Post by slt on Mar 11, 2010 13:15:39 GMT -5
For 3/12 Beacon News (the printed version will include the name of the scumbag which I preferred not to include)
I was in the midst of reading "Bringing Elizabeth Home: A Journey of Faith and Hope," written by Elizabeth Smart's parents about their experience, the miracle of their daughter's return home, and their advocacy of the Amber Alert, Child Protection Act, and the crime victims' rights amendment to the constitution, when I was invited to join a Facebook group called "Help Find Chelsea King." I read with horror about the disappearance of this high school senior who had lived in our school district for ten years and had attended school with my daughter in ninth grade before the family moved to California.
Chelsea went missing Feb. 25 when she had gone for a run in a park north of San Diego. Within a day or two, her story made local and national headlines. On March 2 my daughter and many other Waubonsie students were on break from their varsity music concert rehearsal when they got the news that their former classmate’s body had been found in a shallow grave at the park.
There are so many thoughts and feelings that occur in relation to what happened. Chelsea’s death is absolutely heartbreaking and was so unnecessary.
Focus has now turned to the man charged with Chelsea’s murder. Following this man’s guilty plea of sexual assault of a 13-year-old girl in 2000, a psychiatrist said he had “significant predatory traits” toward underage girls and should be kept in prison for as long as possible, according to a probation report released by the San Diego County Superior Court on Tuesday. He had served five of a six-year sentence for that crime before he was paroled.
This same man is now also charged with assaulting a woman in December with intent to rape in the same park where Chelsea was found, and he is the focus of an investigation into the death of 14-year-old Amber DuBois in early 2009, whose skeletal remains were found Saturday near an Indian reservation.
Questions remain about why this convicted criminal had been set free to ruin even more lives. While it is known that many sex offenders cannot be rehabilitated, these predators are still routinely allowed to roam free and re-offend.
There is a lot of discussion on the King family’s “Chelsea’s Light” Facebook group regarding actions being taken in Chelsea’s honor. California Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher has already begun working on “Chelsea’s Law” to bring relevant changes to the state’s sex offender laws. Federally, the Dubois-King Bill demands greater protections against sex offenders as well. These are great ideas, but women and children also need to be know how to protect themselves from first-time offenders or those who have not yet been caught.
As I gave my children extra hugs this past week, I pondered what I could do to help keep them from getting into situations in which they cannot protect themselves. This past week we’ve spoken more than usual about how to keep ourselves safe.
Here are some basic tips from a police officer friend: Don’t go out alone after dark. Avoid alleyways and other concealed places if possible. Carry a cell phone, but don’t use it when walking alone because that distraction can make you an easy target. Park your vehicle in well-lit areas and walk with a purpose. If you see or hear something unusual, go somewhere safe and evaluate the situation. Call the police if needed. Call the police if you are afraid to walk to your car and want an escort. If you’re ever in a situation where your life is in danger, scream as loud as you can and fight back as hard as you can.
I also looked for local opportunities to learn basic personal safety and self defense outside of long-term martial arts courses. I realized, though, that these learning opportunities are so important for children to have that they should be part of the curriculum in our schools.
My fourth-grader recently went through the “Be Smart, Be Safe” program at Brooks Elementary School. The District 204 high schools have each hosted guest speaker presentations on the topic of dating violence prevention, and the district’s middle school health courses have a unit on conflict resolution and appropriate responses to bullying.
Neuqua Valley, Metea Valley and the Frontier Campus have had a physical education unit on basic self defense available this year taught with the assistance of Mary Treacy Jansa from Eagle Academy of Martial Arts. Jansa tells me that she can tailor programs for all ages as well as specifically for Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, PTAs, or P.E. programs and can be contacted at eagleacademy@sbcglobal.net.
The local police departments and the schools do quite a lot already to address a variety of safety topics with students, but I found that District 204 does not have personal safety and self-defense as a formal part of its curriculum at any level — it really needs to be, districtwide.
I’ve read that women can be easy targets for random acts of violence due to lack of awareness of surroundings, body language, and just being in the wrong place. Though there are many common sense actions one can take to avoid danger, people need to be taught to recognize these situations and how to react quickly without having to think it through.
It is heartbreaking that anyone should ever have to face the horror of a missing or murdered child, and even more sickening when the accused has been previously convicted. I hope that some future crimes against women and children can be prevented due to actions taken politically and in the classroom as a result of the King family’s loss.
========================
For the sidebar:
www.naperville.il.us/dynamic_content.aspx?id=327
Be Smart, Be Safe
Fourth Grade
The “Be Smart, Be Safe” program is offered in School Districts 203, 204 and in the private schools in Naperville. This is a personal safety program presented in three school days and is instructed by a Community Education Specialist (CES) and a School Resource Officer (SRO).
The curriculum consists of the five basic safety rules, the definition of a stranger and role-playing with the students. During the course of the discussion, a stranger (who is actually one of the student’s parents dressed in disguise) “steals” the officer’s bag. The students then go on to describe the “stranger” so he can be apprehended. This activity teaches the students how to be good witnesses. The program also includes an Internet Safety component. Through the use of a Power Point program developed by Microsoft and the NPD, the students are provided safety rules regarding Internet usage, visiting chat rooms and the dangers of talking to “strangers” in the chat room. Approximately 4,000 students are served at 40 schools each year.
===============
SherryTatar@ameritech.net
statar.blogspot.com (past columns)
www.rallycongress.com/one-strike-for-sex-offenders/2961/ - The Dubois-King Bill
I was in the midst of reading "Bringing Elizabeth Home: A Journey of Faith and Hope," written by Elizabeth Smart's parents about their experience, the miracle of their daughter's return home, and their advocacy of the Amber Alert, Child Protection Act, and the crime victims' rights amendment to the constitution, when I was invited to join a Facebook group called "Help Find Chelsea King." I read with horror about the disappearance of this high school senior who had lived in our school district for ten years and had attended school with my daughter in ninth grade before the family moved to California.
Chelsea went missing Feb. 25 when she had gone for a run in a park north of San Diego. Within a day or two, her story made local and national headlines. On March 2 my daughter and many other Waubonsie students were on break from their varsity music concert rehearsal when they got the news that their former classmate’s body had been found in a shallow grave at the park.
There are so many thoughts and feelings that occur in relation to what happened. Chelsea’s death is absolutely heartbreaking and was so unnecessary.
Focus has now turned to the man charged with Chelsea’s murder. Following this man’s guilty plea of sexual assault of a 13-year-old girl in 2000, a psychiatrist said he had “significant predatory traits” toward underage girls and should be kept in prison for as long as possible, according to a probation report released by the San Diego County Superior Court on Tuesday. He had served five of a six-year sentence for that crime before he was paroled.
This same man is now also charged with assaulting a woman in December with intent to rape in the same park where Chelsea was found, and he is the focus of an investigation into the death of 14-year-old Amber DuBois in early 2009, whose skeletal remains were found Saturday near an Indian reservation.
Questions remain about why this convicted criminal had been set free to ruin even more lives. While it is known that many sex offenders cannot be rehabilitated, these predators are still routinely allowed to roam free and re-offend.
There is a lot of discussion on the King family’s “Chelsea’s Light” Facebook group regarding actions being taken in Chelsea’s honor. California Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher has already begun working on “Chelsea’s Law” to bring relevant changes to the state’s sex offender laws. Federally, the Dubois-King Bill demands greater protections against sex offenders as well. These are great ideas, but women and children also need to be know how to protect themselves from first-time offenders or those who have not yet been caught.
As I gave my children extra hugs this past week, I pondered what I could do to help keep them from getting into situations in which they cannot protect themselves. This past week we’ve spoken more than usual about how to keep ourselves safe.
Here are some basic tips from a police officer friend: Don’t go out alone after dark. Avoid alleyways and other concealed places if possible. Carry a cell phone, but don’t use it when walking alone because that distraction can make you an easy target. Park your vehicle in well-lit areas and walk with a purpose. If you see or hear something unusual, go somewhere safe and evaluate the situation. Call the police if needed. Call the police if you are afraid to walk to your car and want an escort. If you’re ever in a situation where your life is in danger, scream as loud as you can and fight back as hard as you can.
I also looked for local opportunities to learn basic personal safety and self defense outside of long-term martial arts courses. I realized, though, that these learning opportunities are so important for children to have that they should be part of the curriculum in our schools.
My fourth-grader recently went through the “Be Smart, Be Safe” program at Brooks Elementary School. The District 204 high schools have each hosted guest speaker presentations on the topic of dating violence prevention, and the district’s middle school health courses have a unit on conflict resolution and appropriate responses to bullying.
Neuqua Valley, Metea Valley and the Frontier Campus have had a physical education unit on basic self defense available this year taught with the assistance of Mary Treacy Jansa from Eagle Academy of Martial Arts. Jansa tells me that she can tailor programs for all ages as well as specifically for Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, PTAs, or P.E. programs and can be contacted at eagleacademy@sbcglobal.net.
The local police departments and the schools do quite a lot already to address a variety of safety topics with students, but I found that District 204 does not have personal safety and self-defense as a formal part of its curriculum at any level — it really needs to be, districtwide.
I’ve read that women can be easy targets for random acts of violence due to lack of awareness of surroundings, body language, and just being in the wrong place. Though there are many common sense actions one can take to avoid danger, people need to be taught to recognize these situations and how to react quickly without having to think it through.
It is heartbreaking that anyone should ever have to face the horror of a missing or murdered child, and even more sickening when the accused has been previously convicted. I hope that some future crimes against women and children can be prevented due to actions taken politically and in the classroom as a result of the King family’s loss.
========================
For the sidebar:
www.naperville.il.us/dynamic_content.aspx?id=327
Be Smart, Be Safe
Fourth Grade
The “Be Smart, Be Safe” program is offered in School Districts 203, 204 and in the private schools in Naperville. This is a personal safety program presented in three school days and is instructed by a Community Education Specialist (CES) and a School Resource Officer (SRO).
The curriculum consists of the five basic safety rules, the definition of a stranger and role-playing with the students. During the course of the discussion, a stranger (who is actually one of the student’s parents dressed in disguise) “steals” the officer’s bag. The students then go on to describe the “stranger” so he can be apprehended. This activity teaches the students how to be good witnesses. The program also includes an Internet Safety component. Through the use of a Power Point program developed by Microsoft and the NPD, the students are provided safety rules regarding Internet usage, visiting chat rooms and the dangers of talking to “strangers” in the chat room. Approximately 4,000 students are served at 40 schools each year.
===============
SherryTatar@ameritech.net
statar.blogspot.com (past columns)
www.rallycongress.com/one-strike-for-sex-offenders/2961/ - The Dubois-King Bill