Sex Offenders

When someone hears those words, it conjures up the worst possible of impressions of someone who is believed to be a rapist, pedophile, child molester or worse.

There is an Instagram reel going around where women in the reel almost whisper that there are 750,000 sex offenders in the United States and they are not required to carry a card, because it violates their privacy.

Let’s break this down. The latest statistics is that there are 780,407 sex offenders in the United States.[i] As far as a card, which I believe means some form of identification, there are states that require drivers licenses to be marked.

Did you know that there are 331,893,745 people in the United States?[ii] Registered sex offenders make up less than 0.2351 percent of the population. That’s not even ¼ of 1%. Let that sink in.

In comparison, every year it is estimated that 10 million people are the subject of domestic violence.[iii] That’s 1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men. So, the question I have is why domestic abusers aren’t required to register or carry some form of identification. That’s over 3% of the population.

Let’s talk about DUI’s. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, about 1.5 million people are arrested in any given year for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. That means that one out of every 121 licensed drivers were arrested for drunk driving. That’s about .46% of the population. Where is the registry for these people?

Now, let’s talk about what can get someone put on the registry other than sex crimes. [iv]

· Taking nude photos — if you’re a minor. Teenagers who take pictures of themselves while naked could get charged with child pornography and be put on sex registries, according to a 2013 report from Human Rights Watch. It gets worse – kids who send naked photos that are viewed in another state could be charged with a federal crime. A 15-year-old girl in Pennsylvania was charged in 2004 with spreading child porn after taking nude photos of herself and putting them online, according to Human Rights Watch. She was forced to register as a sex offender.[v]

· Urinating in public. At least 13 states require sex offender registration for public urination, according to Human Rights Watch’s comprehensive review of sex offender laws in 2007.[vi] In Texas, you can get a ticket if you’re caught urinating in public. However, under Texas law, it’s possible for urinating in public to turn into an “indecent exposure” charge which can turn into a sex offense. So, if you’re in a situation where you really need to go, you should make sure NO ONE could possibly see you.

· Flashing or streaking. You can get arrested for indecent exposure and that can land you on the sex offender registry. Even if you flash breasts or genitals as a joke or go streaking as a dare – those harmless intentions could possibly mean you end up on the sex offender registry.

· Having consensual sex with a teenager, even if you’re a teenager, too. At least 29 states require teenagers who have had consensual sex with each other to register as sex offenders, according to the Human Rights Watch Report from 2007. In Texas, even consensual sex between two teenagers who are in a loving relationship can be considered a crime and can land individuals on the sex offender registry.

· If you are 22 years of age and have sex with a person who is 17 and one week away from their 18th birthday you can be charged with statutory rape and put on the registry.

How many people reading this could have been put on the registry as a teenager. How many of you had a consensual sexual experience with another teenager when you were one?

While we’re at it, do you know the definition of statutory rape? The definition is sexual relations involving someone below the "age of consent."[vii]

The definition of rape according to the Department of Justice is “The penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.”[viii]

The reason sex with a minor is not an actual rape charge, is that even though the minor couldn’t consent by law, the sexual acts were consensual.

What is the age of consent? In some states it’s 16 years of age, some are 17 years of age and other states it’s 18 years of age. Then you must look at what is called the Acceptable Differences Between Ages. [ix]

Examples:

· In Texas -The age of consent is 17. The minimum age is 14 with an age differential of 3 years; thus, those who are at least 14 years of age can legally have sex with those less than 3 years older.

· In West Virginia – The age of consent is 16. The minimum age is 11 with an age differential of 4 years; thus, those who are at least 11 years of age can legally have sex with those less than 4 years older. That means it’s legal for a 15-year-old to have sex with an 11-year-old.

Does anyone really believe it’s a good idea for an 11-year-old to be having sex?

Do you think you have to become a legal expert to know these laws? Let me blow your mind even more. What do you think the youngest age of a child that could be put on the sex offender registry is? Would you believe it’s 7?

The Department of Justice estimates that there are at least 89,000 children on the sex offender registry, and it should come as no surprise to anyone that it’s destroying their lives. That’s from a 2004 report. Who knows how many children are on the registry in 2021? [x]

Also, in the same Department of Justice report, juvenile sex offenders comprise 25.8% of all sex offenders and 35.6% of sex offenders against juvenile victims. If the statistics hold true in 2021 that would mean that of the 780,407 sex offenders, 201,345 would be juveniles. Let that sink in.

Most people think of adult men when they think of sex offenders offending children. But let’s look at the actual ages of these juvenile offenders.

Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Minnesota, Texas allows juvenile registration at 8-years old. Massachusetts allows sex offender registration for kids as young as 7-years of age. In 2011, there were 639 children on Delaware’s sex offender registry, 55 of whom were under the age of 12.

In 2009, a study conducted by the Department of Justice discovered that nationwide, one in eight child sex offenders who committed crimes against other children was under the age of 12. Overall, according to the DOJ’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, “Known juvenile offenders who commit sex offenses against minors span a variety of ages. Five percent are younger than 9 years, and 16 percent are younger than 12 years. The rate rises sharply around age 12 and plateaus after age 14.”

There was a girl who was arrested in Michigan at the age of 10 for play-acting sexual scenarios while fully clothed with her stepbrothers, aged 5 and 8. She pled guilty to criminal sexual conduct and was required to register as a sex offender for 25 years.[xi]

In a 2018 study by Elizabeth J. Letourneau, PhD, a professor at the Bloomberg School’s Department of Mental Health and director of the Moore Center for the Prevention of Child Sexual Abuse published in Psychology, Public Policy, and Law found that registered children are five times more likely to be approached by an adult for sex than non-registered child sex offenders and four times more likely to have suicidal thoughts.[xii]

A father whose two sons (aged 10 and 12) were placed on the registry for an offense against their 10-year-old sister, reported that a man once held a shotgun to his 10-year-old son’s head.[xiii]

In a Human Rights Watch interview, one female juvenile said, “I was on the public registry at age 11 for the offense of unlawful sexual contact… Random men called my house wanting to ‘hook up’ with me.” Other HRW interviewees described beatings, drive-by shootings, and even beloved family pets being killed.

Some of the children on the sex offender registry are convicted of horrific crimes which led to appropriately harsh punishments. Others who were convicted and become registered sex offenders have been put on the registry for what is considered common behavior for children or teens, such as playing doctor or engaging in sexual exploration. Teens who exchange sexy selfies shouldn’t be charged with creating child pornography. Minors having sex may not fully understand the consequences of what they’re doing, but it hardly rises to the level of sexual assault or predation.

How many of you played doctor or show and tell when you were younger? It’s a good thing you didn’t get caught.

The inclusion of juvenile sex offenders down to the age of 14 on the registry is mandated by SORNA (Sex Offender Registry and Notification Act).[xiv]

A handful of states require people convicted of any sex offense to register for life—and even after death. How does that make sense?

Did you know that a 2012 meta-analysis of sex offender recidivism rates published in Criminal Justice and Behavior found that most offenders' likelihood of committing another sexual offense over a five-year period was around 7 percent? A study of sex offender recidivism in Connecticut found an even lower rate: 3.6 percent. A 2003 study found that in Illinois, about 37 percent of those convicted of nonsexual assault will be arrested for the same offense within five years, while only 6.5 percent of sex offenders and 5.7 percent of murderers will be rearrested for the same offenses. That would indicate that people who commit sex offenses have the lowest recidivism rate of almost any crime besides murder.[xv]

The registry was founded not out of a rational thought process, but out of emotion and fear based on a handful of truly horrific cases.

My favorite movie quote is from the movie Men in Black. “A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky dangerous animals and you know it.” Agent K. (Tommy Lee Jones)

I don’t believe there’s ever been a truer statement.

I believe that every accusation should be investigated. I believe that people who commit violent crimes and force anyone to do something against their will, should be fully prosecuted of the law. Unfortunately, what I witnessed while in law enforcement and in my personal life is that sex offense cases are not investigated the way other crimes are. In my opinion in these cases, you are guilty until proven innocent. Every time you hear in the media that a person has been arrested of a sex crime there is a rush to judgement.

In many cases, unlike other crimes, a person can be convicted on nothing more than someone’s word. There’s a train of thought in law enforcement and in the public that when someone is accused of a sex crime that the alleged victim couldn’t be lying.

I’m writing a book. The working title is “Guilty until proven innocent. A journey through the system once you’re accused of a sex crime.” It’s based on real events and real people.

Before you google me and find out, I’m not only an ex-law enforcement officer, but I’m on the registry. Surprised? It was one count of statutory. Remember the definition is sexual relations involving someone below the "age of consent." In Tennessee that age is 18.

I can tell you that after spending 2 years going through the legal system based on nothing but an accusation and spending 6-figures on my defense, that I was out of money and my minor daughter was so scared that I was going to prison that she was having suicidal thoughts. The DA offered a plea deal with 2 years’ probation, and I took to save my daughter, who we later learned had been abused by my accuser.

I was never questioned. My wife was never questioned, and no one came to check on the welfare of my daughter who was 13 at the time. It was “mis” handled by the same agency that I used to work for. Of course, there was no conflict of interest! The case should have been investigated by the TBI. But what’s done is done. I know that what you previously read in this paragraph doesn’t seem right, doesn’t seem real and doesn’t seem logical but it’s true.

It will all be in my book. I hope that when it comes out, you’ll want to read it.

I believe sometimes we go through things to learn a lesson. I learned that a sex offender isn’t what I once thought. I thought the same horrible things as some of you probably have. Imagine my horror when I found out about all the children on the registry and the people who didn’t commit an actual sex offense.

[i] https://www.safehome.org/data/registered-sex-offender-stats/ [ii] https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/us-population/#:~:text=The%20current%20population%20of%20the,the%20latest%20United%20Nations%20data. [iii] https://www.socialsolutions.com/blog/domestic-violence-statistics/ [iv] https://www.tijerinalawfirmpc.com/2020/02/6-unexpected-ways-you-could-end-up-on-the-sex-offender-registry/ [v] https://www.businessinsider.com/surprising-things-that-could-make-you-a-sex-offender-2013-10 [vi] https://www.hrw.org/report/2007/09/11/no-easy-answers/sex-offender-laws-us [vii] https://www.findlaw.com/criminal/criminal-charges/statutory-rape.html [viii]https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/blog/updated-definition-rape#:~:text=The%20new%20definition%20is%3A,the%20consent%20of%20the%20victim.%E2%80%9D [ix] https://www.populationu.com/gen/age-of-consent-by-state [x] https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/ojjdp/227763.pdf [xi] https://www.bradbaileylaw.com/legal-blog/2019/january/can-minors-be-registered-sex-offenders-/ [xii] https://publichealth.jhu.edu/2017/children-on-sex-offender-registries-at-greater-risk-for-suicide-attempts-study-suggests [xiii]https://www.hrw.org/report/2013/05/01/raised-registry/irreparable-harm-placing-children-sex-offender-registries-us [xiv] https://smart.ojp.gov/sorna/current-law [xv] https://reason.com/2020/01/18/sex-offender-laws-are-broken-these-women-are-working-to-fix-them/