Patty Wetterling, the mother of Jacob Wetterling, has been honored with the 2017 Gail-Burns Smith Award, given by the National Sexual Violence Resource Center and the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers.
Wetterling, the mother of 11-year-old Jacob Wetterling, became a tireless advocate for missing and exploited children and sexual assault victims after Jacob was taken by a masked abductor near St. Joseph, Minn., in October 1989. It wasn’t until last September when Danny Heinrich confessed to killing and burying Jacob that the Wetterling family and the nation knew what had happened to the boy.
The award is named for Gail Burns-Smith, one of the first advocates to recognize and speak publicly about the importance of collaboration between victim advocates and those working in the area of sex offender management to effectively prevent child sexual abuse.
Wetterling was presented with the award at the National Sexual Assault Conference held this week in Dallas.
This is good if she and those of her organization deal with facts and not emotion. Facts can be of benefit to both offenders and non-offenders. Most offenders even if they have had inappropriate contact with children can and have been recovered through proper evaluation and counselling. Most RSO’s have come to grips with their failures and just want another chance to prove themselves. Some, very few, have serious mental problems that need to be dealt with but these few should not restrain the potential for societal contributions due to paranoia, emotion, and media hype. Congrats on the award.
She is a very educated woman who has suffered more than almost any of us can ever imagine. Bless this womans family and herself moving forward. Congrats for Award!