The " Sex Crime " Spotlight !

 There is no crime that puts more fear into the hearts of parents than the thought that their child may fall victim to a child molester.  Immediately, Madelaine McCann and the boy in the spiderman suit come to mind.  Children that simply disappeared without trace and leave behind unending anguish.

There is growing pressure in Australia for both the names and the living addresses of those convicted of sex crimes against children to be on the public record.  The thinking is that the public have the right to know who they are - and where they are ?

That is opposed by those in legal circles and by the police.  If that information was published it is inevitable that vigalante action would drive sex offenders underground and we would lose the degree of control that keeps them in check.

People who have committed crimes against children are not welcomed into the prison system. They need to be segregated to avoid attacks by other prisoners and inevitably they come up for parole as their sentences are ending.  That comes with strict conditions on where they must live and there is a growing list of the conditions they must meet.   Usually this involves wearing a tracking bracelet and curfews, and they are prevented from visiting known areas where children gather.

This is a form of surveillance that is very effective.    The police know where they live and where they work.  They know the cars they drive and they know their phone usage and computer access.  All that would be disrupted if opponents started daubing painted slogans on their homes and cars and generally made living in the community impossible.

That has already happened where a convicted child sex offender has been driven from their home by civic action.  Not only the sex offender, but also innocent members of the family suffer the stigma which can follow the children of that family into the schoolyard.

It is illustrative to consider what happened when a similar decision was made in America.  When Donald Trump won office he removed the ban on disclosing the address of sex offenders which was under public pressure.  The police report that in the six months following the lifting of that ban more than half the offenders back in the community had disappeared without trace.  They had taken jobs under assumed names and were no longer under police surveillance.   That change of policy has been massively counter productive.

Another anomaly is the grouping of all forms of what are called " sex crimes " on the sex crime register.  In some cases what are best described as " youthful indiscretions " result in listing and that immediately closes many avenues of employment - permanently.

Sex crimes against children is an abhorrent crime which is surprisingly common.  In many cases it progresses no further than the distribution of pornographic literature featuring children but the active cases intermingle together on that sex register.  Perhaps a good reason to single out those with a history of active child contact for more intensive police surveillance on release  !