Reply #2: Very good [View All]

[47of74]

Part of the reason our justice system is so fouled up is that its become little more than a platform for ambitious politicians who want make a name for themselves in the upcoming election. It's become little more than a contest to see who can test the boundaries without getting slapped down by the courts.

Here in Iowa we have a law that says that sex offenders may not live within 2000 feet of a school or day care facility. It's a dumb law on a number of levels. First it doesn't differentiate between someone who abused a child and someone who got drunk and took a leak in public. Second, it makes large portions of most populated areas off limits to such people - which on the surface might sound like a good idea - but believe me it's not. Third it causes the state to lose track of sex offenders when they decide to go off the radar and not register anymore. This law was passed in response to a young girl being abused and murdered. Despite the large number of county attorneys and law enforcement personnel who have called for the law to be modified the legislature has ignored them because they are all too damn chicken. Our General Assembly is in Democratic hands but is more concerned about having to face Republicans who went to the Karl Rove/Sarah Palin school of political discourse than actually trying to come up with a solution that keeps those sex offenders away from children without driving them underground altogether.