# Should pedophilic sex offenders ever be released? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [September 8, 2006, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954 "2006-09-08T18:18:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 7:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/41 "2006-09-09T07:00:40Z")
Gosh Erie774, I never partipate in threads like this, but your words brought tears to my eyes. I have kids that are 2 and 1, and I would absolutely crumble if something like that ever happened to them. But I really think that I’d view this differently if I were in a similar position, after the anger had subsided to point where I could think logically. My child will not be affected by what happens to the rapist. Let the law handle it. I need to concentrate on my child. My family has paid the price for society’s ills. It’s not my responsibility to protect the next victim. I need to focus all of my energy on my child, and not on revenge. With love and attention, she can live a normal life. ---
**Author:** ![Ms2001](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ms2001/32/18463_2.png) [@Ms2001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ms2001)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 9:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/42 "2006-09-09T09:41:54Z")
Under the definition of “child” being used in this thread, particularly post #24, I have to say no to automatic life imprisonment. There’s a world of difference between someone who forces himself upon a prepubescent child who is unwilling or simply doesn’t know any better, and someone who has consensual sex with a 17 year old - but both can be considered “sex crimes against children”. But let me set that aside for the moment. Even if we limit it to the first group of criminals, I think the sentence has to be based on how likely they are to abuse someone else. Keeping someone in jail for the rest of his life as _revenge_ for committing an offensive crime is barbaric if we aren’t legitimately convinced that letting him out would put someone in danger. I don’t know if a 1/3 chance of reoffending is high enough to justify that. [QUOTE=erie774] Personally, I don’t want them out in the population again. Boo hoo. Unfair treatment. Insensitive to their civil rights. They deserve a chance to get on with their lives after a horrible mistake. Who cares! Can they restore my daughter’s innocence? Can they remove our family’s pain? Send them to Siberia. Use them for medical experiments you wouldn’t test on a rat. Strap them to the front of a tank. [/quote] Can strapping the kid to a tank or handing him over to Dr. Mengele restore your daughter’s innocence? ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/43 "2006-09-09T12:25:43Z")
[QUOTE=MLS] I’m not especially religious, but Luke 17:2 seems appropriate: That pretty much sums it up for me. It’s bad if you hurt someone, worse if you kill a man or woman. Harm a child? Intentionally? Abusively? Forget it. Society has no further use for you. If we can’t execute, then permanent lock 'em up. [/QUOTE] I am especially religious, and Amen, Brother- Lord JC had mercy on the adulteress & the harlots & the publicans but if the Elders had brough a child molester before Him… He still may have said “Let him who is without sin cast the first stone” but I have little doubt His next action would have been to let one fly right for the maggot’s head. And btw, U.S. law makes distinctions between pre-pubescent children, 13-15 teens, 16-17 teens, and legal adults. Age of consent is not uniformly 18 across the U.S. And a 14yo genitally touching a 5yo- I have some problem with the torture, fewer problems with the killing, no problem with one good beating by her Dad. If he’d gone much further, I’d have no problem with the killing. Send the defective product either to the repair shop or the dump, depending on your spiritual beliefs. It’s the Circle of Life. Now to really answer what I think the OP meant- actual adult rapists & seducers of actual children should never be released. I’d definitely give them life only in circumstances where we can’t give them death. ---
**Author:** ![Ms2001](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ms2001/32/18463_2.png) [@Ms2001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ms2001)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/44 "2006-09-09T12:31:00Z")
[QUOTE=FriarTed] I am especially religious, and Amen, Brother- Lord JC had mercy on the adulteress & the harlots & the publicans but if the Elders had brough a child molester before Him… He still may have said “Let him who is without sin cast the first stone” but I have little doubt His next action would have been to let one fly right for the maggot’s head. [/quote] Damn right, Jesus was always handing out beatdowns. That’s why they called him the prince of peace. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/45 "2006-09-09T16:03:14Z")
[QUOTE=Mr2001] Damn right, Jesus was always handing out beatdowns. That’s why they called him the prince of peace. [/QUOTE] “I come not to bring peace, but the sword.” ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/46 "2006-09-09T16:18:21Z")
There is a pedophile/murderer living in my town two doors down from a school bus stop. I don’t know how this monster is even out of prison, but there was a big bruhah over whether the town had the right to know his background. It just makes me sick that child molesters/murderers are not kept in prison. And here’s a [cite](http://poynteronline.org/content/content_view.asp?id=5606) for anyone who thinks I am making this up. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Borgia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/larry_borgia/32/156_2.png) [@Larry\_Borgia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Borgia)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/47 "2006-09-09T16:22:58Z")
[QUOTE=Annie-Xmas] There is a pedophile/murderer living in my town two doors down from a school bus stop. I don’t know how this monster is even out of prison, but there was a big bruhah over whether the town had the right to know his background. It just makes me sick that child molesters/murderers are not kept in prison. And here’s a [cite](http://poynteronline.org/content/content_view.asp?id=5606) for anyone who thinks I am making this up. [/QUOTE] How is someone who buries someone alive–even an adult, let alone a child–ever let out of prison? ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/48 "2006-09-09T17:26:52Z")
[QUOTE=DanBlather] Sex crimes include public urination. I think the death penalty is a bit harsh for that. [/QUOTE] Cite? ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/49 "2006-09-09T17:34:44Z")
[QUOTE=diggleblop] Child = Under 18 years of age in the U.S. [/QUOTE] In fifth grade I was raped by a sixth grader. When I was in sixth grade I had sex with a female classmate, voluntary on both our parts but probably born of a lot of self-loathing and neediness on hers, and, let’s face it, mine. Shall we all surrender ourselves to you, or should we summon the local constabulary? ---
**Author:** ![mks57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@mks57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mks57)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/50 "2006-09-09T18:13:18Z")
[QUOTE=Bricker] Cite? [/QUOTE] In Re Birch, 10 Cal.3d 314, 515 P.2d 12, 110 Cal.Rptr. 212 (1973) > [@](#): > > While petitioner possibly might have suspected that a guilty plea could result in a short jail sentence, we cannot believe that he was aware that as a consequence of urinating in a parking lot at 1:30 in the morning he would be required to register as a sex offender. Certainly counsel would have advised him of this grave and direct consequence of his guilty plea; in the absence of counsel the responsibility for such advice rested with the court. Without this advice, we conclude that petitioner’s waiver of counsel and plea of guilty cannot be regarded as having been knowingly and intelligently made. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/51 "2006-09-09T20:18:12Z")
[QUOTE=erie774] [QUOTE=Foxy40] Why should I have to move? We are not the criminals here. His family has been ostracized by the neighborhood yet they are not getting the hint that they are not welcome. I heard that someone saw them doing a lot of painting inside so I hope they are going to sell. [/QUOTE] You wont know if you are moving down the street or next door to another one. At least this one is identified. ---
**Author:** ![diggleblop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac91a4/32.png) [@diggleblop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diggleblop)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/52 "2006-09-09T22:42:00Z")
Does anyone have the link that identifies offenders in your area? My computer/browser is acting up and I can’t get on google for some reason right now. ---
**Author:** ![Slypork](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc29f/32.png) [@Slypork](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slypork)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2006, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/53 "2006-09-09T23:44:45Z")
[QUOTE=diggleblop] Does anyone have the link that identifies offenders in your area? My computer/browser is acting up and I can’t get on google for some reason right now. [/QUOTE] [MapOffender](http://www.mapsexoffenders.com/) not only links to the state list it shows them on a map how close they are to you. Look, I’m not really going to kill or torture him and killing the kid would never restore my daughter’s innocence, but I don’t want him to get away with it and I worry about him becuase I don’t think his parent will get him the help he needs. I want him to remember this for the rest of his life. I want him to never forget what e did and how it ruined the lives of himself, his family, my family. If he can’t live near a school or park, then too bad. He is a potential threat. We have all seen the news reports about abusers have not only done it again, but they then kill their victim. It escalates with each time. The thrill of the act isn’t enough. Megan’s Law has helped but we are still relying on criminals to be honest and report their whereabouts. We can’t trust petty theives to report to their parole officers. The registry lists are not maintained properly as investigated in [Illinois](http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=News&id=885533) . The debate about requiring paroled offenders to have ID tracking chips implanted is raging and grows stronger every time another paroled offender commits a crime. I’ve seen too many Dateline reports about pedophiles cruising for kids online. I’ve heard too many psychologists on TV and in magazines talk about how pedophilia is an uncontrollable impulse that they cannot be “cured” of. They are sick people who should not be allowed around children. If “Tommy” had actually gotten to rape my daughter, he could have been locked up until he was 18 and be forced to register for a total of 10 years. Only the last 6 years of his registry would be visible to the public. Then he would drop off the radar and no one would ever know what he had done. And someone else might suffer. I couldn’t live with the thought of that. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2006, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/54 "2006-09-10T01:29:34Z")
[QUOTE=erie774] We have all seen the news reports about abusers have not only done it again, but they then kill their victim. It escalates with each time. The thrill of the act isn’t enough. [/quote] No, not usually. It’s actually somewhat rare for a sex offender to kill their victims. Many of them have a twisted sort of affection for those they molest and would express horror at the notion of killing them. It is true that the level of sexual involvement may increase (as in a toucher becoming a penetrator) but that’s not _always_ the case. ---
**Author:** ![Slypork](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc29f/32.png) [@Slypork](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slypork)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2006, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/55 "2006-09-10T02:04:45Z")
[QUOTE=Rigamarole] So, although you are against the touching of children’s sexual organs, you are all for the torturing and killing of children? [/QUOTE] This “child” had been involved in another incident last year. This “child” had been coercing my daughter into first showing her underwear and then into exposing herself. This “child” knew what he was doing was wrong and warned her to not tell anyone because he would get in trouble again. He made a choice to do something wrong. No, I really wouldn’t torture or kill him. If I thought there was a chance in hell that he would get the help he needs, I’d actually be (almost) OK with him not getting locked away. But his parents aren’t keepin him under constant observation the way they are supposed to. Even though everyone at his school knows about what he did, they still are sending him to school. They are acting as if we are the problem. He is destined to do this again. He will hurt another little girl. he should not be given the chance. He should be put into an institution with other sick individuals. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2006, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/56 "2006-09-10T02:56:29Z")
[QUOTE=erie774] This “child” had been involved in another incident last year. This “child” had been coercing my daughter into first showing her underwear and then into exposing herself. This “child” knew what he was doing was wrong and warned her to not tell anyone because he would get in trouble again. He made a choice to do something wrong. No, I really wouldn’t torture or kill him. If I thought there was a chance in hell that he would get the help he needs, I’d actually be (almost) OK with him not getting locked away. But his parents aren’t keepin him under constant observation the way they are supposed to. Even though everyone at his school knows about what he did, they still are sending him to school. They are acting as if we are the problem. He is destined to do this again. He will hurt another little girl. he should not be given the chance. He should be put into an institution with other sick individuals. [/QUOTE] Considering he did this once before-are you sure that this kid isn’t being molested himself as well? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2006, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/57 "2006-09-10T03:55:25Z")
[QUOTE=diggleblop] Under 18 is under 18. A child is a child. If it’s considered a “sex crime”, then yes, you do treat him the same. [/QUOTE] So then the 45 yo dude who forcibly rapes 5 yo kids is considered the same as the 8yo boy who kisses a girl in his class- against her will? :dubious: The point is- every “child” isn’t the same level of innocence, and every “sex crime” isn’t the same level of heinousness. A 18 yo found wacking off while looking through a peephole at 17 yo girls in his HS isn’t some horrible monster like _real_ child molestors. In fact, he isn’t a pedophile, either. IN CA, for example- if they are both under 18 but over 16 and it’s consensual, there is usually no crime. If the dude is 18 and she is 17 (yes, I know sometimes it’s the older female doing the “molesting” but that’s rare and not prosecuted as strongly, from what I see) then it’s “only” statutory rape", but if the child is under 16, then it is really child molestation. Some “sex crimes” aren’t violent- like a man “exposing himself”- should that be pebalized just like forcible rape? ---
**Author:** ![PBear42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecccb3/32.png) [@PBear42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PBear42)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2006, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/58 "2006-09-10T04:36:15Z")
My problem with the “throw away the key” solution is that it is admittedly overinclusive. Even accepting the 43% recidivism rate from the study linked in [Post #12](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=7758775&postcount=12), this means that more half the time we throw away the key, the person incarcerated would not have repeated the offense. Meanwhile, our criminal justice system has two predicates. One is that we don’t punish thoughts or desires, only actions. Another is that we presume innocence rather than guilt. It is often said, better that ten guilty go free than one innocent be convicted. In fact, our tolerance for errant convictions is much lower. Throwing away the key violates both principles. So, yes, by all means. Assuming Tommy is convicted, he should be punished for the crime he has committed. He should not, however, be further punished for some future crime he may or may not commit. And I will add my voice, **erie774** , to those wishing your daughter a speedy recovery. ---
**Author:** ![Ms2001](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ms2001/32/18463_2.png) [@Ms2001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ms2001)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2006, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/59 "2006-09-10T04:45:43Z")
[QUOTE=DrDeth] IN CA, for example- if they are both under 18 but over 16 and it’s consensual, there is usually no crime. [/quote] Well, there’s a misdemeanor… California is one of the states where two minors who have sex with each other are both guilty. > [@CA Penal Code](#): > > [261.5.](http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/cacodes/pen/261-269.html) (a) Unlawful sexual intercourse is an act of sexual intercourse accomplished with a person who is not the spouse of the perpetrator, if the person is a minor. For the purposes of this section, a “minor” is a person under the age of 18 years and an “adult” is a person who is at least 18 years of age. > (b) Any person who engages in an act of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor who is not more than three years older or three years younger than the perpetrator, is guilty of a misdemeanor. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2006, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954/60 "2006-09-11T03:27:40Z")
[QUOTE=Mr2001] Well, there’s a misdemeanor… California is one of the states where two minors who have sex with each other are both guilty. [/QUOTE] Me :"IN CA, for example- if they are \*both under 18 but over 16 \*and it’s consensual, there is usually no crime. " Note two year diff in age. CA Code: “b) Any person who engages in an act of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor \*who is not more than three years older or three years younger than the perpetrator, \*is guilty of a misdemeanor.” IANAL, and it’s at least _stupid_ anyway. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-pedophilic-sex-offenders-ever-be-released/371954.md?page=4)