A Sex Offender Can Be Anyone

Last week we posted about a police officer and army recruiter who both were convicted during the week for having an unlawful sexual encounter with Children.

Our purpose for highlighting the stories is not to “out” sex offenders, but to make a point. That a “sex offender” can be anyone. It’s most likely not a recidivist ‘dirty old man’ who is hiding out behind the school yard ready to snatch a kid. It’s far more likely the person at the head of the classroom who is teaching your child.

Yes, last week too a Broward teacher was arrested for his illegal sexual relationship with one of his students, the Sun Sentinel reported.

Parents and Politicians seem to think that their children are safe now that residency restrictions keep all the danger 2500 feet from their child’s school and that police are enforcing this protection. But do they consider that police officers can turn into sexual offenders? Or that military recruiters come into the school to recruit for more than just military service? Or that their own child’s teacher might be the predator they are afraid of?

I’m sure law enforcement personnel and teachers underwent the most rigorous screening and background checks before they were given access to children – but that didn’t help in these cases and thousands more. In fact it doesn’t help for the 90+% of cases where the victim is known to the perpetrator or where the perpetrator is in a position of trust. If a “registry” focuses all these resources and attention on the least likely perpetrators, how effective can it be?