Good television, but bad policy
Oprah Winfrey has had it with violent sex offenders who abuse and kill children, and so have a lot of other people.
On Tuesday, the nation’s best-known afternoon talk show host repeated two anthems to sum up her feelings toward the predators who have raped and killed too many children: “Enough!” And: “I’m so sick of it!” The backdrop for the show was a tragic story the Inland Northwest knows too well: the slaughter of Brenda Groene, her boyfriend and two of her sons.
Registered sex offender Joseph Edward Duncan III has been accused of the crimes, and as far as Winfrey and many Americans are concerned society should have left him locked up. And she made a compelling case for her one-strike-and-you’re-out approach: “We can change the laws so that when, in this country, a child is molested the first time, that person is put behind bars and is never let out,” she told her studio and television audiences.
Unfortunately, Winfrey failed to distinguish between violent sex offenders like Duncan and what we dismissively call low-level sex offenders, like a 21-year-old who’s guilty of having consensual sex with a 17-year-old. Or a one-time offender who fondled someone while drunk. Or flashers. Or Peeping Toms. They all make our skin crawl. But experts say low-level offenders are far less likely to reoffend than violent Level 3 ex-convicts. Winfrey’s right that the most serious offenders should have little or no wiggle room to get back on the streets. But she painted with a brush too broad in lumping these criminals together.
Advocates of a one-strike policy for all sex offenders should count the real cost of providing room and board for life for tens of thousands of low-level offenders who stand a decent chance at rehabilitation. An under-age cousin who molests a member of the family should taste prison life and therapy for awhile, as well as repercussions within the family. But it seems criminal to send him away for life – unless he’s caught doing the same thing a second time or a third time. Rightfully, society is almost as fed up with repeat offenders as it is with violent ones.
Winfrey recommended a black-and-white approach to an awful problem that has shades of gray.
However, she deserves credit for focusing her national spotlight on a widespread problem and causing judges who deal with pedophiles to squirm. Additionally, she set a good example by posting a bounty of $100,000 for several violent sex offenders who are on the run. Finally, Winfrey was correct in saying this country’s ambivalence about child sex abuse has allowed repeat offenders to reoffend while bouncing in and out of the court and criminal system.
The reins are tightening on registered sex offenders. The laws that allowed a dangerous criminal to escape and possibly kill need to be firmed up after a thoughtful debate. Winfrey used the Groene case to point the way. But the country should proceed with caution.