Sex Offender Registries Don’t Keep Kids Safe, But Politicians Keep Expanding Them Anyway

The first time ____ ____ got evicted was in 2015. He was living with his wife and two sons in suburban Nashville when his probation officer called his landlord and informed him that Winters was a registered sex offender.

The previous year, when he was 24 years old, ____ had been arrested for downloading a three-minute porn clip. The file description said the girl in the video was 16; the prosecutor said she was 14. He was charged with attempted sexual exploitation of a minor and, because he had used file-sharing software to download the video, attempted distribution of child pornography.

Winters had no criminal record, no history of contact with children and no other illegal files on his computer. Facing an eight-year prison sentence, he had taken a plea deal that gave him six years’ probation and 15 years on Tennessee’s sex offender registry.

The day after his landlord found all this out, ____ found a letter on his porch giving him and his family 72 hours to move out. He ended up in one homeless shelter, his wife and sons in another.

He had no idea that it would be the last time he would ever live in a home. He has been sleeping in shelters, halfway houses and parked cars ever since. Full Article

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1. Easy votes for useless morons who want to keep their political seats.
2. Easy for news media to fan the flames because it means ratings.
3. Fear mongers who have a lot to hide about themselves.

Good article in general.

I’d like to see some studies further delve into recidivism, specifically around those registered for misdemeanors or who did not go to prison or jail. This article implies that all registrants have gone to prison – I’d like to know the stats on this.

It was never about kids it was about potential database machines use by g-men.

If indenture is humanly acceptable then the sky is the limit with respect to GOV USE OF the machines.THE SCAPEGOAT FOR ELECTRONIC DOMESTIC SURVEILLANCE SAINTS AND MASS COLLECTION OF CITIZENRY BIOMETRIC DATA. Still is working for that undisclosed purpose, retribution AND affirmative disability and restraint.

Human sexuality is a difficult drive for most people. It is the rare person who finds their childhood sweetheart, marries them and lives happily ever after enjoying a lifetime of intimacy with their loved one. For most humans, their sexuality is a journey of trying to balance a compelling intrinsic drive with social norms. It is inevitable that people are going to make mistakes and show poor judgment in this area. I made a very poor choice many years ago, it was a non-contact offense. Prior to that I was regarded as a respectable member of society and modestly successful. But I was out of a relationship, lonely, feeling depressed, and it was in the early age of the internet. I jumped into this technological marvel and soon found myself venturing into areas I knew were not appropriate, but before I could come to terms with my own impulses I had a visit from the feds. I paid a price that was literally inconceivable. But in the past fifteen years I have been a model citizen and met every condition imposed on me. But the scarlet letter of the registry makes it impossible to lead a normal life.

I think most people who do sex offenses are like me. They were fundamentally good people that made a poor choice behind their sexual drive, and deeply regret the situation. Were I to get a chance to do it again, I would surely make different choices. We see everyday politicians and everyone else make poor life choices, and then hope for and expect forgiveness. But not so with the human that errs with their human sexuality. All the good I did for 45 years is null and void. That I have been a model person for the 15 years after my offense is on no consequence. No, the fact that I perused and area of the internet that was off limits is an unforgivable sin. If I were thinking more clearly I would have done a more socially acceptable crime like dog fighting, selling drugs to children, or robbing a store. Then I would have gotten a lighter sentence, no registration, and I would have long since regained my place in society. But no, I, like those others on the registry, are forever scorned and banned form society. It matters not that our collective recidivism rate is among the lowest. It matters not that I took full responsibility for my error. It matters not my deep regret and my wish to move on. Politicians can vote to send people to war for faulty causes, The media can prematurely accuse someone and destroy their life, and all is forgiven and forgotten, but those same people will point the finger and hold us in contempt till eternity passes. Welcome to the land of second chances–for some.

@Eric, I can’t believe that your story is my story!!! Holy crap. There is a difference in that while I will always & forever feel Extreme shame & guilt, and I did tarnish my family name that my children must now live with because of internet cp, most of my friends and family stood by me. Wrote tons of letters to the judge and have given me work and dropped of cloths for my children and have paid bills anonymously. I did go to jail for a year while my 3 babies & wife were home crying.
Afterword, Probation was so pissed that I wasn’t completely beaten down, homeless, penniless and at
their mercy. I am so grateful and lucky. With help from friends and family, And Prayer, i have rebuilt myself in every way. But I am on that ridiculous registry!!

A direct quote from the article states –

“Another common element of sex offender registries is public notification. Every state requires offenders to notify their employers, landlords and neighbors of their status.”

This is totally incorrect and false information. There are different forms of public notification in some states but a blanket statement such as this is totally inaccurate!