Sarahs Law..

[missjef]

What are your views on this? For those who don't know what it is, it's basically a law which will bring in the right for people to go and see a list of convicted Peaodophiles (sp) in their area.
here's the website which explains it a bit better..
http://www.forsarah.com/html/sarahslaw.html

are you for or against it?

[ummmm]

I'm for it.

[888sally888]

Def for it. I know that if one was living next door or near to me I would want to know.

I have 2 daughters and would have to know and would make sure they were aware also.

[missjef]

I am also for it, but i do think some people will end up abusing it and then it will probably get retracted..

[redcrx]

Id rather know where they were than have them hidden around the country

[Hellion]

I am all for it.

It is my duty as a parent to protect my son from harm in any form and if I can prevent the irreparable damage that would be caused by him being abused by a paedophile then I believe that is my right as a parent.

I have a friend whose brother works in the police force and when she was looking for a house recently he 'suggested' that some of them were best avoided, it was frightening how many times these suggestions were made.

In our local town recently there has been a very high profile case of a minister in the UR Church who is believed to have abused upwards of 200 children - I have met this man on a number of occasions and believe me there was no way of telling. My son almost attended a club for 5-7 year old boys run by him but , thankfully, other committments got in the way, a friend whose son did attend is sick to the stomach that she unwittingly put her child at risk.

[andy-hughes]

This is the thin end of a very dodgy wedge.

I am of course appalled by paedophile crimes, but the knee-jerk vigilante mentality encouraged by this kind of action is highly dangerous.There is no-one quite as dangerous as a self-righteous parent who feels they have the right to harm an individual who (or may not!) represent a threat to their loved ones.

The apropriate response is legal and comprehsnive monitoring, and if that is failing, it needs to be escalated.

Violence from the public is not, and never will be an answer to any situation - however apparently justified the feelings behind such behaviour.

Laws are make us civilised - they should be in place for the protection of every one of us, and we must trust our legal systems and law enforcement to protect us, and address the issues if and when they fail. Simple mob rule will lead to anarchy - the system we have is what we must work with.

As 'Dirty Harry' so memorably advised around thirty years ago - " ... next thing you execute your neighbour because his dog fouls your lawn ..." - that scenario was true then, it;s even more true now.

[MrBen5]

Hmmm, i am totally against it. Its pathetic. They shouldnt even be out in the public in the first place. There are too many do-gooders about who think that rehabilitation is the answer. For some crimes, maybe, but for others, there is no chance of rehablitating someone. The safest way to protect children is not to have them free in the community in the first place...

[missjef]

i totally agree with you MrBen5 but the sad fact is that they are in the community, and i dont think that is going to change anytime soon even though it should. So do you not think that even with the fact that they are out and about we should have the right to know who they are and where they are?

[Hellion]

Hi Andy - I totally agree with what you say however, I do not wish to know so I can form a vigilante group, just so as to avoid my child being inadvertantly in a situation where he is at risk. Many paedophiles can be very charming with children and I would not want to end up living next door to one who then builds up trust with us or my child. My recent experience with the minister bought it home to me that there is absolutely no way you can tell, the man was married with teenage children and an acredited 'responsible adult' for supervising kids. With those references what parent would then think twice about trusting him.

[MrBen5]

Hmmm, well missjef, my solution would be to tag them. Any places around schools or where children centers are should be fitted with the 'radius alarm booster'. this is an invention where it is placed within the school, etc and anyone wearing a tag that enters a certain radius of that area(say 50 meters) will trigger an alarm at the tag control center. All this is tracked by sattellite, which can monitor movements at any time, even re-trace them. It is an expensive system, but an efficient and fool proof one. But you cant really put a price on a childs life can you? i would certainly be willing to pay more taxes to know that children are safe...

[missjef]

that is a good idea, i actually think we should have Sarahs law and that as well... the only problem with that being, you wouldnt be able to tell if they were chatting to a child on the streets.. or maybe they should have brightly coloured tags that have to be seen at all times then everyone can see who they are! because at least then the children can be warned not to go near those people? sorry if that sounds like a stupid idea.

[MrBen5]

Hmmm, it is a bit of stupid idea missjef, but i know where your coming from. the only reason the government doesnt release details of their whereabouts is because you would get vigilante groups ousting them out of the area , which would force them 'underground'.To be fair to the police, they do monitor these and question them straight away as soon as anything happens. Its just that its not public knowledge. But i still stick by my original answer by saying they shouldnt be in the community in the first place. You have to take away the root cause, not just put things in place to monitor the problem...

[Miss Inquiry]

MrBen5, what if someone tagged went past on a bus/drove past? Each thime they passed the alarm would go off, wouldn't it get really frustrating. Sadly there are far to many sick people out there living in our communities, I anticipate the alarm would no doubt be sounding constantly.

[missjef]

Yeah it does sound a bit stupid.. but i just think that there should be a way of the kids knowing who not to go near otherwise whose to stop them talking to children or teenagers on their way home from school, unless parents are given pictures?
i totally agree with you with the fact they should definately not be there in the first place, i do not agree that someone who has abused children can change no matter how much re-habilitation they will always be a threat therefore they should not be allowed back into the community its just not right.

[MrBen5]

Thats the whole point of it Miss Inquiry. You dont hear the alarm. Its a warning for the monitors that he has entered a restricted zone. Upon release they would be notified of where they can and cant go. Thats the conditions with their freedom. Its easy to say , what if i was on a bus? , but that would be up to the individual to plan his route accordingly. If he wants his freedom, all i am saying is there should be conditions attached to it. If he breaks the conditions, he is re-arrested and taken to a secure unit again...

[admarlow]

I for it, I am also for wiring them up to sat nav and lie detectors as well.

[admarlow]

..oh and taking away their driving licences as well.

[jake-the-peg]

The whole concept relies on the public to be able to act maturely and within the law


http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/865289.stm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/901723.stm

I won't list any more

[admarlow]

and the current laws rely on the probation services to do their job.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/panorama /6123534.stm

I won't list any more

[Pippa68]

I agree with jake-the-peg & admarlow.

The whole thing is flawed on these levels. Unfortunately the public can't be trusted not to do something stupid..and what would anyone do if they found out a paedophile was living next door...move house? force them to move? tell everyone else in the street?

I prefer the knowledge that statistically my children are more likely to be raped or murdered (or both) by a family member or friend..and I would know where they lived wouldn't I ;o)

Actually that statistic is far more sickening.