02.19.2008 8:41 am
Will extreme tracking protect our kids?
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
In this story, my colleague writes about technology used to keep track of sex offenders. While I believe these efforts are important, I wonder if it prevents us from focusing on other ways of preventing these crimes against children. As the article notes, most sex offenders are never caught and prosecuted. And, it seems like too often these criminals are able to plea bargain their way out of a sex crime. Does this type of GPS-tracking help or give parents a false sense of security?
Aisha covered education and breaking news for nearly ten years before joining the Lifestyle staff where she writes a "Dirty Laundry" parenting column. She is the home and family editor and wastes too much time on Facebook and political blogs. 
Until the laws are amended so that the bulk of our resources are used to monitor those offenders who are very high risk predators, every effort made gives parents a false sense of security. Our children are not at risk from a neighbor on the registry who is simply trying to live a law abiding life. Statistics tell us that that neighbor is not the risk to our children as is the other neighbor down the street who is an alcoholic. Our lawmakers have made us hysterical about an issue that rarely happens. Known sex offenders in our communities are rarely a risk. The risk is at school, church, Uncle Joe’s, or the child’s own home. Over 90% of children are sexually abused by someone close who they trust. The public should demand that registration laws be based on honest evidence not knee jerk reaction. Our children will then be safer.
When are people going to start listening to the experts so that we can finally get a clue about sex offense and sex offenders. The person’s face 90% most likely to molest your child will be found in your family photo album, not on the registry. There is something very broken in our society. We are now a disposable society. It does not work, throw it away and get a different one. This approach, altho instantly gratifying, does not work with human beings. It does not work if the person committing the crime is a first time offender, which we have found true in over 90% of new child molestations.
We are in a crisis of fear in this country and it is the responsibility of the media to tell the TRUTH, not keep reinforcing myths.