MapSexOffenders.com ready for Halloween - Safety Tips

October 26, 2005
With so many people hiding behind masks and costumes, Halloween can be a scary time that makes children easy targets for sexual predators. With this creepy holiday less than a week away, MapSexOffenders.com provides a convenient way to steer clear of sexual predators handing out candy in 37 states—see if your state is available on the list below.

Although some states are working to keep offenders away from your children this Halloween, many are not, and your family's best defense is being informed. MapSexOffenders.com will help you know your neighborhood and protect your children.

In Illinois, sex offenders have been banned from passing out candy on Halloween, and Virginia's "Trick-nor-Treat" program accomplishes the same goal. In Parker County, TX, sex offenders are being taken off the streets on Halloween night. Despite these safeguards, psychologist Dr. Paul Hauck reminds us to still be careful, as sex offenders can hide. "First of all, it's dark outside. Second, he can disguise himself very easily1.”

Many parents are now opting to take their kids off the streets entirely by choosing to attend family parties or trunk-or-treating activities and parties put on at local churches. However, police do want people crippled with fear—it can be safe for your child to go trick-or-treating if you take the necessary precautions. Ohio Sheriff Jim Karnes stresses that no child should trick-or-treat without an adult supervisor. Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro gives another precaution by advising parents to visit a sex offender database online before going trick-or-treating.

We hope people can use MapSexOffenders.com not only to map their own street but also to take some time and really be aware of the sex offenders in their own neighborhoods. As parents become more attentive, they will be more able to spot—and keep their children away from—sexual predators. Our site aims to help parents make this Halloween a safe and fun holiday. MapSexOffenders.com has posted Halloween Safety Tips, which we encourage parents and guardians to take time to review.

1 Eyewitness 4 News

Society’s Duty to Protect Children

Society’s Duty to Protect Children

October 27, 2005
Australia’s 44-year-old Leon Wicks was given a sentence of five years with three years non-parole for pleading guilty to having sex with a child prostitute in Thailand. During sentencing, the Australian judge cited society’s duty to protect children “no matter what country they live in.” The crown is now appealing the sentence, hoping to get a harsher prison term to set a precedent for protecting children from sex offenders. For more information see 702 ABC Sydney

The Need for Pedophile-Free Zones Questioned

The Need for Pedophile-Free Zones Questioned
October 27, 2005

Phillipsburg, NJ has run into opposition as it attempts to pass a pedophile-free zone ordinance. The wife of a convicted sex offender contests the constitutionality of the ordinance, saying that it will violate not only her husband’s, but her civil rights as well. Speaking under anonymity, the woman also complains of the restrictions placed on her husband by Meagan’s Law.

Although officials cite the high relapse rate among sex offenders as the main reason for the predator-free zones, opposition questions the validity of the argument. City leaders such as Terrence M. Wall, Keansburg’s borough manager, state that the legislation creates a rightful barrier between sex offenders and children. Wall insists that as this is a crime that cannot be recompensed, those who have raped a child have lost their rights.

Various boroughs and townships throughout New Jersey already have sex offender-free zones in action, and they have been met with enormous popularity. When weighed against the few it would inconvenience, it appears that the public has found protecting children more important.

For more information see The Express-Times

Sex Offender and Lawyer Label Lengthy Sentence for Second Convictions "Cruel"

October 21, 2005
On Thursday Corbett LeGrand was sentenced to 25 years-to-life for his second sex offender conviction by Judge Alan Hedegard. LeGrand and his lawyer Greg La Forge claim that the lengthy sentence is "cruel and unusual" and are working on an appeal.

LeGrand was convicted two years ago of molesting a 13-year-old girl in the back of her stepfather's car. La Forge attempted to get this previous conviction dismissed based on new evidence and claims of innocence, but to no avail. Judge Hedegard says that California state law presented him with no choice but to give LeGrand a double sentence for this second crime of assaulting and molesting another teenage girl. LeGrand must serve 21 years before becoming eligible for parole.

For more information see Hollister Free Lance

Convicted Sex Offender Fights to Keep His Newborn

October 21, 2005
The newborn baby of a convicted sex offender came into an unstable world on Tuesday as child welfare services arrived with a warrant to seize the child 24 hours after its birth. Father DaiShin WolfHawk and mother Melissa WolfHawk would not give the baby over to officials and are shocked at the county's actions.

Schuylkill County Children and Youth Services were given the warrant due to the danger posed to the child by family circumstances. DaiShin WolfHawk pled guilty to rape and sodomy in 1983 under an assumed name. County officials have also procured a parole report depicting that DaiShin sexually abused his daughter in addition to a doctor's report detailing Melissa WolfHawk's history of drug abuse and prostitution.

The couple denies the aforementioned claims and is currently fighting in court with the aid of the American Civil Liberties Union to keep their child, whose name they will not disclose.

For more information see WashingtonPost.com and NEPA News

Oprah links to MapSexOffenders.com

October 19, 2005
After Oprah’s show entitled “Kidnapped by a Pedophile: The Shasta Groene Tragedy” Oprah’s website featured links to related websites. One of the featured websites was MapSexOffenders.com, which provides useful information to help protect children. Oprah has recently launched a campaign against sex offenders, featuring wanted offenders on her show and giving a reward to those who help law enforcement in the capture of the offender.
For more information see Oprah’s Website

Oprah Speaks Out

October 12, 2005
Within a week of beginning a campaign to capture sex offenders, Oprah has had not one, but two successes. Within 48 hours after offering a reward for their capture, fugitives William C. Davis and Niles Scott were apprehended.

Davis has been evading the FBI by living under his brother's identity for a year since being convicted of molesting three boys and failing to register as a sex offender. Davis was also convicted of child molestation in 1992. Katie Miller, the woman responsible for Davis’ capture, told ABC that he made his first call from jail to berate her.

The second offender, Niles Scott, was captured in Belize after fleeing from capture for two years for the sexual assault of a 13-year-old girl. His final charges added up to rape, kidnapping, and unlawful flight.

Both fugitives have been extradited to the states they were convicted in and are awaiting charges.
Oprah has and will pay $100,000 to every one who leads to the capture of these sexual predators. Why do it? Oprah says it's personal: “ The children of this nation are being stolen, raped, tortured and killed by sexual predators who are walking right into your homes. I have had enough. With every breath in my body and you by my side, we are going to move heaven and earth to stop an evil that's been going on for far too long.”

For more information see The Plain Dealer, Mercury News, and Oprah's Website.Oprah Speaks Out

Cyber Safety for Florida and New York

October 10, 2005
According to a 2001 U.S. Department of Justice study, one in five youths has received a sexual approach or solicitation over the Internet. In response to this alarming fact, Volusia County in Florida is focusing efforts to catch sex offenders using the Internet to lure children. Andy Cotton, sheriff’s investigator, goes undercover posing as a child to trap and incriminate sexual predators on the Internet. In addition, Cotton aids investigators in shutting down web sites containing child pornography. As part of the Internet Crimes Against Children, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement provides equipment and instruction for 37 police departments. More than 130 arrests were made across the state of Florida after the first year of the program.

In New York, Governor Pataki is taking action to educate parents, politicians, police, and children about Internet safety. October 20, 2005 is the date set for New York State’s 1st Annual Cyber Security Awareness Conference entitled “Protecting Our Children On the Internet.” Speakers include William F. Howard, First Deputy Secretary to the Governor; Mr. Howard Schmidt, Former White House Cyber Security Advisor to President Bush; and Ms. Janice Grieshaber, Executive Director of The Jenna Foundation for Non-Violence, Inc., among others.

For more information see Orlando Sentinel and

Sex Offender Ban Debated by Task Force

October 4, 2005
The state of Washington is debating the need for the law banning offenders of child-related sex crimes from living within 880 feet of schools. The ban is set to end one year from its creation in July of 2005.

Members of the state task force do not feel that the ban stops much crime, but they do see the value in making citizens feel safer. State Rep. Jim Clements, the sponsor of the measure, says that the "protection zones" are set to supplement the public notifications system that is not always sufficient for true awareness.

Opposition to the ban claims that more public education efforts are a better option for increasing public safety. However, Clements, a co-chairman of the state Legislature's Sex Offender Management Joint Task force asserts that substance is what citizens need.

The strongest current opposition comes from the American Civil Liberties Union, which believes that the law is unconstitutional and that it could actually hinder efforts to track sex offenders. Some state task force members also believe that the state should be working on improving the sex offender notification practices rather than enforcing protection zones. Others feel that simply creating "safe zones" is not enough to protect citizens and fear that keeping these laws as the sole means of awareness will lull families into a false sense of security. Such proponents have asked for a county-by-county survey of procedures for making people aware that a sex offender has moved into their area.

For more information see Seattlepi.com

Pataki Keeps Sex Offenders off the Streets Using State Law

October 4, 2005
Gov. George E. Pataki is now using the involuntary civil commitment law, which allows officials to confine mentally unstable people who pose a threat to society, to protect citizens from predators. Pataki has directed authorities to confine five convicted sex offenders to mental health facilities in the last month. The executive director of the New York Association of Psychiatric Rehabilitation Services, Harvey Rosenthal, argues that sex offenders do not fall under the involuntary civil confinement law, as sex crimes can not be defined as the result of "mental abnormality." He feels that Pataki's actions abuse the mental health system and show disregard for its limited resources.

Kevin Quinn, a spokesperson for the governor, asserts that sex predators are a threat to the public and thus fall under the involuntary civil confinement law. Pataki's desired bill would expand the term "mental abnormality" to include violent sexual predators, which would assist authorities by removing sex offenders off the street in larger numbers. Mr. Quinn stated that there are currently more the 5,000 violent sex offenders in the state prison system. Under Pataki's new policy, only 32 of these offenders have been evaluated, and except for the five sent to the Manhattan Psychiatric Center , the rest were released onto the streets.

For more information see The New York Times

Operation "Trick-nor-Treat" Keeps Sex Offenders Away From Children

October 4, 2005
Operation Trick-nor Treat" is a program in Virginia initiated to keep convicted sexual predators away from children. It keeps sex offenders away from home on Halloween evening by requiring them to attend a meeting.

The Virginia Department of Corrections also runs "Operation Porch Lights Out," which requires sex offenders to turn off their porch lights to keep children from knocking on their doors. These programs are enforced on a regional basis and are left up to individual probation and parole officers to decide if they will participate or not.

Digitally Tracking Sex Offenders

October 4, 2005
Sex offenders are more likely to relapse than any other convict, according to a U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics report. In the light of this information, many states are considering harsher registration and tracking laws for sex offenders. Maryland is considering putting global positioning anklets on released sex offenders. This would enable officials to track sex offenders even if they move out of state. Although convenient, this measure is also costly, reaching about $10 million a year. Using GPS to track sex offenders has already been instated in Florida.

Currently Maryland is attempting to initiate legislation which would establish constant surveillance of high profile sex offenders for the duration of the offender’s life. This, like using GPS, would be a costly endeavor, but many hope it would reduce the chance of repeated offenses.

For more information see Herald Mail

Welcome to MapSexOffenders Blog

Welcome to the blog for www.MapSexOffenders.com

Here we will be blogging about news regarding sex offenders, sex offender crackdown by
local and national police - and in particular about the sex offender crackdown that Oprah has started on her show and on her website.

Please check back for more information.

Our bloggers are Amanda, Karly and Mark.