Should Sex Offender Parents be Allowed in their Child's Schools?
I read an article today about a father in North Dakota who was convicted of a 2005 rape. He is a registered sex offender and a father of three. He is allowed on school grounds to vote in school board elections and for other official business, but he is not allowed to attend any extracurricular activities for his children. I'm going to look away, albeit painfully, from the fact that he raped someone two years ago and he is now free. I'm just going to focus in on the issue of sex offenders rights. As hard as it is to say, there are some parental rights everyone has, correct? The question is, where is the line drawn?
I couldn't find the copy online, but my daughter's district policy is as follows: If the offense was not against a child, the parent can come on campus during school hours to meet with a teacher in a private office away from children with an adult escort at all times. They are permitted to eat lunch with their child, also in a private office away from other children. If the offense was against a child, there are no school priveleges whatsoever, as the terms of their registration should keep them away from schools anyway.
Do sex offenders have a right to complain? Once time is served, and they are back out into society, their debt is paid, is it not? I'm trying to play devil's advocate here, because I am trying to think about the child here, and not the parent. How terrible is it to punish a child who's already got enough going against them because the parent is a criminal? Little Sue or Billy can't really participate in extras because Daddy did bad things to someone? The sins of the father...
Then there is the other side of me that is screaming "don't let a sex offender get anywhere NEAR MY DAUGHTERS!"
This is all I can write for now but I'd love to hear some other thoughts. That is if anyone reads my blog at all. LOL...
I couldn't find the copy online, but my daughter's district policy is as follows: If the offense was not against a child, the parent can come on campus during school hours to meet with a teacher in a private office away from children with an adult escort at all times. They are permitted to eat lunch with their child, also in a private office away from other children. If the offense was against a child, there are no school priveleges whatsoever, as the terms of their registration should keep them away from schools anyway.
Do sex offenders have a right to complain? Once time is served, and they are back out into society, their debt is paid, is it not? I'm trying to play devil's advocate here, because I am trying to think about the child here, and not the parent. How terrible is it to punish a child who's already got enough going against them because the parent is a criminal? Little Sue or Billy can't really participate in extras because Daddy did bad things to someone? The sins of the father...
Then there is the other side of me that is screaming "don't let a sex offender get anywhere NEAR MY DAUGHTERS!"
This is all I can write for now but I'd love to hear some other thoughts. That is if anyone reads my blog at all. LOL...
posted by HappyMomToThreeKids @ 12:17 PM
2 Comments:
At October 9, 2007 at 10:45 PM ,
Anonymous said...
I think that violent crimes (rape, murder, assault) should carry different rules, as far as offender's rights after release. Personally, because sex offenses are particularly heinous, I feel that sex offenders should be the most carefully watched of the violent offenders. To let them in a school under any circumstances is just asking for trouble. If I found out that it happend at my daughter's school, I would raise hell. Debt to society paid, or not.
At October 10, 2007 at 7:53 AM ,
HappyMomToThreeKids said...
Good thought. I feel so terrible for the children of these offenders. To know that your parent hurt someone so terribly that their lives will never be the same must be awful. On top of that, they must always wonder if they're destined to be a rapist or murderer as well. I wonder if there are any organizations to help children of offenders psychologically. Big Brother and Big Sistes and mentor programs help, I'm sure... I just feel for children brought up in a world with no hope - where they can't always see the great world that's out there where they can be anything. They can change their circumstances, but many of them just don't know how or don't believe they can do it. Here I go blogging again...
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