Halloween has come and gone once again and the kids will be in a sugar coma for the next week. I have mixed feelings about Halloween. My parents were actually married on Halloween. Can you imagine your anniversary being spent giving out candy to goblins and witches every year? Back in the day, Halloween was a big deal. I remember literally hundreds of trick or treaters coming to our door each year. My mother always counted and proudly gave us the grand total at the end of the evening (I tried last night and I don't know how she kept count!). The Halloween parties were always something to remember. We actually had bobbing for apples and some really fun haunted houses and haunted barns. It was great fun. As a college student, I worked at Knott's Berry Farm and participated in Halloween Haunt, or Knott's Scary Farm as it is known now. It was great fun (what teen doesn't love scaring children?!).
But nothing stays the same. Halloween is not the holiday it once was. One local city, Murrieta, sent out letters to all of the registered sex offenders in the city, discouraging them from handing out candy to children. This seems like a no-brainer and should be part of their parole/probation, but apparently it's not a law...but rather a suggestion. This comes just days after a local sex offender drove into the parking lot of our local sheriff's station and flagged down an officer to let him know that he had a body in the truck of his car. It turned out to be a 48 year old woman who had recently become involved with him. It's not clear if she knew about his past. Either way, he was a danger to society and we should know that. The recidivism rate with sex offenders is off the charts. Most of them repeatedly offend. The only difference is that they learn that if they leave a victim to testify, they will go to jail, so their crimes become more advanced and more sinister, if that is possible. As I write this, our local school district has reported that a man has been trying to abduct girls walking to school in the morning. What better time to do that than around Halloween, when a person can wear a costume and get away with it?
Each year on Halloween, I cringe when I turn on the news and hear what has been given out to children. Candy with razor blades, LSD dots, and rat poison in candy corn balls comes to mind. This year, I heard two bizarre stories. Marijuana legalization proponents were giving out marijuana-laced brownies (another reason not to eat anything that isn't professionally packaged). Half the time, older kids and teens were eating this stuff before they got home and mom had a chance to check out the candy. Some kids got flavored condoms in their Halloween goody bags. Not sure what this world is coming to, but maybe it's time to reconsider how we celebrate this holiday. Hmmmm...there's an oxymoron for you. Holiday = Holy day = All Hallows Eve?
Most of us wouldn't even consider sending our children door to door for other reasons, so why for candy? I know it's about the tradition, the "experience", and the fun of it, but wouldn't it be more reasonable for families with kids to get together to provide an old-fashioned costume party? If each family contributed what they would give out for Halloween, there would be no shortage of candy. With the stranger-danger that our kids face every day (and it seems like it's so much more prevalent now than it was years ago), I think it's time to reassess the Halloween traditions we all grew up with. It was either safer when we were children, or we were just all naive to the danger. Knowing it's out there, we have to protect our children. I'm sure Halloween lovers may call me a witch or something similar for saying this, but perhaps we should change Halloween traditions and ban the door to door trick or treating. It's unfortunate, but for the safety of children, we should think up a better alternative and not dangle the carrot to those who would hurt them. "Safe and sane" is a concept that should be able to be applied to any holiday, not just the fourth of July.
Showing posts with label registered sex offenders. Show all posts
Showing posts with label registered sex offenders. Show all posts
Monday, November 1, 2010
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
California Tightens Sex Offender Laws - Justice for Chelsea
California Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, is set to sign Assembly Bill 1844, "Chelsea's Law". Yesterday, the California Assembly unanimously passed the bill that will enact one of the nation's toughest sex offender laws on the books. It's about time. Both Chelsea King and Amber Dubois were killed by registered sex offender, John Albert Gardner III. Amazingly, despite being a registered sex offender and sporting a tracking bracelet, Gardner roamed freely around Southern California stalking victims, after serving time for another violent crime against a child. He should have been monitored. In my opinion, he should never have been released. Both Amber and Chelsea would have been alive today had he been kept behind bars. Our local Senator, Dennis Hollingsworth, has authored a bill which passed unanimously today in the senate. This bill, S85, will help families preserve the memories of their slain children. It is called the "Deceased Child Victims Protection and Privacy Act". Under this bill, the gruesome details of a child's murder and autopsy results can be sealed by the victim's family. If a family has lost a child in a perverse killing, they have every right to privacy. I can't imagine, as a mother, turning on the t.v. to see my child portrayed as a victim of sexual torture and abuse. It would be nearly as devastating as the murder itself.
New laws proposed in California require a checklist for police to follow during missing child investigations, reduce the reporting time to get authorities working on the case, and provide for a Director of Missing Child Operations, a new position in the State Attorney General's office. All of these new laws will go into effect in January, 2011. Governor Schwarzenegger will sign them all. He has stated "I am committed to protecting our children and keeping our communities safe from the threat of sexual predators, and Chelsea's Law will help to do that by creating harsher penalties on those that prey on children". I don't think the penalties could ever be harsh enough, but California is leading the way in passing laws that actually have teeth. Chelsea's Law mandates life sentences for those who commit violent sex crimes against children. No three strikes. One strike, and it's life behind bars, just as it should be. The recidivism rates for sex crimes are so high that repeat offenders are a given. In my view, a death sentence wouldn't be too harsh, but putting them in jail and throwing away the key is going to protect children from what Chelsea and Amber and their families have gone through.
If you go to the Megan's Law website and look up the sex offenders in your neighborhood and in your city, you will be astounded. They are everywhere. Time to get them out of our neighborhoods and into jail where they belong. There is no more heinous crime than a sex crime against a child.
New laws proposed in California require a checklist for police to follow during missing child investigations, reduce the reporting time to get authorities working on the case, and provide for a Director of Missing Child Operations, a new position in the State Attorney General's office. All of these new laws will go into effect in January, 2011. Governor Schwarzenegger will sign them all. He has stated "I am committed to protecting our children and keeping our communities safe from the threat of sexual predators, and Chelsea's Law will help to do that by creating harsher penalties on those that prey on children". I don't think the penalties could ever be harsh enough, but California is leading the way in passing laws that actually have teeth. Chelsea's Law mandates life sentences for those who commit violent sex crimes against children. No three strikes. One strike, and it's life behind bars, just as it should be. The recidivism rates for sex crimes are so high that repeat offenders are a given. In my view, a death sentence wouldn't be too harsh, but putting them in jail and throwing away the key is going to protect children from what Chelsea and Amber and their families have gone through.
If you go to the Megan's Law website and look up the sex offenders in your neighborhood and in your city, you will be astounded. They are everywhere. Time to get them out of our neighborhoods and into jail where they belong. There is no more heinous crime than a sex crime against a child.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Another Loss Due to a Sexual Predator
In the headlines today, another young woman's body has been found. Amber Dubois disappeared a little over a year ago while walking to her high school in Escondido. She was only 14. Her family had held out hope that somehow, somewhere she was still alive. Jaycee Dugard's story, while tragic, made them feel that it was possible that Amber could be alive. On Saturday, those hopes were dashed when her body was found in a remote area of San Diego County. Just days ago, the body of Chelsea King was found in a similar area. A registered sex offender, John Albert Gardner III, was arrested in connection with Chelsea's murder and is currently being investigated in the disappearance of Amber as well. He lived with his mother in the same area during the time Amber went missing. Gardner lived recently in Lake Elsinore, California, a community in the area in which I live and work. Over the past few months, we have been periodically called with the Lake Elsinore Unified School District warning that there was a predator lurking around schools and accosting girls. A few times, abductions were attempted and one time he exposed himself to students waiting at a bus stop. The picture provided looks remarkably like Mr. Gardner.
When will it end? This is such an easy fix! If someone qualifies as a registered sex offender, they should not be on the street. We need to be considering chemical or medical castration for these individuals, as well as long-term incarceration. Some may call that "cruel and unusual punishment". However, what those girls endured went beyond that. If we can save one child from these predators, then it would be worth all the tax dollars we spend to keep them in jail for life. There are murderers on death row who killed in a fit of rage or vengeance. They are a lot less dangerous to society than the ones who kill for their own selfish pleasure. And yet, sex offenders get a couple of years and a slap on the wrist and out they go to do it again and again. The recidivism rate is higher in sexual crimes than in another other type of crime. In the case of Mr. Gardner, a psychologist had recommended he not be released because it was felt that he would re-offend. So it was known that he was a danger. And one, two, or possibly more families are paying the price for the bad judgment that put him back out on the street.
How important are our daughters, our children? Our representatives need to know. They need to be bombarded with demands for legislation that will castrate and commit these people for life or for long enough that they could never again endanger a child -- your child, my child, anyone's child. Please take a moment and write one letter, and then encourage everyone else you know to write at least one letter to the people who are supposed to protect and serve us.
When will it end? This is such an easy fix! If someone qualifies as a registered sex offender, they should not be on the street. We need to be considering chemical or medical castration for these individuals, as well as long-term incarceration. Some may call that "cruel and unusual punishment". However, what those girls endured went beyond that. If we can save one child from these predators, then it would be worth all the tax dollars we spend to keep them in jail for life. There are murderers on death row who killed in a fit of rage or vengeance. They are a lot less dangerous to society than the ones who kill for their own selfish pleasure. And yet, sex offenders get a couple of years and a slap on the wrist and out they go to do it again and again. The recidivism rate is higher in sexual crimes than in another other type of crime. In the case of Mr. Gardner, a psychologist had recommended he not be released because it was felt that he would re-offend. So it was known that he was a danger. And one, two, or possibly more families are paying the price for the bad judgment that put him back out on the street.
How important are our daughters, our children? Our representatives need to know. They need to be bombarded with demands for legislation that will castrate and commit these people for life or for long enough that they could never again endanger a child -- your child, my child, anyone's child. Please take a moment and write one letter, and then encourage everyone else you know to write at least one letter to the people who are supposed to protect and serve us.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Jaycee's Law
It's been a couple of weeks since I've blogged and I have to apologize for that. I have been sick with some form of flu or viral illness and all I can say is that the older you get, the harder you fall!
My down time had me watching a lot of news and I'm sure everyone has heard about the case of Jaycee Lee Dugard, the young girl who was kidnapped in California at age 11 and was recently found 18 years later hidden in the back yard of a sexual predator. I can't really fathom why Phillip Garrido, a man with so many past incidents and charges, and even an extended prison sentence (He got 50 years and served 10), was ever let out of prison in the first place. It's the fault of society and all of us when we allow sexual predators to remain free.
Out of curiosity, I went to the Megan's Law website for California. There it allowed me to search my area for sexual predators. I was pretty stunned to find that there are a dozen registered sex offenders within two blocks of my child's school. How is that possible? They are listed by law enforcement on the website, so authorities obviously know where they are. Meanwhile, after school, children walk past these homes every weekday, unaware of the dangers. Shouldn't the schools be required to warn parents and children?
Jaycee was kidnapped within sight of her home while she was walking to the school bus. She was forced into a car by an adult female, presumably the wife of Phillip Garrido, who met him while he was in prison. Some people are just plain sick. Apparently, this woman was his accomplice.
Perhaps it seems a bit harsh, but I am a proponent of castration, either physical or chemical, to control sexual predators. I am also a proponent of a one strike law. The recidivism rate among sex offenders is something like 86%, so it seems like a no-brainer to keep them where they can no longer offend or castrate them so they can no longer offend. If it saves one child, I'd be willing to pay higher taxes to keep them off the streets.
Perhaps it's the times, but it doesn't seem like it was as dangerous when we were children. We didn't have to worry so much about these things. Perhaps the internet has something to do with it. Children become an easy target and are easier to find. If you've watched the Dateline NBC show called "To Catch a Predator", you know that people who wish to prey on children are a dime a dozen.
I can't imagine the joy and sorrow of Jaycee's parents upon learning of her fate. It would be unbelievable to have your daughter back after all of those years of captivity, but how can you ever really get her back? She was with her captors longer than she was with her family. She suffered unspeakable horrors at such a young age. She gave birth at 14 without benefit of a hospital or a doctor. She learned to survive, but at what cost?
We can't trust the system. The system failed for Jaycee. Even after neighbors reported children living in tents in the back yard and wild parties, police dropped the ball. They didn't check to see who Phillip Garrido was. If they had, they would have found that he was a registered sex offender with an ankle bracelet. They didn't even check the back yard, which was the source of the complaint. Another three years went by before Jaycee and her two young daughters were rescued. I am a big proponent of law enforcement and I am solidly behind our police, but that officer should be fired. He not only didn't do his job, he risked three lives in the process.
I think it's important for parents to check the Megan's Law website for their area and inform their children, those old enough to understand, that there are people they need to stay away from. Our congressmen need to know that we want continued access to this website and that we want tougher laws on the books to protect our future, our children. Please take the time to make an effort to make a difference in that regard -- if that is to call your child's school and make them aware of the dangers nearby, calling your local senator or writing your congressman to let them know where you stand on these issues. Jaycee's Law is yet to be written, but I hope it is and that it requires castration for sexual offenders. There is a special place in hell for those who would hurt children, and in the meantime they need to stay in prison.
My down time had me watching a lot of news and I'm sure everyone has heard about the case of Jaycee Lee Dugard, the young girl who was kidnapped in California at age 11 and was recently found 18 years later hidden in the back yard of a sexual predator. I can't really fathom why Phillip Garrido, a man with so many past incidents and charges, and even an extended prison sentence (He got 50 years and served 10), was ever let out of prison in the first place. It's the fault of society and all of us when we allow sexual predators to remain free.
Out of curiosity, I went to the Megan's Law website for California. There it allowed me to search my area for sexual predators. I was pretty stunned to find that there are a dozen registered sex offenders within two blocks of my child's school. How is that possible? They are listed by law enforcement on the website, so authorities obviously know where they are. Meanwhile, after school, children walk past these homes every weekday, unaware of the dangers. Shouldn't the schools be required to warn parents and children?
Jaycee was kidnapped within sight of her home while she was walking to the school bus. She was forced into a car by an adult female, presumably the wife of Phillip Garrido, who met him while he was in prison. Some people are just plain sick. Apparently, this woman was his accomplice.
Perhaps it seems a bit harsh, but I am a proponent of castration, either physical or chemical, to control sexual predators. I am also a proponent of a one strike law. The recidivism rate among sex offenders is something like 86%, so it seems like a no-brainer to keep them where they can no longer offend or castrate them so they can no longer offend. If it saves one child, I'd be willing to pay higher taxes to keep them off the streets.
Perhaps it's the times, but it doesn't seem like it was as dangerous when we were children. We didn't have to worry so much about these things. Perhaps the internet has something to do with it. Children become an easy target and are easier to find. If you've watched the Dateline NBC show called "To Catch a Predator", you know that people who wish to prey on children are a dime a dozen.
I can't imagine the joy and sorrow of Jaycee's parents upon learning of her fate. It would be unbelievable to have your daughter back after all of those years of captivity, but how can you ever really get her back? She was with her captors longer than she was with her family. She suffered unspeakable horrors at such a young age. She gave birth at 14 without benefit of a hospital or a doctor. She learned to survive, but at what cost?
We can't trust the system. The system failed for Jaycee. Even after neighbors reported children living in tents in the back yard and wild parties, police dropped the ball. They didn't check to see who Phillip Garrido was. If they had, they would have found that he was a registered sex offender with an ankle bracelet. They didn't even check the back yard, which was the source of the complaint. Another three years went by before Jaycee and her two young daughters were rescued. I am a big proponent of law enforcement and I am solidly behind our police, but that officer should be fired. He not only didn't do his job, he risked three lives in the process.
I think it's important for parents to check the Megan's Law website for their area and inform their children, those old enough to understand, that there are people they need to stay away from. Our congressmen need to know that we want continued access to this website and that we want tougher laws on the books to protect our future, our children. Please take the time to make an effort to make a difference in that regard -- if that is to call your child's school and make them aware of the dangers nearby, calling your local senator or writing your congressman to let them know where you stand on these issues. Jaycee's Law is yet to be written, but I hope it is and that it requires castration for sexual offenders. There is a special place in hell for those who would hurt children, and in the meantime they need to stay in prison.
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