Law and Disorder: A minister, sex offender and advocate

Ten years ago videographer/photographer Max Schulte and I did a project about sex offenders in Monroe County.

The project — the first largely video project at the Democrat and Chronicle — focused on how state lawmakers created laws that greatly increased the number of sex offenders on public registries, but the state provided little in the way of additional resources for police and probation officers who kept tabs on the whereabouts of the sex offenders.

This was not unusual: State legislators often create new laws and hold feel-good press conferences with little concern about the impact at the local level.

While reporting, we met the Rev. David Hess, the minister at West Henrietta Baptist Church. Hess was a Level 1 sex offender — considered the least dangerous — who advocated for thoughtful laws. I did not know much of his story; he was instead a conduit to others whom we interviewed.

While researching the registry this week, I decided to try to reconnect with Hess. I did not know that he had passed away. Online I found this recognition of him, with a letter he’d written to a lawmaker about the registry.

We in the media are quick to sensationalize this issue. That’s why Halloween ride-alongs with probation and parole officials checking in on sex offenders have become as common as Groundhog Day coverage. There is no research showing an increased danger to children on Halloween, but news stories either do not note this or mention it as a passing aside. (Local TV reporter Rachel Barnhart has discussed this on her Facebook page.)

In his letter, Hess wrote, “I always say that I am not an advocate for sex offenders, I am an advocate for evidence based sex offender laws and policies. Ultimately the policies and laws that are best for former offenders make for safer communities.”

Basing laws and treatment on evidence and not fear is not the same as ignoring sex offenders or the pain they create. It’s just asking for a rational response.

That’s not asking too much, is it?

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