Letter to the Editor, Posted: 4/21/04
To the editor:
How many times do we have to watch sexual predators strike again before we stop giving them a second chance? Last week in the Minnesota Senate, I voted for an amendment that would have kept the worst sex offenders in prison for life with no option for release ñ after their first offense.
Unfortunately, the Senate Democrat Majority wasnít willing to go that far.
Every DFL Senator voted against that provision. Under the original provisions proposed by Sen. Leo Foley (DFL-Coon Rapids) a rapist will have to 1) be convicted, 2) serve time, 3) be released, and then 4) go back out and commit another sexual offense before they would even be eligible for a life sentence. Even then, after a second offense, that plan only provides an option to lock these sex offenders up for life ñ it does not require it.
The proposal I voted for is the only law that could guarantee these sex offenders would never again have the freedom to attack our communities and assault our friends and neighbors.
I commend the Senate DFL majority for finally attempting to address this important issue. However, the plan they support is a band-aid not a solution. I believe itís time to actually fix the problem. These sexual offenders who attack our children, who use weapons, who use positions of power to prey on the weak, should never see the light of day again. They should not be given the freedom to seek new victims.
As a father of several daughters I am as concerned about sexual predators as anyone, maybe even more so. I think I speak for the victimsÇ families when I say that these criminals donít deserve a second chance to prey on innocent citizens. My vote is going to be for a plan that doesnít treat sex offenders with kid gloves.
Sincerely,
Sean Nienow
Senator, Dist. 17
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