v wrote on November 02, 2007 12:06 PM: Teresa..the witch hunt takes a lot of heat off the politicians. A naive public could care less about a truth as you describe until suddenly they are accused. There a lot of good people who have been wrongly accused and convicted as well as totally not understood and thrown into a catagory.

A sex offense accusation destroys lives whether or not the accusation is proven;often times used as a weapon.

Teresa wrote on November 02, 2007 10:45 AM: I am the ex-wife of the 43 year old and have gone through all of this too because of my former relationship with this person. Why not mention that he has admitted that what he did was wrong, has never avoided punishment and has accepted full responsibiity for his actions, has been 100% compliant with EVERY aspect of his probation even though his Parole Officer changes constantly, has never missed a therapy session, has passed every polygraph test given, has paid every numerous fee imposed upon him, continues to work his tail off every day on his job of more than 10 years, has now been sober for almost 3 years and has never failed a drug/alcohol test, and I believe is a Tier 1, not 2. He has lost everything because of his lapse in judgment which he will pay for every day for the rest of his life. However, he has two beautiful, wonderfully loving honor roll children that he has lost (and were not a part of any of this). Not everyone convicted of a sex crime is "Chester Stiles." There's a lot more to these people's stories. However, they've all been painted as non-compliant, horrible, child-preying, waiting in the shadows to pounce and assault perverts and that's not always the case. I find your article, and the entire system lacking.

Scarecrow wrote on November 01, 2007 07:42 PM: I'm sure sex offenders and drug abusers were around when I was growing up. The numbers continue to increase as the population grows.

I think what has brought it to the forefront today is the publics perceived "need to know". Today we can search a national database to find out if our next door neighbor is a registered sex offender. 20 years ago that would have been unheard of.

I also believe the numbers continue to climb because of the Internet. Parents today, and I'm was guilty of it, allow children to go unchecked. They let them pretend to be someone they're not, and of course there are predators who also pretend they are someone they're not.

Six years ago my then 15 year old daughter became the victim of a sex offender. After the offender became registered, I did a search and found that a person I had participated in a sport with, had been a registered sex offender for about 10 years. I would never have know if it weren't for the Internet. I will also say I didn't treat him any different after I found out, than before I found out.

nehemiah wrote on November 01, 2007 02:09 PM: Idealistically, I guess we are pretty much on the same page, Scarecrow.

However, a label doesn't define the person. Citizens need to get more involved (ie.parents) to gain a better understanding of the entire matter rather than rely on feel gooders, people with too much time on their hands,and parasites seeking votes; and cause constructive reform to take shape.

Sex offenders of this type have been around since...ever watch the history channel or been a human being?

P&P cannot bear the burden of society nor can the taxpayers. The numbers keep growing exponentially...why?

People need to get involved, educated, and participate not as vigilantes or hand wringers but responsible, neighbors, parents and members of the community.

Where was all this hoop-la when you were growing up?

Scarecrow wrote on November 01, 2007 11:38 AM: Hey Nehemiah -

Certainly our judicial system isn't perfect and there are times when the justice served isn't what you or I would expect.

One thing to consider is that a person convicted of murder isn't necessarily out each day looking for another victim. On the other hand, sex offenders, i.e. pedofiles, are always lurking about looking for another victim, one of the primary reasons they may be given a lifetime of supervision.

One of the biggest problems we have today is the lack of parenting. When I was a kid, we sat down as a family for dinner. Video games were non-existent, so you spent the evening watching TV as a family, reading, or doing work around the house. When I was a kid, I knew what time I was to be home, and if I wasn't there was a price to pay. My parents knew where I was going, and if I wasn't there, there was a price to pay. It was also the same with my friends.

Parents today don't interact with their kids, they let Sony, Nintendo, Wii, take care of their kids. Parents today grab takeout food so that dinner takes 15 minutes or less. Parents today expect anyone, other than themselves, to raise their kids.

Yes, there are sex offenders working in the school system. But hey, don't forget to look at the corner church, they have sex offenders as well.

anonymous wrote on November 01, 2007 11:32 AM: cmk...br

These are serious issues..all of them. Petty comments need to remain at a bar.

Sounds like neither of you know what you are talking about..otherwise, you would say something more constructive with something to back it up.

An alleged child 'sex offender' isn't necessarily a predator, and many are friends and relatives, teachers, cops, coaches, etc... that are known to the victim as well as under the radar.

You watch some of those 'sting' shows, some of those guys on camera sound just like cmk

nehemiah wrote on November 01, 2007 10:38 AM: Hey Scarecrow et al!!

Your comment: 'If I were accused of this crime, and I knew I was not guilty of it, I would do whatever it took to clear my name. I wouldn't take a "deal". How do you figure a murderer gets less time than a sex offender?'

There are cases that are being fought in federal court just like you describe.

There are plea deals that were made where the DA and the Public Defender lied, witheld vital evidence, and coerced a plea through misrepresentations and omissions.

There are cases of hands on offenses with short probations and no life time supervision, and there are cases with lifetime supervision with no hands on offense with evidence showing up at the same time as a search warrant being executed.

A lot of travesties coming from the 'partnership' between the DA and Public Defender and an inept judicial system have never been corrected even though there on ongoing investigations.

The FBI and DOJ is looking into this stuff as constitutional and even criminal violations.

However; our children need to be safe...to be children and do what children do. There are sick people, and there are uneducated people.

Instead of political feel good-er’s , and knee jerk remedies while things run out of control;

Parents need to pay more attention to their kids and appropriate education regarding these issues should be offered to school age people.

But wait!!! We have educators offending our children right here in Clark County.

Any suggestions?

Scarecrow wrote on November 01, 2007 08:39 AM: Saddened - I don't know where you're getting your statistics; but you sound like either a preacher or ACLU employee, "the system did them wrong". If I were accused of this crime, and I knew I was not guilty of it, I would do whatever it took to clear my name. I wouldn't take a "deal". How do you figure a murderer gets less time than a sex offender?

And Old Rocker, I hope the officers got paid triple time, in order to make sure my kids, and yours, were kept safe from sexual predators.

br wrote on November 01, 2007 07:46 AM: It has been proven over and over that rehab does not work with these predators. Making excuses for them tells me you have a personal agenda.

old rocker wrote on November 01, 2007 07:45 AM: Sounds like unnecessary harassment to me too. I hope none of those cops got paid overtime.

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