I am halt between two opinions here!
@angusthethird (515)
United States
March 26, 2009 2:46pm CST
I heard a news item from Grand Rapids, Michigan, about a homeless man who froze to death because he had been turned away from homeless shelters because he had been in prison for diddling with kids.
On the one hand, I am compassionate. Part of me says that the man paid his debt to society for child molestation, or whatever. He still is a human being. He deserves the dignity of shelter and health care, just like anyone else.
On the other hand, the man did an egregious thing for which I personally think he should do life for without the possibility of parole. No amount of repentance on the offendor's part is going to take the pain felt by a child victimised by such an act--that so many of these carry into their thirties and forties. That's a life sentence for these innocent kids right there!
So, I am asking--how do you think?
Do you think the man deserved to die as he did? After all, he did do his time.
(Sidebar: I do believe that the kids he messed with are still doing their time, as well.)
1 response
@opalina143 (1240)
• Morristown, New Jersey
26 Mar 09
My question would be- were there kids at the homeless shelter? Often, shelters have children in them because, contrary to popular belief, it isn't just single older men who are homeless, but there are a lot of families too. And these families are more likely to end up in shelters, so maybe if he had stayed in the shelter those children would have been at risk. Obviously the shelter may not have had enough staff to watch the children and protect them from him. Child molesters are almsot never cured, they don't just stop, and if I were a parent I wouldn't want him anywhere near my kids.
I don't think he necceserily deserved to die, and there will no doubt be a big lawsuit over it. But I think the need to protect the kids in the shelter should come first.
Why was he out of prison in the first place?
