I have worked with ex offenders for 20+years, have attended seminars about sex offenders in particular, live in MI where we have a web site with offender registry information.
In the first place, I feel strongly that molestation is a horrid act, that people who do should be punished. I am glad that there’s been more attention there and that sentences are generally longer than they’ve been in the past. I feel for your circumstances, Annie-Xmas, but frankly, for all you know, there may be a child molester living next door to you right now (one that hasn’t been convicted yet for example).
The following is also pretty much posted at the other thread on the subject (“do Megan’s laws work”)
The assumption is that molesters are more likely to reoffend than other convicted offenders, and that is wrong. Flat out. Molesters who molest their same sex are more likely to reoffend than those who molest opposite sex. Molesters who molest within their own family are less likely to reoffend than those who molest strangers. But molesters, as a group are less likely to reoffend than other offenders.
What Megan’s Laws DO is create a large cumbersome expensive structure that allows some parents to FEEL as if they are doing something concrete to protect their child.
In MI, the sex offender registry contains many errors (including having addresses listed where no molester lives, can you imagine how fun that is?).
And what are you going to do with the information? Burn the guys house down (that’s been done)? Warn your child to stay away from that bad man there?
Let’s examine that last one. This is the tactic that frightens me the most. Children do not process information the same way we do. When you point the man out as being bad, and stay away, what they hear is that pretty much every one else is ok.
Your child is most likely to be molested by some one the family knows and trusts already. So, my preference to protect my child is to make him a bad victim.
I taught him that he should NEVER keep a secret from me and if some one told him to do so, to hurry and tell me right away. I told him to never go anywhere unless I knew about it first. Not simply “don’t go to that man’s house” or “get into cars with strangeres”. Molesters are very, very good at getting kids to comply with them (Here, I’ve got something to show you. Can you help me find my puppy? etc). Molestations can occur in closets, cars, open areas etc.
I taught him that if some one tried to physically grab at him, he should scream bloody hell. I’ve taught him to tell me immediately if ANYONE ever wants to take his picture, give him a present, have him go somewhere, play “special” games.
Knowing who the convicted abusers are is important for the police in order to investigate a crime. Of course, even for the police it does nothing if the person hasn’t been convicted yet.
About the only thing you might be able to accomplish is to make sure that abuser doesn’t molest your child. And I’m not even guarenteeing that. But at the same time, you may be setting your child up to be a more perfect victim for some one else.
