Yellow License Plates on Sex Offenders Vehicles? Fair?!?
Is it right to make these people stand out after paying their debt to society? Thoughts?
Answers:
Actually, if you're referring to the Ohio proposed law, it's green.
No, it's not a good idea and here's why:
1) It never allows the ex offender to re-enter society. They are forever marked as a sexual offender. That being the case, they're likely to: re offend when they see that they have nothing to lose; go underground and get lost so that the authorities can't find them; or commit suicide.
2. In researching this issue over the past year, the type of people labeled with the word "sex" offender is breathtakingly broad - anything from someone who pees on the trail or alleyway all the way to a serial child molester with hundreds of victims. So to impose a shaming device like this on a teenage Romeo who has an underage Juliet is extremely harsh and unfair. Likewise with the female prison guard who had consensual sex with the male inmate (true story!). Likewise to the 13 year old Utah girl labeled a sex offender for having sex with a 12 year old boy (again, a true incident!) My point in relating these situations is that all sex offenders are not the proverbial serial child molester still living at home with the mom in denial about her darling son or the greasy bum starring at little girls at the park. Many are trying to be productive citizens, and to forever label them, is unfair, vindictive, irresponsible, and just plain mean.
3) Jumping off the part above: many of these ex sex offenders have families (wives, husbands, children, parents, relatives, etc.) To place such a license plate on the cars of the sex offenders stigmatizes innocent family members at one end or gets them killed at the other extreme. Can you see where some guy who is having a bad day spots a yellow license plate and just runs that car off the road - the ex offender and the carful of women and children, too? Or runs the car owned by the female prison guard? Or the 13 year old girl, now grown up? Or the guy who peed on the trail 25 years ago?
4) To reiterate that last point - the government's point isn't to protect society by letting people know who is a risk or might be a risk (because the registries already do that) but to subtly encourage vigilantism and as a consequence, states that do this could be sued by family members for failing to protect them from vigilante actions.
5) It's just another step closer to the police state. Didn't Nazi Germany force Jews, gays, Gypsies, political dissidents, and other "hated" groups from wearing various colored patches?
Support this today against sex offenders and they will be requiring all kinds of license plates tomorrow on other "offenders" or members of unpopular groups.
I for one am tired of the government with the media's essential help in trying to divide society into this or that category (He's dangerous because 30 years ago, he pee'd in an alleyway or she's okay because she's a victim or they're ok because they go to church but they're not okay because they don't go to church.) It's the old "divide and conquer" stragegy that is based on fear and paranoia in which so called "good" or "law abiding" people can legally and socially discriminate against "them."
Sorry for making this so long; I have very strong opinions about where the civil and privacy rights of ALL individuals is going in this country.
make really sure they did it
if they raped a kid
then keep em locked up someplace, don't even let em drive anywhere
It's been basically proven that sex offenders (at least rapists and molesters anyway) can't be rehabilitated, so the public has the right to know who is a potential danger to them and their children. Besides, can you really say that that type of sex offender can ever pay their debt to society. I say no. I do think that it's stupid that people have to register as a sex offender for statutory rape, streaking, and dumb stuff like that when there was no actual harm caused and no malicious intent.
We do it with drunk drivers, they have to have yellow plates if mandated by a judge. I think that would get confusing with this effort you would not want to have someone assume some is a child molester by their plates, commit some form of vigilante justice on them and find out they are a drunk driver. So I think you would need another color. We already make sex offenders pay more debt since they are required to register where they live with local officials.
No, if that person has paid their debt to society you would be opening a REAL can o worms doing that, vigilante justice and the like. How could you ever expect that person to become a normal functioning person of society if that were the case.
Depending on where you live, being labelled a "sex offender" could mean it was a misunderstood case of date rape, possessing some bondage pronography that was just a little beyond societal norms or inappropriate office behavior. While these things are still wrong, they should not be forced to be lumped in with the violent rapists and child molesters.
For example: I know of a case where I live where a person, while perusing regular porn sites, acidentally downloaded lolita content (14-18 year oldish stuff). He deleted the images, but they remained in his cookies or something (sorry not really up on computer stuff). A search warrant was issued and he was arrested on suspicion as they had linked his credit card to a "borderline" site. Small fragments of the lolita photos were found as a result of the search. He was then charged. Although initially fighting it, a plea was entered into as the laws are such that even in cookies it is considered possession. The judge was extremely lenient, he received a conditional sentance (served in the community) with out curfews or anything, at the time of sentancing the judge made it clear that he did not believe the accused to be a threat to children or that he even had tendancies, but it was clear he was technically guilty of the offence. He gave the accused credit for admitting the technicality and understanding the gravity and harm of the child pronography industry (the accused stated prior to sentancing that he did not want a precedent set for his case that could let actual child molesters free). The one catch was that the conviction required the person to be on the sex offender registry for 10 years.
While this person was guilty, I think it not fair that he be lumped in with rapists and child molesters.
What a great idea. We could also have a different color (red) for those who have just gotten their license back after loss from D.U.I or similar offense. We'd need a baby blue plate for anyone who is involved with protective services so that the general population can make sure he/she is not abusing their children when they are out in public. How about a green one for someone with a hearing impairment? They face many challenges and it would let you know they can't hear you being obnoxious and blowing your horn. Seniors could get their own plate, so that we could avoid them completely. Although they do tend to drive into lakes, homes and crowds. We need to make sure we don't swim in lakes, occupy the roadside of our home and stand far away from any crowd. LOL
As for legality, I guess it would be allowed. Many areas require sex offenders to go door-to-door and alert their neighbors that they are sex offenders, and have moved into the area. What you're saying isn't much different. Also, most states have websites where you can find sex offenders in your town.
The problem is the "vigilante" who decides to vandalize the offender's car (or worse). I'd say vigilante justice can occur when people know where the offender lives too, but a car is easier to strike...and the sex offender can be seen "in passing," as compared to a home, where someone would have to seek them out.
hell NO!! a car is just an item that can be disposed of...it would make people feel secure when the license plate aren't yellow. it so easy to register a car on someone else's name. what you need is something on their person, like a tattoo on their foreheads that cant be removed.
I think it's a brilliant idea. Let us not forget when these animals attack a child for-instance that child has to live with it for the rest of it's life. Why than should the offender after paying what we call it's debt to society simply get on with it's life with in most cases not a single further thought for the victim. If it were my choice I would have a yellow dot tattooed on the offenders forehead.
if one thinks that a few months/years in jail can really make the victim feel like all is good then no, but as long as the victim suffers so should the offender. we have to protect the general population more then those who break laws, particularly those that are hanus.
Yes, i think thats completely fair!!
It would be great for a cop to be sitting at a local school and be able to tell if there is a sex offender near by his license plate. I personally think its a great idea to keep the children and even adults safe!
They should still be put away. Big sticker on the windshield would be better.
Stay out of New Mexico, the place is full of them
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