I remember the first child molestation case that I worked over 20 years ago. Even as a young police officer, who literally knew "nothing about nothing", I was appalled at how someone could commit such a hideous crime against an innocent child. While children are our most valuable resource, they are also very vulnerable to those who intend to cause them harm. After some 25 years later and having been involved in countless child molestation investigations, I remain astonished at how and why these type of cases occur. I just do not get it!

Certainly some will argue that pedophiles are not criminals but are in fact suffering from some mental deficiency that causes them to react toward children in a sexual or physically abusive way. Others argue that many of the people who commit these crimes were themselves victims of sexual abuse when they were children and they are simply acting out based on their own experiences. I am not trained or educated in the field that will allow me to debate these issues of defense. Perhaps they have merit or perhaps not! We have experts available in the legal field that can and will attempt to justify any criminal actions based on a syndrome or a mental state suffered by the perpetrator. In these cases where a conviction actually occurs, these same experts will quickly argue that even if the person is guilty of the offense, confinement is not an option. Confinement will only make the person more of a criminal than when he went in. These sexual aggressors need therapy and mental health assistance so that they can be put back into society whereby they will make a contribution to mankind. How many times have we heard this? The only thing we can be sure of is that if the perpetrator is in jail, there is little chance of another molestation; at least by them. That is a pretty good argument for confinement. No, actually it is a great argument for confinement.

The most disturbing fact of all is that most of the current debate as to sexual offenders seems to be about how we can help them. Have we forgot about who the victims are? What about the kids? Who is helping them? Statistics show us that sexual abuse cases are on the rise, not the decline. We have some programs that are now available that at least allow us to protect our children. The sexual offender registry requires convicted sex offenders to register with the sheriff's department where they reside upon their release from confinement or as apart of a probated sentence. Failure to do so is a felony offense on its own whereby the offender can be charged due to lack of registration. This registry is available on websites through your local sheriff's department, as well as, local print publications. If you have kids, take a look at the list , which includes photos and you might be surprised as to who your neighbors are. In this day and time, it is imperative that we do all that is possible to protect our children from these type of predators. Increasing the statute of limitations now allows prosecution of these cases when the children wait for extended periods of time before they reported the crime. This type of crime, for some kids, is not exactly something you run out and tell on the day that it happens. Some of these children have been threatened with physical harm to themselves or their parents should they disclose the abuse. Do you think that might cause some kids to hold this inside for awhile? These new laws now offer them some justice.

So many young lives have been ruined at the hands of someone that the children completely trusted. These acts are not committed by a stranger wearing a trench-coat. They are committed by coaches, babysitters, teachers, relatives, clergy, police officers, and everyone else that you can imagine. There is no such thing as a stereotypical child molester. You must take time to know who has control over your kids. Legislation has been introduced in some states that allow you to perform a criminal history on daycare workers before you put your child in their care. Duh! That is a no brainer that should be in place everywhere. We worry so much about infringing on someone's rights that we leave the kids hanging in the wind. It is well past time to reevaluate our priorities.

Children are our future. We hear that saying time after time. But, if this is really true then we must take a little better care of our "future" than we have been. If we buy into the premise that child molestation is a continuing cycle, then it is time to put a stop to the cycle. You do not stop the cycle by giving these offenders "just one more chance." Mandated sentences, when a person chooses a child as a sexual victim, is a good first step to break this cycle. The counseling that they probably do need can be done very well in a confined environment. Is it fair? Maybe not, but when it comes to protecting children, I am not all that interested in what is fair. Children look up to us for security, love and support. They are totally dependent on those that they trust to take care of them. It's about time that we, as a society, finally do it!

Please visit the Behind The Badge website at www.voice4victims.com