Some people have certain types of sexual attractions and fetishes, and as long as those individuals are not hurting anyone else and they aren’t breaking the law, it should be okay. However, this isn’t always the way that things work out. There are always those people that just aren’t right, often due to a mental disorder of some type. In some cases, the things they do are harmless but inappropriate. Other times, they are dangerous or could point to dangerous behavior in the future.
In 2019, a Florida man named Cody Meader, 22, did something in a Target that no one saw coming. Meader went to the children’s bedding department of the store and grabbed a stuffed animal, a large unicorn, and then proceeded to “sexually assault” the toy in front of a loss prevention officer. Once he had finished his business with the unicorn and put it back on the shelf to be sold, he moved on to another stuffed animal—Olaf, the snowman from Frozen. With Olaf, who he perhaps found more attractive than the unicorn, he dry-humped the toy until he ejaculated on it. He placed it back on the shelf, as well.
Witnesses of this behavior alerted the store and the authorities. Meader was taken into custody while he was in the store, where he admitted to doing “stupid stuff” when he was arrested and charged with criminal mischief. Yes, it was indeed stupid stuff he was doing. He was released on a $150 bond, and the store destroyed both of the toys and presumably cleaned that entire department from top to bottom.
A History of Strange Behavior
According to Meader’s father, his son has a history of doing these types of things. When he was younger, he had performed sexual acts with stuffed animals in a Walmart store in Clearwater, Florida. A Florida judge ordered that Meader undergo a psychological evaluation to determine whether he was competent enough to stand trial. It’s clear from his behavior that his actions are not those of what you would expect from the average person in society. In addition to being charged with criminal mischief, he is also charged with exposure of his sexual organs.
Meader is a resident of St. Petersburg, Florida, but not much is known about him other than a few basic facts. He lives in a mobile home park, doesn’t attend school, and does not have a job.
Although it’s impossible to tell what will happen in this person’s future, the recidivism rate for sex offenders is extremely high, particularly when they are not treated. Even though he was “only having sex with stuffed animals” and “shouldn’t be crucified for it”, he was doing this in a public place where anyone could—and did—see what he was doing. Even though it isn’t sexual assault in the typical sense, it had a lot of the same hallmarks. It also wasn’t his first time getting in trouble for it. It’s clear that he doesn’t think ahead, or he doesn’t care about the consequences of his actions. Putting those toys back on the shelves means they could have ended up in the hands of customers, including kids.
It’s impossible to know at this stage if someone like him is a danger to others, but the lack of worry about the consequences doesn’t bode well for the future of people like that if they don’t get some help.
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Perhaps he just has an attraction to stuffed animals. Being attracted to plush toys might be outside of the norm, but there are far worse attractions to have. The problem with this isn’t that he had sex with a stuffed animal. It’s where he was at the time. This case hasn’t been through the courts yet, but it will be interesting to see what happens in this case and whether he’s found competent enough to stand trial.
