Notification laws protect our children

Thursday, March 7, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

SEXUAL assaults against children are so repulsive that it's hard to talk about them.

But we must, considering the many thousands of children who are victims of sex crimes. A Justice Department study showed two-thirds of the sex offenders in prison nationwide -- more than 61,000 -- had assaulted juveniles. Children are more likely to be sexually assaulted than adults. Rapes and assaults outpaced all other violent crimes against children.

A 1992 national survey of crime victims reinforced that disturbing data. In that survey, more than 60 percent of sex crime victims said they were assaulted when they were under 18 years old.

An alarming number of children are victimized in what is supposed to be the sanctity of their homes, by relatives or in-laws. Imagine the helplessness of a child, with nowhere to run, confronted by an assailant relative.

Experts can't seem to agree on whether sex crimes against children are on the rise, or if the reporting system is better. Children are more aware than ever, thanks to improved teaching techniques, of their rights and what recourse they have if approached.

But, sadly, protecting children is just part of the problem. The assailants constitute a category of predator that, many times, defies treatment. Research on pedophilia has shown that many cases cannot be cured. In experiments at an Oregon prison, pedophiles were subjected to conditioning in an attempt to reform their behavior, with not much success.

In some cases, pedophilia appears to be a lifelong affliction. Some assailants have harmed more than 100 victims. Prison time appears to have little effect on those with multiple convictions. Once released, they resume their predations.

No wonder 14 states have cracked down on this horrible crime, with tougher penalties and a controversial community notification upon the inmate's release. Informing communities that a convicted sex offender is headed their way keeps parents aware that a potential danger to their children may be nearby.

Detractors have argued that notification places the former inmate in jeopardy. But from the sheer numbers of convicted molesters, the danger to children would seem to outweigh any hazard to a law-abiding, and presumably reformed, felon.

We expect more jurisdictions to adopt this technique as a self-defense. After all, the damage to children lingers into adulthood. Many pedophiles were themselves victims as children. Nevada imposes stiff penalties on sexual crimes, including up to a lifetime of supervision for some offenses. It also requires registration of sexual predators, but stops short of public notification.

Considering the enormity of these crimes, it's hard to fault states for taking the extra step to protect their children.