ACLU Lynch Mob

Ok, he makes this way to easy. I met his challenge this week.

For those of you who may be new to this blog, I am referring to Mark Hyman, general manager of Sinclair Broadcasting, home station of Fox News. I run a challenge over at my MSN group, Boston Tea Party Protests. The challenge is simple; watch your local Fox News program for the general manager's editorial and respond to it. (Complete challenge with past responses, Fox News - The Point.)

His point this week criticized the ACLU for challenging a North Carolina ordinance that would ban sex offenders from the parks. Hyman artfully led his audience to believe that the ACLU was defending child molestors. The conservatives do have a knack for twisting the facts to spread hysteria.

So here goes, and feel free to click on the links above and give your opinion to Mark Hyman.

Mark Hyman wrote:

Court-ordered pre-trial negotiations broke down last month. Town Administrator Jason Young told The Point his side isn't backing down. So Woodfin, North Carolina and the ACLU are headed for a court date as early as this summer. Get pen and paper handy. You'll need it in a moment.

At issue is an ordinance banning registered sex offenders from the town's three public parks. The law was enacted after a 16-year old girl was raped in a park and after a pedophile living in property overlooking a park had molested several children. Child sexual predators often frequent locations popular with children. The ACLU sued this western North Carolina town of 6,000 on behalf of a registered sex offender, who was convicted of attempted sexual battery with a handgun, and is now demanding access to the parks. One of the busiest parks is adjacent to an elementary school, which uses the park for recess.

There are 21 known sex offenders living in Woodfin or in close proximity. Town officials know from first-hand experience that mingling pedophiles with young children is a tragedy waiting to happen.

Police Chief Brett Holloman, who is being sued along with the town, told The Point his job is to enforce the law.

It is disgusting that the ACLU, that is, the Anti-Children Litigation Union is anxious to support sex offenders, but shows no compassion for the safety of our children.

You can share your thoughts with the ACLU of North Carolina at (919) 834-3466 or at their website, www.acluofnorthcarolina.org/.

And that's The Point.

I'm Mark Hyman.

I responded:

I see the conservatives are whipping up a frenzy and forming a lynch mob again. No one wants to give pedophiles free access to our children, not even the ACLU. To imply otherwise is disingenuous at best, outright lying at worst.

The ACLU objected to the Woodfin law on several grounds including the right to free travel and the protection from retributive punishment once all terms of a sentence has been completed. The law, itself, is written too broadly and punishes people based only on their status and not on any threat they may pose to the public.

More disturbing is your connection of the case to child molestation. The case was filed on behalf of an adult convicted of a crime against another adult back in 1987. The plaintiff has completed all terms of his sentencing including prison and probation. Sex offender does not automatically equate to child molester. I would expect a member of the news corps to understand the difference and not purposely mislead the public simply to tell a rousing story to make a point.

Sex offenders have the lowest recidivism rate of any criminal, as can be verified through the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports. Many sex offenders return to their families and live out normal, law-abiding lives. Is it right that we tell them they can’t take their children to the park because of a crime they committed twenty years earlier? If we allow this law to take hold, where do we stop with the retributive punishments? Should murderers be confined to the empty deserts of the southwest? Should thieves be barred from entering a business establishment? Should speeders be permanently taken off of our roadways?

Sorry, I can’t join your lynch mob. The ACLU got this one right.