TheIcon

Can someone explain to me why sex offenders are singled out as people that have to put there address online and show it to the world? Im not saying what they did was right but I don't understand why it is only them. Sure I want to konw if I live next to a person that touches little girls/boys. I also would like to know if I live next to a person charged with armed robbery, selling drugs, attempted murder, spousal abuse, etc etc.

ScionBandit

^agreed

THansenite

I think that because the offenders target children, they must be registered. With robbery and all of the other things listed, people can take precautions against it. Parents can't watch their kids all the time. If a parent knows that there is an offender in their neighborhood, they will be more cautious about where their kids go. Also, most sex offenders are repeat offenders and it has been studied and found that it is almost impossible to completely "cure" them. Almost like a ticking time bomb waiting to go off again. If I were a parent, I would want to know if one was living in my area. I believe all people convicted of serious/violent crimes should be public knowledge as well. It would help with public safety in my opinion. Just my .02

matt_a

^Well said. As a parent, that pretty-much sums up how I feel about it.

Hot06tC

+1

Celt

If a dangerous animal lived close to your home you would want to know.So you could watch your children and maybe take some precautions.

Its about protecting children not scapegoating people.

superjeer

Good point. There's nothing wrong with knowing where these people are. It's wrong not knowing where the murderers and drug dealers are.

trikkonceptz

Not to defend current policy, but it is likely that if everyone that did something seriously wrong requiring jailtime was made public, it would really scare you ..
To some extend ignorance is bliss, just do your best to raise your children, it's all we can really do.

TheIcon

I agree if we had a map of all criminals it would be scary and we would probably live in a hot air balloon to avoid them all. None the less I just find it interesting.

Someone mentioned protecting children. What about protecting PEOPLE.

Da_Mac

As THansenite said sex offenders are repeat offenders, psychologists have said there is no stopping a sex offender its a disease to them, that they themselves can not control and they will continue to do it again.. Yeah sure so are other crimes and drug addictions but atleast with drugs and robbery you can choose to stop.. you cant chose to stop wanting to have sex, whom ever it is with.. So therefore due to the thankfulness of Megans Law sex offenders must register themselves to alert any people in that neighborhood or vicinty that they are there and for parents to step up their protection over their children.. I personally agree with it.

I understand it would be nice to know that all sorts of criminals live near us and where they live, but in all honesty which do you concider more detramental a theif who will likely rob your house while your at work or a sex offender who will rape your son and/or daughter while they are still innocent and simply playing at the playground.. I think that says enough there..

Also think about this 1 if you knew about each and every single criminal from your petty misdemeanor to your local drug dealer to you armed thief, to a the registered sex offender would you honestly feel safe in that neighborhood and want to live there? The value of homes would go down because no one would want to live anywhere because they would fear all their neighbors are criminals... No where you live will be free of some sort of criminal, and the country cant set aside a state for just criminals to live while the rest of society lives elsewhere that predjudism just cant happen..

I think only sex offenders (of all sorts e.g. molestation, rape, date rape ect) and convicted murderers should need to register themselves. The rest of them should not have to and should be aloud to mingle with the rest of society..

matt_a

This is a different topic, but I don't feel that a convicted murderer should have to register anywhere. We should know exactly where they are, and that should be death row. A convicted murderer should never breath free air again.

THansenite

I agree with that. Violent and child murderers should go to death row. Other murderers should face TRUE life sentences...not getting paroled after a year or two. But they should, as matt_a said, never breathe free air again.

Da_Mac

See by this I was meaning the plea bargin type of murderers. They are the ones that get 25 to life with a possibility of parole and get that possibility. Both of you guys are right the majority of murderers never see the light of day again, but then again there are the rare few that get the chance because of police errors or because of lack of prosecusion or like I said they do 25 yrs and then catch a break and get paroled.

I think they should have to be known in your neighborhood NO??
A big problem with the "death row thing" is some states dont have death row any more these people simply spend life in prison, death row should be reinstated in all states not just certain.

dugzilla

As a father of 3 children I definately want sex offenders to register. I know that if anyone touched one of my kids I would feel the need to take them out of this world. I am not a violent person, but when it comes to my kids HANDS OFF!!!

As far as other criminals are concerned you would be surprised how many of your neighbors would be registered.

Baine

Part of the problem with the sex offenders list is that it is for any type of sex offense.
Not one of the 20 (sigh) sex offenders near my home are there for crimes against
children. So how does that help me as a parent? It helps female joggers I guess.
That just reinforces the need to list other crimes. But that has other problems. When
I was 12 I threw a rock through a neighbors window, now I'm on the Glass offenders list.
Where does it stop? It's good to raise peoples awareness, I hope this tread continues.

THansenite

Yea, I saw a CSI about that the other night. There was a neighborhood with a sex offender in it and another one moved into the same neighborhood. The one that moved into the neighborhood was a child molester. The other one that was living there, however, was simply caught looking in an adult woman's bedroom, but was still labled a sex offender. When the child molester came to town, people saw the other guy was on the list and both were targeted the same even though they were at two completely different levels.

Baine

That's just human nature I suppose.

hotbox05

if sex offenders can never really be "cured" they should stay in prison for LIFE

xb1013

Its all about the Megan law, it might sound unfair to the picture taker or would not. But it is just using the Megan's law as a protection, for both children and the society. It sound like bull crap when u dun get the right to know abt the ex-con, but its the children that is involved. That made the difference

smokeydog001

It's because most sex offenders are liberal democrats and we don't want our kids to get their heads screwed up!