are just like death. There is no life in those eyes." Yet, officers must pretend to be pedophiles and friendly to the very men they are trying to bust in Internet chats.

Psychologists say the work is devastating because it often shatters all faith in humanity. Investigators tend to become hyper protective of their own children, and are reminded of the terror they've seen when they pass children on the street. Officers turn to psychologists, one another and compulsive exercise in a bid to block the pain and helplessness they feel. "You want to reach into the screen and help the kids, but you can't," an FBI agent told the Washington Post.
(More child abuse stories.)