We have new driver's licenses in Oklahoma for Sex Offenders:
We already have registries that are very publicly accessible. Private groups have taken it upon themselves to conduct leaflet campaigns to "welcome" any new additions to the neighborhood. The cops are required by law to personally notify neighbors when one moves in. In Oklahoma City, there is a religious group that is trying to help the offenders when they are released called Hand Up Ministries (HUM). Another group has formed called Save OKC and their sole purpose is to shut down HUM.
Isn't this going a little bit too fucking far? Putting it on the driver's license means these people probably will be unable to find ANY job. Fast food places generally don't pull criminal history checks or check references, if you are willing to work they'll put you to work as long as you don't check off the box about felonies, at least that is one job they could have and be relatively safe from the public and the public safe from them. But they do ask for ID and having a Sex Offender brand almost guarantees that they wont get even this menial job.
If they can't work, one of three things is going to happen: they will wind up on public assistance and my tax dollars will give them a free ride, they will wind up homeless and be wandering the streets completely unchecked and completely unaccounted for, or they will re-offend on purpose just to go back to jail where they will at least have 3 hots and a cot and again - at the same time, John Q. Taxpayer suffers through another non-consensual session of anal sex. In the last case, we have another violated child, another lifetime CHINS case, etc. Another ruined family.
Never mind the fact that they may:
I really think we are simply creating a group of offenders that are simply going to be discharged from prison back onto the streets with no help whatsoever. I have never seen a group of religious nuts campaign to shut down a vital community service which may possibly be the only one willing to try and help these people in the entire state. I sent the Save OKC people an e-mail several days ago asking them what they plan to do to help the offenders, or keep track of them, or keep the community safe from them once they successfully shut down HUM. No one bothered to respond to the message. I am betting they have no clue what they are going to do when HUM buckles and caves in under the pressure and turns them all loose. They'll probably yell at elected officials and say they should have had more programs in place or the cops should have kept better track of them.
And in case you haven't figured it out, this is a serious thread about a serious issue. If you are here to show your ass, please take it to another thread.
We already have registries that are very publicly accessible. Private groups have taken it upon themselves to conduct leaflet campaigns to "welcome" any new additions to the neighborhood. The cops are required by law to personally notify neighbors when one moves in. In Oklahoma City, there is a religious group that is trying to help the offenders when they are released called Hand Up Ministries (HUM). Another group has formed called Save OKC and their sole purpose is to shut down HUM.
Isn't this going a little bit too fucking far? Putting it on the driver's license means these people probably will be unable to find ANY job. Fast food places generally don't pull criminal history checks or check references, if you are willing to work they'll put you to work as long as you don't check off the box about felonies, at least that is one job they could have and be relatively safe from the public and the public safe from them. But they do ask for ID and having a Sex Offender brand almost guarantees that they wont get even this menial job.
If they can't work, one of three things is going to happen: they will wind up on public assistance and my tax dollars will give them a free ride, they will wind up homeless and be wandering the streets completely unchecked and completely unaccounted for, or they will re-offend on purpose just to go back to jail where they will at least have 3 hots and a cot and again - at the same time, John Q. Taxpayer suffers through another non-consensual session of anal sex. In the last case, we have another violated child, another lifetime CHINS case, etc. Another ruined family.
Never mind the fact that they may:
- Be unable to open a bank account since showing ID there would be required and banks can refuse applicants for any reason when extension of credit is not involved, contrary to popular belief. There is no right to a checking account.
- Be targeted by cops when pulled over for traffic citations. For you and I, a $200 ticket is no big deal. We pay it and move on, or if you are an asshole like me, bury the prosecution in motions for discovery, you depose the cop, call 20 witness and waste hours and hours in court to ensure that they stand no chance of making any profit on it. But for someone who works a minimum wage job and lives check to check, a $200 ticket is almost a week's worth of after-tax pay and the guy runs into a cop that throws the book, 4 tickets would be a months pay - enough to easily put someone in this situation under.
- Be unable rent an apartment, room or other housing, since most private landlords still do very little investigation of tenants beyond checking with the previous landlord to see what kind of condition the place was left in.
I really think we are simply creating a group of offenders that are simply going to be discharged from prison back onto the streets with no help whatsoever. I have never seen a group of religious nuts campaign to shut down a vital community service which may possibly be the only one willing to try and help these people in the entire state. I sent the Save OKC people an e-mail several days ago asking them what they plan to do to help the offenders, or keep track of them, or keep the community safe from them once they successfully shut down HUM. No one bothered to respond to the message. I am betting they have no clue what they are going to do when HUM buckles and caves in under the pressure and turns them all loose. They'll probably yell at elected officials and say they should have had more programs in place or the cops should have kept better track of them.
And in case you haven't figured it out, this is a serious thread about a serious issue. If you are here to show your ass, please take it to another thread.
Comment