Well…..if we’re talking about my kids snuggling, the answer is I just can’t get them close enough.

If we are talking about TWO sex offenders living in my neighborhood, then all bets are off.

Before you wonder if I really know the facts, I do.  I actually spoke to our local sheriff’s department to confirm their status.  Before you wonder if I am the kind of girl who believes you can pay your debt to society, I will tell you the answer is typically yes.  But as a mother, I can’t afford to take that risk.

This doesn’t mean I’m on a witch hunt.  It does mean I’m disgusted and disturbed and offended.  I am disgusted these men found children appropriate prey.  I am disturbed they live so close to my family and friends and I am offended, truly offended that one of them managed to get an attorney to get his name OFF the registered sex offender list. (Again, this was verified by the sheriff’s dept)

Here’s the back story on how I ended up with this information:

A woman I do not know (she apparently lives minutes away in a subdivision that backs up to ours) talked to a friend and neighbor of mine on Monday as she was outside playing with her children.  This woman told my friend that while she was afraid the information she was about to give was likely ‘not politically correct’, she felt it was important to share.  She asked, “Did you know you have a sex offender living right down the street?” She proceeded to explain that this man was originally on the registered sex offender list, but had recenlty been removed as a result of a high-priced attorney.  She claimed she had actually seen him on the list. She also said his offense was forcible sodomy with a 14 year old.

This quickly became a topic among my neighbors.  We had all encountered this man and his family at some point and not in a positive way.  While I found this information highly disturbing, I also recognized that it was hearsay.  I do not want to be party to ultimately ruining someone’s reputation (and/or life) if the information is wrong.  I don’t want to participate in a modern day witch hunt if this man has done nothing wrong.

I couldn’t imagine that it was actually possible to get yourself OFF the list.  But it is.  In fact, in Missouri, as of a court ruling in June of 2006, no one who was convicted before 1995 is required to register.

The sheriff’s department also told me there are a ‘number of ways to get off’…just as judges rule to allow someone out of jail early and others ‘complete’ probabtion.

The detective I spoke with today confirmed that my neighbor is, in fact, a convicted sex offender and he has been removed from the list as a result of ‘what I told him’ (that it was his lawyer’s doing).

Here’s what else I discovered on a sex offender registry website:

~There are 104 registered sex offenders who live/work in my area (by area….I mean the names that come up when I enter my zip code)
~ There are men and women, young and old on the list
~ Their offenses range from sexual battery to forcible rape, to sodomy and child pornography
~Many of the victims were children (some as young as 2)

I also discovered the 2nd sex offender who lives in my neighborhood.  “Dale” lives about 3 football field’s distance from my front door. His crime: posession of child pornography.  The victim was 2 years old. 

My son is 2 years old.

The sheriff’s department did not confirm my other neighbor’s conviction.  I do not know if the ‘forcible sodomy’ is correct.

I do know I will leave any public area where he shows his face.  I do know I want him to know his cover has been blown.  And, I do know I would be happier if he moved.  I imagine since his family just moved in a few months ago, I’m out of luck.

I’m not saying my feelings are ‘right’.  I’m not saying it is ok to want him gone, but I just do.

I’m a mom.  It is my nature to protect my children.  I consider both of these men a threat.