Sitting here watching my four boys play together I wonder to myself what would I do to protect my child? The recent news story of a Texas father who killed an acquaintance he found molesting his daughter has me thinking: would I react any differently?  The answer: No. I would do everything in my power to save my child from that person and that situation, no matter what it took, even the death of the offender.

I do realize that this father has to live with knowing that he killed someone, and that has to be a great burden to bear, but who wouldn’t do what he did? I’m sure there are quite a few parents out there who wish they could have been there to save their child from the damage an adult has caused them. As far as I’m concerned, his actions were completely justified. Perhaps if death were the punishment for child molestation, instead of a few short years in jail, there would be fewer sex offenders. Or, at the very least they would only be able to damage one child instead of multiple children.

I personally believe at the very least these offenders should receive a free castration with the first offense. You don’t seem to hear of child molestation being a rampant problem among eunuchs, do you?

I found some pretty scary statistics: according to the California Department of Corrections, more than half of all convicted sex offenders are sent back to prison within a year. Within two years, 77.9 percent are back in prison. In a study of imprisoned offenders Dr. Ann Burges and Dr. Nicholas Groth found that the offender’s behavior is highly repetitive, to the point of compulsion, rather than resulting from a lack of judgment. To me, this only proves that sex offenders cannot be rehabilitated.

What can you do to protect your child? Talk to them about what to do if someone tries to touch them inappropriately, and let them know they can always talk to you, no matter what. A very good resource for finding sex offenders near you is the department of justice website, which lists all registered sex offenders in your area.

Joy Larson is a mother of four boys, graduate of The University of Montana, animal lover and writer.

 

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