Iraq tends to be the prime focus of the media these days. Yet, the importance of many domestic issues hasn’t diminished in the slightest. One of these is protecting our children from those who would destroy them — in mind, body or both. Thankfully, many in law enforcement, federal and state agencies and private or nonprofit organizations remain as vigilant as our nation’s military in their mission to protect our children. And, as the news does highlight, this vigilance is warranted.
One late spring night in Northern Idaho in 2005, Joseph Duncan methodically beat to death a woman, her boyfriend and her 13-year-old son while her 9-year-old son and 8-year-old daughter were forced to watch. He then kidnapped the children, took them to a remote campsite and, over the course of 40 days, molested the children and eventually brutally murdered the young boy. Thanks to a brave and quick-thinking waitress at a local restaurant, the young girl was rescued and Duncan was arrested. At the time of the crime Duncan, a convicted sex offender, was living in North Dakota and had outstanding warrants for his arrest in Washington state and Minnesota, having committed sex crimes against children in those states. Some suspect he is responsible for the murder of children in other states.
Tragically, this horrific crime is one of many perpetrated by violent predators across the United States. Violent sex offenders disproportionately prey on young children. The Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) finds that offenders convicted of rape and sexual assault serving time in state prisons report that two-thirds of their victims were under 18; 58 percent of those offenders said their victims were aged 12 or younger. Almost half of the 9,691 male sex offenders released from prison in 1994 were convicted child molesters.
Recidivism rates are higher for these crimes than non-sexual offense crimes: The BJS tracked criminals released from prison in 1994 for three years. It found that sex offenders released from state prisons were four times as likely as non-sex offenders to be re-arrested for a sex crime. Approximately 142 male sex offenders released in 1994 were arrested for sexually victimizing another child within three years of their release.
Over the years, Congress has passed laws dealing with violent crimes against children, often named after the very children who lost their lives as a result of such crimes: Dru Sjodin, Adam Walsh, Jessica Lunsford, Megan Kanka, Jetseta Gage and Sarah Lunde. Last year, Congress passed and the president signed into law the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006. It includes many of these laws and other grant programs that help protect our children. This comprehensive, bipartisan legislation strengthened sex offender registry requirements and enforcement and increased penalties for child predators. It also increased community awareness of registered sex offenders with the Dru Sjodin National Sex Offender Public Website by enabling online searches for information on convicted sex offenders from all states and many tribes.
The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act authorized funding in fiscal year 2008 for critical programs, including a pilot program for electronic monitoring of violent sex offenders; juvenile sex offender treatment programs; anti-sexual assault programs; Project Safe Childhood grants; Sex Offender Apprehension grants; the Jessica Lunsford Address Verification Grant Program; DNA backlog clearing funds; a public awareness campaign on Internet safety; federal assistance with respect to violations of registration requirements; and sex offender management programs or residential sex offender treatment programs.
A compelling argument can be made for federally funding these programs. Child predators are not bound by state lines.
According to law enforcement, violent sex offenders and child predators will seek out states with less stringent laws and reporting requirements. No state wants to be known as a haven for these criminals, and having universal reporting requirements (provided that states and tribes are given tools to comply in funding and technology support) addresses the interstate nature of the vagrancy of violent sex offenders. Also, the necessary ongoing registration and tracking of these offenders is very expensive. It’s in the interest of the federal government to help states monitor these individuals so as to reduce the likelihood of yet another torture and possible death of an innocent child.
Congress is moving in the right direction on the issue of preventing child predation. This spring, my colleague, Sen. Joseph Biden (D-Del.), and I authored a letter to the chairwoman and ranking member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice and Science, calling for full funding of the Adam Walsh Act. We were joined in this bipartisan effort by 26 of our colleagues in the Senate.
It’s my hope that Congress, law enforcement, states, organizations, schools and parents can continue and grow in strong partnerships to protect our children. No one can say for certain that these enhanced laws would have prevented Joseph Duncan from committing his heinous criminal acts. What can be said with certainty is that strengthening these laws with critical federal, state and tribal law enforcement information sharing, increasingly stringent registration requirements for level-three sex offenders, and electronic monitoring will reduce the likelihood that these crimes are committed.
The young Idaho girl who was put through what can only be described as hell on earth two years ago is back, safe with her father, family and friends. Tragically, she, like others, will bear the terrible burden of devastating emotional scars for the rest of her life.
Crapo is a member of the Senate Budget, Finance and Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs committees.
SPECIAL SECTION: Childrens Initiatives
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Making the grade on meritorious SCHIP
Washington or patients can win on SCHIP — it’s up to us