In his This I Believe commentary, aired in 1951, Edward R. Murrow said; “We hardly need to be reminded that we are living in an age of confusion—a lot of us have traded in our beliefs for bitterness and cynicism or for a heavy package of despair, or even a quivering portion of hysteria… There is a mental fear, which provokes others of us to see the images of witches in a neighbor’s yard and stampedes us to burn down their house.”

SOSNet is a resource for all activists wanting to see real solutions to the sex offender problem. This is a very complex issue and casting a broad net is detrimental to our society. Rational actions need to replace inaction and lethargy. Courageous citizens, responsible leaders, and ethical journalist can make a difference.

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about the things that matter."

-- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Our mission is to dispel the myths, lies and misconceptions about sex offenders with facts and truth, making all families safer.

On this site, you will learn the facts about the sex offender issue, where you will find that our current laws are not working, and are in fact having the opposite effect.

A recent report by Jill S. Levenson Ph.D., L.C.S.W. - Center for Offender Rehabilitation & Education (C.O.R.E.), brings to light the public perceptions about sex offenders and community protection policies. It states that:

"Though the public and lawmakers are supportive of sex offender policies, scholars remain skeptical about the potential of these laws to protect children or prevent sex crimes (Freeman-Longo, 1996; Jones, 1999; Levi, 2000; Lotke, 1997; Prentky, 1996; Zevitz, 2006b). They suggest that community notification laws are driven by emotional responses to sexual violence rather than by empirical data, and that they provide misguided reassurance to citizens. The majority (80%) of mental health professionals surveyed believed that registries would have no impact on reducing the incidence of child sexual abuse, and 70% thought community notification would foster a false sense of security for parents (Malesky & Keim, 2001). Another oft-cited concern is the potential for notification to create unintended consequences that interfere with offender reintegration by limiting opportunities for housing, employment, and social support (Levenson, 2003; Levenson & Cotter, 2005; Levenson et al., 2006; Petersilia, 2003; Tewksbury, 2004; Tewksbury, 2005; Zevitz, Crim, & Farkas, 2000b)".

These laws are creating a false sense of security, and as a result, they are making women and children less safe.

Additionally, these laws are creating a second class of citizens, comprised of the wives, children, parents and siblings of America's Registered Sex Offenders.

These egregious laws are the results of our political leaders and the media. Politicians prefer to pander fear for votes, in place of acting on the recommendations of experts in law enforcement, sex offender management and therapy. The media sensationalizes the sex offender issue for easy ratings and advertising dollars.

The Sex Offender Solutions Network contends we not only can do better, but we must do better. As you visit our web site, you will find empathy for victims, compassion for offenders and solutions for society.

We do not condone, in any way, abuse, especially the sexual abuse of women and children. We do not, and will never make excuses for former offenders or their offenses. We believe that repeat offenders need to be separated from society, and released conditionally on proof of reform. We do acknowledge the fact that false accusations are made, people make mistakes (even stupid ones) and believe each case should be judged on its own merits, using empirical evidence and not hearsay. We know that people can change, improve themselves, and accomplish their own human revolution. We encourage you to approach this issue with an open mind and value the essence of every person’s humanity.


We advocate returning the Sex Offender Registry to its original intent, tracking the most dangerous and predatory offenders and absconders. We can accomplish this by implementation of a 5 Tier Risk Level System. We call for the immediate removal of low risk intra-familial offenders - including former offenders who have paid their debt to society and have not re-offended, Romeo and Juliet (teen-age consensual sex) lovers, juvenile offenders, and non-sexual (urinating in public, mooning, etc.) offenders from the registries. This will make them a more effective monitoring tool for law enforcement. Additionally, registries need to be removed from the Internet; requiring citizens access through local law enforcement. This will eliminate the possibility of vigilante action by misguided individuals and provide law enforcement with an audit trail.


We ask for the rights of all; victims, offenders and their families be first and foremost in the ensuing dialogue. We enjoin the media and our elected representatives to immediately begin using known facts in place of myths, lies and misconceptions when addressing this issue. We call for restorative justice and Constitutional protection in place of retributive justice and Unconstitutional banishment for offenders and their families.

 

"A man who takes away another man's freedom is a prisoner of hatred, he is locked behind bars of prejudice and narrow-mindedness. I am not truly free if I am taking away someone else's freedom, just as surely as I am not free when my freedom is taken from me. The oppressed and the oppressor alike are robbed of their humanity."

-- Nelson Mandela (Long Walk to Freedom)

 

The CDC (Center for Disease Control) has stated that sexual abuse is first and foremost a PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUE before it becomes a Criminal Justice issue. Therefore, two steps must be taken right away;

(1) we need to restore the sex offender registries to their original intent, that is to track ONLY the most dangerous or high-risk offenders and absconders, removing lower risk offenders. Medium risk offenders would move on or off the registry according to their Risk Assessment by therapist, and probation professionals. This WILL MAKE monitoring more efficient for law enforcement and effective for communities.

 (2) We absolutely must become proactive and implement a policy of THERAPY FIRST. By preventing abuse and by intervention for potential and current (Intra-familial Only) abusers, we can virtually eliminate this public health issue. Again, to make it totally clear, this would be for intra-familial abuse only and based on a RESTORATIVE JUSTICE MODEL.

 Research, scientific studies, and thousands of documented cases have proven that THERAPY WORKS! By restructuring mandatory reporting laws to allow (Intra-familial Only) abusers or people who have the potential to abuse and have not yet committed a crime (e.g. people with porn addictions, etc) to seek help, without the repercussions of prison, a lifetime on the registry, GPS monitoring, etc.; we can remove the links in the chain, or cycles of abuse.

 Our FOCUS should be on THERAPY, not retribution. When we remove lower risk people from the registry, we add the needed stability to their lives for success. These steps along with others mentioned on this site should be at the forefront of a National Sex Offender Policy Forum.

Here is something to think about; on his web site, one of the country's leading experts in the field, Dean Tong, points out that Megan's Law has these inherent problems:

Like the Mondale Act, Megan's Law subsists on federal dollars. States not in compliance lose grant monies.

It does not provide checks and balances for those who cannot afford to litigate false accusations and must plead "nolo contendre," no contest or take an Alford Plea. All criminally adjudicated guilty child sex offenders fall under Megan's Law.

It has forced the true molester underground where he can be much more dangerous.

It serves to only protect kids in a limited area where the sex offender resides. Thus, a molester can travel 20 miles down the road and re-molest.

It is unconstitutional, in that it provides no due process, no right to appeal and punishes one for the same crime, twice -- basically double jeopardy.

Before you visit our other pages, read our EXPERTS SPEAK OUT page, here we have recorded what experts in sex offender management, treatment, and supervision are saying about our current laws and efforts, and be sure to look at our 2007 Facts v. Myths Presentation.

Additionally read the recent report, Public Perceptions About Sex Offenders and Community Protection Policies,  on how widespread erroneous beliefs about sex offenders are actually hindering prevention efforts.

You will also want to read the latest report by Human Rights Watch, No Easy Answers: Sex Offender Laws in the United States.

Sex Offender Solutions Network supports returning the Sex Offender Registry to its original intent, tracking the most dangerous and predatory offenders and absconders....... We call for restorative justice and Constitutional protection in place of retributive justice and Unconstitutional banishment for offenders and their families....... We absolutely must become proactive and implement a policy of THERAPY FIRST....... We ask for the rights of all; victims, offenders and their families....... Join our call for restorative justice and Constitutional protection in place of retributive justice and Unconstitutional banishment for offenders and their families............

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Legal Notice:

The information on this web site based on hundreds of hours of research, however is NOT intended to be used as legal advice. If you are being investigated, or accused of crime against a child, seek the help of a licensed attorney, who specializes in child abuse cases, from your State Bar Association today. General practice attorneys do not have the skills to represent you in these types of cases and by delaying contacting a competent attorney; you will be placing yourself and your family in jeopardy.

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site updated: 2007-05-03 @21:12 gmt