Halloween Freebies…for pedophiles only
For the second year in a row, Baltimore, MD. parole officers are handing out festive orange door signs to signify the holiday.
Want one? Just go rape yourself a baby!
That’s right, class. Baltimore loves Halloween so much, even the pedophiles get treats!
The tradition on the Oct. 31 holiday is for children in costumes to go door-to-door to receive candy from their neighbors. (Thanks for ’splainin that, CBS News) “We actually print out the signs for the offenders and hand them to them,” said Elizabeth Bartholomew, a spokeswoman for the Division of Parole and Probation. “We expect them to post the signs.”
Apparently the signs say “No Candy at this Residence.” Do the parole officers check the home for candy?
In addition to the signs, all such offenders have been advised in a letter to stay home from 6 p.m. on Halloween until the next morning, leave their lights off and refuse to answer their doors. Several states, including Delaware, New Jersey, Illinois, Virginia and Texas, ban registered sex offenders from handing out candy on Halloween, going to kids’ parties, or being on the streets.
I vote we make this a year ’round rule.
Sources: Critical Estoppel - CBS News - Digital Journal
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I plan to make this a year round law. Defeat the Pederasts! Vote for Keywork!
Ihave a year round solution for Male Pedophiles . A waist high Gillotine. Old fashioned but very effective.
Love it. This is so messed up. Where can I get one of these signs?
@ abarclay12: My guess would be to go out to one of the sex offenders required to post the sign on the next trash day after Halloween…or get yourself convicted of a sex offense and move to the City of Baltimore. Either way, you’ll have to wait until at least next Halloween to be able to proudly hang it on your front door.
Seriously?
So they must stay home and not open the door. So if their parole officer comes by and rings the bell - what happens?
If a tree falls in the woods…
If a child-molester is home but can’t open the door to prove he’s home…
This doesn’t seem right to me.
Yeah, I thought about that too, Stepher. I suppose they’d call ahead.
I feel bad for the poor bastard that just forgot to buy candy, and decides to considerately put up a sign to inform children of the fact. He’s getting pipe bombs in the mailbox that are mostly unearned.
I’m wondering how a “No Candy Dulfer At This Residence” sign would go over . . . .
Is it just me, or does it seem unnecessary to have those signs in the first place? I know that parents let their kids trick-or-treat alone in some neighborhoods, but if you know you have a pedophile living a few doors down, are you really going to leave your kid unattended? I should hope the parents would steer their kids past the house saying, “Let’s not go there. They give out chocolate-covered sausages as treats.”
There’s no such thing as an unearned pipe bomb.
I figure I’ve got at least three or four coming to me just from the internet trolling alone.
“but if you know you have a pedophile living a few doors down, are you really going to leave your kid unattended?”
Well, if you actually know this … in many places paedophiles have rights! Like, say what? And it’s not allowed for the neighbours know about them lest they try to lynch them or set fire to their house or whatever.
My last Halloween was in Toronto about 8 years ago and all the very young kids were accompanied by their parents. And we had a great time taking photos of all the ’scary’ neighbourhood kidlets.
When I was a kid we used to drag our candy-filled pillowcases all over the place trying for even more loot, totally unattended, not concerned about paedophiles or razor-blades in the apples (who the hell ate the apples anyhow? We wanted the mini oh-henry bars!) until at least 10pm. When the neighbourhood ‘candy store’ shut down and we went home to gorge on sweets.
Gosh, it seems I’ve become one of those ‘remember when?’ people … sad, innit?
Oh Henry? To each his own, I guess. On the subject, a small, chocolatey piece of my childhood came south last year when the Coffee Crisp bar finally went on sale in the States. It only took ‘em a few decades to get the message.
Well, I was kinda talking about all those mini-chocolate bars. Oh Henry, Coffee Crisp, Kit Kat…
So, do you break off the top layer of the Coffee Crisp and eat that before you go for the rest of it? I always did.
“So they must stay home and not open the door. So if their parole officer comes by and rings the bell - what happens?”
Given the very odd chance that a parole officer would knock on the door of a known paedophile on Halloween evening …
But what do I know? Maybe this is a night they particularly check up on these … sickos. In which case they would surely be able to make themselves known as large grown-up people not dressed up, doncha think?
The entire concept of making a registered sex-offender hang this sign on his/her door on Halloween is utterly ridiculous for so many reasons. The first being: where are the parents while the children are trick-or-treating? They are responsible for their children. No one has even mentioned the parental responsibility aspect. Are parents just going to allow their children to roam the neighborhood alone as potential prey for someone who molested a child in the past? I certainly hope not. If so, they don’t deserve children. When you have a child you sign-up for a whole host of responsibilities and keeping your child safe is one of them.
Azahar: You say you’re not a parole officer. Well then, you have no idea what kind of tabs they keep on their clients. I was merely pointing out how ridiculous this entire concept is… It can’t be carried out in any way, shape or form; at least not in the manner it’s being described here.
I won’t even go into the civil-rights issues involved. I’m obviously the most left-leaning person reading [or at least commenting on] this blog so my spending time arguing such would fall upon deaf ears.
While I truly admire Bagel and Soylent, I don’t think I’ll return therefore I won’t be replying to comments. All of the best B & S and I hope to still you two on MySpace.
Stepher:
That’s a lovely attitude. These views are incompatible with my own, therefore I’ll not read them, lest my beliefs be challenged.
“I was merely pointing out how ridiculous this entire concept is” This is a news story. We didn’t make it up.
God forbid you stick around and try to change some minds.
I suppose you’re kinda right. It’s easy to forget that even pedophiles have rights. However, a convicted felon does not have the same legal rights as everyone else in our country. Also, anyone who is on parole has far fewer rights. They are out of prison, but are still being penalized for their transgressions. That’s kinda what parole is.
We, as a nation, aren’t profiling private citizens, saying “this person may one day rape a baby, so let’s take away his/her rights.” These are convicted pedophiles.
“where are the parents while the children are trick-or-treating? They are responsible for their children. ” <– Yes, parents do need to be more responsible. But they aren’t. Should the child suffer rape because the parents are neglectful? Further, are we to not let our children outdoors unsupervised until they’re 18? I live in an area where it would be perfectly appropriate to allow my hypothetical 12 year old to go trick-or-treating during daylight hours with a group of friends.
We’ll miss you, Stepher. Your presence has been an asset to RationReality. If you change your mind, we’ll welcome you with hugs and kisses.
“In Soviet Russia, trick-or-treater molests you.”
Now that I’ve gotten that out of my system, I will miss Stepher. She was always witty and never hesitated to thoughtfully back up her opinions. Even though the editor and contributors to RR are mostly of a certain political persuasion, we certainly respect ALL reasonable points-of-view. Bagel and I basically wanted to show how ridiculous this situation is. (In many cases, these individuals would already be known in the neighborhood for their pasts.) This was clearly a grandstanding moment for the local incumbents who want an “issue” to “resonate” them back into office. I apologize if it was misinterpreted as advocacy.
Let me take this opportunity to say that, if you are of a different political, religious, gender, lifestyle or ethnic background, your views are welcome here. Ration reality was started as a forum for reasonable debate. There are no sacred cows, but there will be tolerance and respect.
Uh, we’re all for being open-minded ‘n’ stuff, but that last statement doesn’t apply if you’re arguing for something nutty like female circumcision or something. Let’s be reasonable.
Alternate signs:
“I have have tons of candy, but you’re going to pay for it… For the rest of your life.”
“Don’t judge me just because I fuck kids… I voted for Bush.”
“Iz in mai house, hidn frum vigelatez”
I thought the law said people had to know if they were living near a convicted child molester…maybe that’s just in Washington state. At least we don’t make them live under bridges like Florida does.
@ Cody: As of now in the US, that discretion resides with the states, so the requirement varies from one to another.
Cody’s knowledge of US law = pwned.
This just sickens me to find out. As if having registered sex offenders isn’t bad enough, now they have to post signs? Whats next let them out of jail and force them to wear a big t-shirt that says “I was a sex offender”… also on that same note, who says a registered sex offender is a pedophile? What if the guy raped a 80 year old woman? He still can’t hand out candy? How ridiculous.
I really hope someday there is a multi-millionaire sex offender just to challenge such stupidity. This goes against every single constitutional amendment against double jeopardy. If they committed the crime, and paid the time, why do they have to pay for it every day for the rest of their life? If we really think this way, just don’t let them back out of jail… letting them out and continuing to punish them seems rather stupid on all humanity.
MasterABD: They are still paying for their crime. The ones out on parole agreed to make themselves subject to such treatment when they accepted parole, as a way to get out of prison earlier.
Anyone who is convicted of a felony continue to be felons after release from prison. That’s the law. It’s part of the punishment/rehab/whatever. They can’t vote, they can’t own a gun, and for specific crimes there are also specific prohibitions. I’m sure the sex offenders’ rights will be reinstated as soon as they un-rape that baby or grandmother.
You want to retain all your rights, don’t violate the rights of others.
bagel of everything,
I would certainly agree if what you were saying was uniformed across the board but its not.
If I murder a person, certainly I cannot own a gun legally. However I can murder 25 people, be released from jail, and never have to inform anyone I have killed before.
We aren’t telling pedophiles they can’t hang out at candy stores, that I could understand. We also aren’t saying pedophiles have to inform others they have committed a crime against children, that I could understand. Instead we are telling ALL sex offenders regardless of the crime that all have to follow the same rules.
This means a pedophile and someone who raped an 80 year old woman are both treated identically. And more disturbing is that fact it also means the 19 year old caught sleeping with his 16 year old girlfriend is treated the same as the rapist and the pedophile.
Yes I see this as a huge issue that has yet to be addressed legally.
” the 19 year old caught sleeping with his 16 year old girlfriend ”
In most, if not all, states, the age of consent is 16 or lower. The 19 year old would not be convicted of a sex crime.
“However I can murder 25 people, be released from jail, and never have to inform anyone I have killed before.”
When applying for a job, you’ll have to disclose that you’ve been convicted of a felony. If I’m not mistaken, I’ve also seen the question on other applications, such as housing.
“a pedophile and someone who raped an 80 year old woman are both treated identically”
It seems both prey on the weak and vulnerable. I wouldn’t trust a grandma raper with my child much more than I’d trust a pedophile.
I think what MasterABD might be trying to say is that outing pedophiles makes it hard for them to integrate back into society. I know they’re convicted criminals, but a good deal of them wish to turn their lives around and become productive citizens again. That’s hard to do when you’re being evicted from your house (like a group of them near the University of Washington) or forced to put up a bright orange sign. I can understand the reasons for both, but I can also understand why it seems unfair, especially when other criminals aren’t necessarily treated the same.
@ MasterABD: “Double Jeopardy”, as interpreted under the Fifth Amendment, applies to conviction and not just punishment. Probation is a continuation of the “punishment” or “reformation” process to which the individual was subject in prison. There is not a separate criminal court procedure for the same charge. That’s why there’s never been a successful challenge of offender registration on those grounds. On separate grounds, the Supreme Court has upheld standing laws in Smith v. Doe (arguing ex post facto against the distinction of registration as criminal, not civil) and Connecticut Dept. of Public Safety v. Doe, in which it was challenged on due process grounds.
@ Cody: One of the reasons why registration has become so prevalent in the last 15 years is because the documented rate of repeat offenses is extraordinarily high among violent sex offenders by contrast to violent crime in general. Therefore, it becomes a legitimate question for some whether it is a good idea to release offenders without being able to keep exceptionally close tabs on the offenders and, possibly, making themselves notify the public about their offender status.
Having said this, I don’t agree that this process is necessarily the fairest neasure, nor is it perfect. I understand that this is not far removed from the Nazis’ use of colored Davidian Stars to note the wearer’s gender and ethnic identity. Still, there needs to be a balance and while being a gypsy, Jew or homosexual doesn’t, in and of itself, harm others. Being a violent sex offender certainly can.
Godwin’s Law is in effect!
Soy: How can you compare what the nazis did to innocent men, women, and children to the treatment of convicted sex offenders? These people have actively commited a crime against their fellow citizen, and have proven themselves unwilling or unable to control their urges.
@ Bagel: I was not comparing the two. I said I was well aware that Jews, Gays, etc… were innocents. I also made clear that they are not equiavalent in their severity. A convicted sex offender is not. Godwin’s law is horseshit, anyway. In my opinion, the atrocities of the past aren’t to be ignored. As someone who would likely go to the ovens should a Fourth Reich come into power, I don’t bring up the subject without careful consideration.
Man, that sucks. I bet those mother fuckers hand out the best candy, too.
Oh wait - that’d be son fuckers, right?
Stiletto: Pedos totally have the best candy. And puppies — they have puppies too. In the van. Wanna see?
“I’m a friend of your parents….”
That’s another classic.
Yeah. I remember that one. Fool me once…
Yeah, except when your parents have been known to leave you places… nevermind, shame on me.