Talk of banning persons forced to register as sex offenders from bars
Every day we scan news headlines, appellate court decisions and legislative filings to learn about current events impacting people on the registry. During our daily perusal, we came across this article, which questioned whether persons forced to register as sex offenders should be barred from entering places which serve alcohol. The supposition for the story was that Brock Turner (a Stanford student who sexually assaulted an intoxicated fellow student) was seen at a bar recently. Since he was convicted of sexually assaulting a drunk female, should anyone with a sex offense ever be allowed in a bar again?
The title of the opinion piece was “Brock Turner spotted at Dayton bars, should sex offenders be forced to identify themselves?” and my initial thought was, ‘wow, this is a very long stretch’! I mean, so much of the fear mongering has been focused on schools, parks, playgrounds and such, here’s a location that almost by definition is a place where children CAN NOT congregate. When presenting the question of whether people on the registry should be allowed in bars, this writer’s opinion was “the answer to this question is a resounding no. In an ideal world, people like Brock Turner would be prevented from entering alcohol-serving establishments.”
Whoa! Not just a “no” but a “resounding” no. Really? It seems like a very, very broad generalization, especially when I would venture to say that the circumstances of Turner’s case are not common to the overwhelming majority of the people on the registry. However, the danger is so many laws are passed in the wake of rare but highly publicized occurrences that they fail to consider the sanction is completely unrelated to most that it applies to or that such a law would not have prevented the crime for which it is being enacted (Turner and the victim were at a party in a fraternity house and Turner was not on any registry).
This idea naturally begs the question, why don’t they ban anyone with a DUI from ever entering an establishment that serves alcohol? Or for that matter anyone who committed any crime while intoxicated? That would certainly save more lives than banning registrants. It also begs the question, if you ban registrants from establishments that serve alcohol, what restaurants will be left to dine in? Chuck E Cheese?
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This school paper does not itself represent responsible journalism. I realize the Murnin article was printed as an opinion piece, which allows much more journalistic latitude than does a news piece or an editorial. I find it galling that most people and all organizations such as FAC are not even allowed to respond, thus perpetuating the idiocy. The following is from the paper’s contact page.
“To submit a letter to the editor, please email us at [email protected]. All letters must be from an Athens resident, Ohio University alumni or Ohio University student/faculty member…. Letters from political organizations or other interest groups will not be accepted.”
More cynically the paper pompously states:
“For guest submitted letters, it is critical they be vigorously fact-checked to ensure there is no spreading of misinformation within them.”
I guess the new journalistic standard is to spread misinformation wrapped in the cloak of an opinion piece. I wish Danny Murnin and the paper’s editor would have the professional ethics to express their opinions as an editorial which would be subject to vigorous fact checking.
BTW, I sent the post to the paper’s editor. I think all FAC members should similarly express their opinions even though they won’t be printed.
I try to explain to people that this is the natural progression of an out of control Government that feeds on the fear of the public. I am not the least bit surprised by this as I am sure many of you aren’t either. For any of you out there that think your going to be able to sit this fight out, make no mistake, these types of suggestions and laws are coming to your door step. Find your voice, get involved, and stand up for yourself any way you can. You have paid your debt! This “Bar” ban has got to be one of the most ignorant things I have ever heard.
It’s just a student’s opinion piece in a campus newspaper.
First of all, this article is written very poorly, even for an editorial. Second the lack of knowledge demonstrated by the assumption that all sex offenders committed the same crime is scarily ignorant.
I hope the author learns about research and fact finding as he finished his journalism degree.