Children are no doubt the most vulnerable members of our society. One would assume that we would have strict laws to protect them from predators who would attempt to harm them in any way.
But today, more than ever, we hear horrific reports of children who are abused by known sex offenders. The tragic story of young Jessica Lunsford was a wake-up call for Americans about the incessant danger such pedophiles pose to our nation.
The 9-year-old Florida girl was kidnaped from her own bedroom in Feb. 2005 by a convicted child molester. John E. Couey, a man with a laundry list of arrests, admitted to authorities that he raped Jessica and said he buried her alive in a garbage bag, according to cnn.com. Jessica’s body was treated like a piece of trash being thrown away.
I hope you feel the same rage I experienced when I first heard the details of this helpless girl’s last moments on earth. It’s an absolute outrage that this monster was allowed to live covertly in a neighborhood with young children.
This seemingly preventable murder caused an immediate outcry from the community to do something more to protect children. Just months after her murder, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, brother of President Bush, signed the Jessica Lunsford Act into law.
“Jessica’s Law” requires anyone found guilty of abusing a child under the age of 12, to face at least 25 years to life behind bars. In addition, if and when the criminal is released from prison, he or she would be required to wear an electronic tracking device to monitor their every move. The law also created a “predator-free” zone, assuring convicted molesters stay at least 2,000 feet away from schools and parks, according to jessicaslaw2006.com.
Don’t you suppose a man would think twice before abusing a child, knowing he’d be locked up for most of his life if caught?
Despite the extensive news coverage of this case, sex offenders are still being let off the hook with extremely lenient sentences. Take the ruling by Vermont Judge Edward Cashman for a man who abused a girl over a 4-year period. The perpetrator, Mark Hulett, was given just 60 days in jail for his actions, according to foxnews.com.
Cashman tried to sanitize his decision by saying the sentence was meant to ensure that Hulett would be given the proper treatment for his problems. But what kind of signal does this send to a potential child molester? Commit a heinous act that will scar a young person for the rest of their life and spend only a few months in jail.
After being vilified as soft on crime by bloggers, TV commentators and politicians, Cashman was forced to increase Hulett’s sentence to three to 10 years in prison, according to The Associated Press.
If we want to prevent these kinds of crimes against children, the penalty for molestation must be so severe, that no one would dare commit the crime.
To his credit, the much maligned Bill O’Reilly covered this story in great detail on his primetime Fox News show, “The O’Reilly Factor.” O’Reilly has taken the lead in an effort to get “Jessica’s Law” passed in every state.
As the Lunsford case was unfolding, it was amazing that the major media outlets such as CNN or the Los Angeles Times gave this case almost no attention. You would think these influential sources would be all over this story. But because it did not fit the media’s agenda of making President Bush look bad, it got little, if any coverage.
Luckily, the situation in California seems to headed in the right direction. Volunteers have recently collected more than 700,000 signatures from across the state to put the Sexual Predator Punishment and Control Act on the Nov. 7 ballot, according to jessicaslaw2006.com. If it passes, this tough new law would remove any loopholes our state has that allows sex offenders to be released early from their prison term.
When you go to cast your vote in the upcoming elections, think about the younger sibling or family member you love so much before making your
decision.
–Jeff Bracken is a business management junior.
–This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Daily Aztec. Send e-mail to letters@thedailyaztec.com. Anonymous letters will not be printed – include your full name, major and year in school.
