Extra Sheriff’s Deputes on patrol for sex offenders Halloween night
While tens of thousands of York County children and their parents are trick-or-treating tonight, York County Sheriff’s Deputies will be on a trick-or-treat hunt of their own — for registered sex offenders.
York County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Trent Faris.
Faris says while there is nothing preventing children and their families from approaching a registered sex offender’s home, Sheriff Burce Bryant doesn’t recommend it.
[audio: 1030-Faris-B.mp3]Faris says while authorities will be handling those offenders, there are simple steps parents can take to keep their kids as they trick-or-treat.
[audio: 1030-Faris-C.mp3]Faris encourages parents to go with their children and make trick-or-treating a family event, only trick-or-treat at houses that are well lit and never let kids enter a home without their parents’ permission.
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Sex offenders have the lowest recidivism rate of all criminals except murderers, according to dozens of university, federal and state studies. Not all sex offenders have victimized children, and over 1/3 of sex crimes perpetrated against children are committed by other children. 95% of kids are abused by family or friends who aren’t on the registry. Dr. Jill Levenson’s 2009 study, “How Safe are Trick-or-Treaters: Child Sex Crime Rates on Halloween?” found that non-familial child sexual abuse accounted for less than .2% on Halloween. Why is law enforcement spreading such glaring myths, and why is the media latching on??