On Sex Offenders

A cursory glance at the headlines over the past few weeks is enough to reveal a frightening reality: our justice system is not working when it comes to rehabilitating sex offenders. Look at these recent headlines;

• MSNBC.com: Police: Sex Offender Tries to Snatch Baby From Mom's Car
• ...was convicted of a sexual assault involving a child in 1993 and released in 2000.
• CNN.com: Document: Girl may have been alive at time of questioning
• ...was in a "drug haze" during the abduction....
• MSNBC.com: Registered Sex Offender Accused of Assaulting Girl
• ...he intimidated an 11-year-old girl to have sex with him.
• MSNBC.com: Sex Offender Charged in Girl's Death
• ...put her in a chokehold, causing her to become unconscious, and eventually causing her death.
• ABCNews.com: Sex Offender Accused of Taking Iowa Girl
• ...was convicted in 1994 of lascivious acts with a child.
• MSNBC.com: Sex Offender Accused of Violating Parole
• ...was communicating with children under 16 years old....
• ...was arrested...for failure to report a change of address -- a violation of the Sex Offender Act.
• ...had relations with a 15-year-old girl....
• MSNBC.com: Sex Offender Arrested After Allegedly Molesting Girl
• ...previously convicted of two counts of aggravated sexual battery in 1993.
• ...was out on parole...is accused of molesting a nine-year-old....
• ...was babysitting...when he inappropriately touched her daughter.

Each and every one of the perpetrators in these stories had been convicted in the past of sexual offenses, was released from prison, and returned to his old ways of preying on children. What are our lawmakers doing to prevent this? How many innocent children have to die at the hands of these beasts before someone stands up and puts a stop to it?

As you can see in the articles listed, every one of these incidents involved a known, registered sex offender. If they're registered, and the registry does not help prevent such heinous crimes from being repeated, is this Sex Offender Registry a useful thing, or just a waste of taxpayer dollars? They obviously aren't being rehabilitated before their release. How would you rather have the government spend your taxpayer dollars:

• Administration of a Sex Offender Registry that is obviously not working?
• Keeping these perverts incarcerated where they can never harm another innocent child?

A no-brainer, right? I agree! Of course, running the Sex Offender Registry probably created jobs. Someone has to keep it going, and shutting it down would probably put them out of work. But if they aren't getting the job done, are they really worth what we're paying them? Unfortunately, if you want job security in the world today, you have to be successful at what you do.

And others will argue that keeping offenders incarcerated is costly and there isn't enough room to house them all. I ask you one simple question: what is more costly, the price of continued incarceration or the loss of an innocent young child? I don't think there's any room for arguement there.

So what can you do now? Contact your Senators and Representatives. Tell them that you expect them to do something to put an end to the senseless slaughter of our children by these convicted perverts. Write them. Call them. Email them. Do it today!

And let me know how (and if) they respond.

Joe