As we all know, Phillip Garrido was on the California Sex Offender Registry, but got away with holding Jaycee Lee Dugard hostage for 18 years in a makeshift tent and shed village in his backyard. Although the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, which oversees probation officers, and the various police departments involved with this case. A search of Contra Costa county brought up listings for 933 sex offenders, 122 of which list Antioch, California as home. With that many sex offenders in such a small area, each of their yards can't be searched thoroughly and completely for the sake of time.
Laurie Essig said it best in her article "Why harsh sex offender laws made Garrido's crimes easier to commit" when she said "The harsher the laws get, the more people who are caught in the ever-expanding net of offenses, the easier it is for the real child abusers to go undetected," meaning too much law enforcement time is being spent on keeping an eye on streakers, public urinators, and teenagers having consensual sex.
In her article, she quoted a Human Rights Watch report, which read "at least five states required men to register if they were caught visiting prostitutes. At least 13 required it for urinating in public (in two of which, only if a child was present). No fewer than 29 states required registration for teenagers who had consensual sex with another teenager. And 32 states registered flashers and streakers."
The men visiting prostitutes requirement is a little silly. Sure, they're breaking the law. Solicitation of prostitution is a crime. But, I don't think they're sex offenders. Encouraging them to patronize a prostitute would prevent them from trying to force someone to have sex with them later. Urinating in public is not a sex crime; therefore, someone who urinates in public shouldn't be considered a sex offender. Now, if the two states that force you to register as a sex offender if you urinate in public in front of children has Crimes Against Children registries, I would understand, but even then it gets a little hazy.
Five laws exist regarding sex offender registries:
* Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act
* Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent Offender Registration Act
* Jessica Lunsford Act
* Jessica's Law
* Megan's Law
All of these laws should be combined into one to produce one cohesive piece of legislation that would be written into national law.
We need to fight sex offenders smarter, not harder. Reform is needed to clear out the registries, and fill them with real offenders. Each registry should have three sections where you can determine what level of offender you would want to search for, whether it be low, moderate, or high level. Yet, all of them would be looked at the same way because they're called the same thing: sex offender.
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All the attention given to registered sex offenders gives a distorted perception of the more likely perpetrators of sex crimes against children. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, 93% of children who are victims of sexual abuse are victimized by family members or acquaintances. 94% of those arrested for the sexual molestation of children in New York State are first time offenders who are not listed on any registry. To put it another way, if a child has been the victim of sexual abuse, the odds are 4 in 1,000 that the child was victimized by a stranger who is a registered sex offender. The odds are far greater, 874 in 1,000, that the child was victimized by a family member or acquaintance who is not listed on the sex offender registry. The primary effect of sex offender registries is to give the public a false sense of security.
Allen Glines states in his piece that,"Sure, they're breaking the law. Solicitation of prostitution is a crime. But, I don't think they're sex offenders. Encouraging them to patronize a prostitute would prevent them from trying to force someone to have sex with them later."
This is a very silly statement. Plenty of prostitutes get raped on a far too regular basis. There are frequent stories and testimonials of those in sex industry that have endured rape. The problem is prostitutes often have trouble proving that they have been sexual assaulted. For rapists it is often not so much about having sex as it is having the ability to impose their will on others. Also many prostitutes are not hookers but are in actuality unwilling sexual slaves to criminal organizations. A "customer" in such a scenario is in effect a rapist, whether or not he knows the circumstances of those they solicit. Sex under duress or threat of harm is still rape. On this issue, I think Glines needs more education.
The registry laws, and especially the residency / work place restrictions, have done far more harm than good. Forget about all the cases of vigilantism; forget about the fact that while these laws are proposed to protect the children, they include children, and a huge percentage of those on the list committed crimes that had nothing to do with children; forget about the fact that study after study has proven these laws not only are ineffective, but have actually made matters worse; forget about the fact that upon release from custody, registered sex offenders have one of the lowest recidivism rates, not the highest. In fact those who receive counseling and treatment while in custody have outstanding records as opposed to those convicted of other violent crimes! The fact is the registry and the residency / work place restrictions should be limited only to those who are proven child molesters and pedophiles. This Law Enforcement can handle and monitor effectively. Do you seriously believ
a committed pedophile cannot walk or drive 500, 1000, 2500, 5000 feet or more? Jaycee Lee Dugard was abducted miles away from where Philip Garrido lived!
I am sure we will see comments from some hysterical, uninformed individual(s) who will suggest that all those on the registry should be locked up for life or worse. They will say there is no rehabilitation for these people. And for a few they are right, which is why we need to focus on them! Once a person has done his or her time that should be it. That is the foundation of this great country and its legal system. If you don’t like it, move to China, Russia, North Korea, Iran, or wherever individual rights are ignored. If a person is a proven pedophile, lock them up for a very long time and provide treatment. If treatment is not working, keep them locked up. Too many families are being destroyed for political expediency. Too many children of those on the registry are being abused and ostracized at school. Too many families are bein
Too many families are being forced into isolation and restricted from the work place. If we are truly trying to protect the children with the registry, then let’s focus on the pedophiles and child molesters’. Get rid of the residency / work place restrictions and focus on the loitering laws. Let the rest of those on the registry re-assimilate into society after they have done their time and become solid, productive citizens; part of the solution not the problem. The facts, (and the Garrido case) as well as virtually all of the research, and study after study have proven what we are doing now, mostly for political expediency and to appease hysterical uninformed parents is not working and is in fact making matters worse!
Hey whant up I well be are our it good sex I will be are ous I well bw are our 18yrs me it try with boys sex me.............yes it money buy no money
After 25 years in Law Enforcement and having worked with both sex offenders and these sex offender laws. I have a view that is a little different. The view is that we have so many people on sex offender registrys that it is hard for law enforcement and the public to know who they should be watching. Make sex offender registrys for what they should be. Only those who sexualy assault a child that is no relationship to them and not a case of a 16 year ikd wutg a 15 year old having sex.
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