I can see how locals would be concerned about him luring pedofiles to thier town, but he brought up a good point at the seminar... #1: They are only there on thier own free will till shortly after they put thier car in "park". And #2 apparently this Det. has become quite well known in the diddler underworld and many of them know to stay clear of anyone talking to you from New Hampshire. He was telling us that on more than one occasion his cover was blown simply becuase he told the suspect what state he lived in.
If I was a parent and taxpayer in a town who had an investigator like Det. Mclaughlin, then I would be concerned about safety and waste of funds, but these guys he hooks up are mobile, and if they are willing to drive (sometimes 100's of miles) to his town to hook up with a "14 year old boy", then they are also willing to drive to someone elses town to do the same to a real one.