Sunday May 22, 2005

How Long Does it Take to Walk 2,500 Feet?

Miami Beach Miami Beach Mayor David Dermer is pushing for a law that would make it illegal for convicted sexual offenders to live within 2,500 feet of a school. It sounds like a good idea, but it’s not.

Consider: Only 5 to 10 percent of sexual crimes against children are ever reported. 97% are committed by family members and friends of the family. So living near a school is irrelevant, because it’s not how most child sexual predators find their victims. This suggests that the law would create little more then a false sense of security. Also, by grouping all sexual offenders into a single category (an 18 year old who has consensual sex with a 17 year old is considered a sexual offender) we spend massive resources on groups of people, some of whom are know to be very unlikely to re-offend.

The point that is stressed by researchers over and over is that money spent on prevention is much more effective at preventing these crimes then money spent controlling convicts the way we are currently doing it.

Now, Miami Beach is a small place. Very little of it is not within 2,500 feet of a school. Some suspect that Dermer is merely trying to push convicted sexual offenders off the island altogether. Understandable, but the City of Miami is not happy about it, and is considering suing.

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  1. Miami Harold    Mon May 23, 08:43 PM #  

    Look how back-asswards this is.

    On the admittedly questionable assumption that anybody should be forced to live anywhere in particular, a more utilitarian approach would be to force sex offenders WITHIN a certain restricted range of a school. That way, their behavior could be closely monitored by parents, teaching professionals, counselors, and police. We’d know where they are.

    The opposite approach, proposed by the Mayor, scatters the allegedly dangerous felon to the four winds where god only knows what he’ll do next or to whom. It’s similar to the bizarre thinking that leads to innocent people living behind bars on their doors and windows while criminals roam free in the streets.

  2. Camilo    Tue May 24, 11:13 AM #  

    I worked for a few not-for-profits that dealt with sex offenders (http://www.AChildIsMissing.org) and others that dealt with survivors of sexual abuse (http://www.InnerMotion.org). From the cases that I’ve observed, incidents are almost exclusively family members or friends. As you said, the incidents are rarely reported to the authorities.

    The stranger abduction, the predator waiting in the shade of a school playground is undoubtedly the most threatening image. It’s this visage of the ultimate violator that mothers abhor.

    Fear motivates the idiots. The mayor is simply making a move to nail down his soccer mom vote – the easiest idiots to motivate.

  3. izZY    Wed May 25, 06:35 PM #  

    the law may or may not sound good but yet with every time spent on not doing anything

    we are lose these kids to these sick fucks.

    in my own idea
    we should put there ass all together and live 2gether…let them do that shit to them self

    we are to soft .

  4. Miami Harold    Fri May 27, 09:42 AM #  

    With The “City” of Pembroke Pines mulling over the same kind of idiotic ordinance, it was determined that the only area of town offenders could occupy would be Century Village. What a hoot. Perverts prowling the pools and patios of Cemetery Village sounds like a description of hell—for the pervs. Why not make it 10,000 feet? Or 10,000 miles, for that matter? Where does this shit stop? Leave it to lawmakers to make sexual offenders look like the victims.

  5. GlennK    Sat May 28, 05:25 PM #  

    It’s another non-ssue that pols love to distract people with so they can do biz as usual behind the scenes. Give the public distractions is their motto. Pols are like stage magicians everywhere. You are directed too look where they want you too look and we do don’t we? That’s why this country is FUCKED right now. The crowd running the show are all specialist in 3 card Monty.

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