The Sex Offender Site

 

 

How does one recognize a sex offender like e.g. a pedophile? Well, sadly enough, he or she doesn't sprout warts, horns or anything else indicating that he/she is guilty of these sex crimes. Besides, and needless to say, an individual only becomes a culprit by committing the crime, not by thinking about or even planning it. That means that he or she must have been indicted, arrested and preferably also convicted as an offender to be one which makes it difficult or even impossible to warn his/her targets in beforehand. 

Little, innocent ones should be safe, but aren't always as some people may have sexual designs on them. That I knew before i had the VERY unpleasant experience when I, more or less for fun, some years ago Googled the name of a friend and then found out that he fits the picture only too well because there it is: One by now closed criminal case which led to his indictment, and seemingly also a conviction back in time and at least one active case a few years ago.

That was a surprise, but when I thought the matter over I remembered some covert statements about "problems" in his past, but I thought that had to do with his family situation, and his sorrow/anger at being let down by someone very close to him. I know him well enough to see that in reality it was about rage at accusations and convictions which this special and very proud man would never accept as fair. In his opinion those he had victimized must be liars and slanderers and not at all victims because that was how HE saw their "relationship". Needless to say, that man now is out of my circles, so to speak.

However, my experiment taught me something else: To get the full information from criminal files one has to pay some fees and that made me think of the situation many parents will find themselves in. They want to protect their children against predators by finding the necessary information about the activities of someone specific, but can't afford to get it. Also they may find that they risk more than money by giving out their personal information in the application form of the Sex Offender Site. Who
protects them against the criminal who may be vindictive? Nobody! What a crappy way to handle something as serious as this! I would understand this way of handling the situation had it been a shield to protect a vulnerable system, the privacy of the suspects/convicts or of the victims, but it's for earning money. That's not right and it doesn't speak well for the system as such.

As to the man I knew then IF the information I've got just by Googling his name is what it looks like then he sure is a culprit in the true sense of the word, but I can't be sure as to the extent of his crime(-s) until I've decided to pay the fees and that I don't feel like doing. Not only for the expense, but also for the principle in it: This should not be paid for. It's wrong, it's stupid and also discriminatory.

https://www.fbi.gov/how-we-can-help-you/scams-and-safety/sex-offender-registry

https://www.probationinfo.org/sor/cost/

 

Wikipedia