Chapter 24: Alan: Punishment for Pedophiles
Alan writes, "When I was in my distorted world of fantasy and escalation, knowing that the penalty had been increased would not have stopped me at all." page 198, para 2. Pedophiles will not stop on their own because their disease is one of no boundaries and depends on secrecy. I sit here searching for words on this very complex disorder. I have stated my feelings that pedophilia should be dealt with prior to an innocent child being victimized. The first step could be identifying a genetic marker, or hormone imbalance, or psychological tendency toward pedophilia at an early age. Also consider that a pedophile could be a victim of pedophilia as a child, and this abuse creates their obsession for victimizing children. Hopefully a person conditioned to behave in a certain fashion can ultimately be reconditioned to live responsibly. The questions deserve research funding from the National Institute of Health. Society needs answers and positive prognosis to stem the tide of child abuse from pedophilia.
Perhaps we need treatment centers for current pedophiles, a type of mental hospital where they can be removed from their 'drug' of choice (children), given medication to allow them to listen to their doctors, learn coping mechanism that will eventually allow them to reenter the world without being a threat to other children. Prison accomplishes the goal of protecting children, but fails to rehabilitate the pedophile for their eventual release.
When I talked my brother into seeking help he knew about "Megan's Law", and therefore would not be honest with the therapist. Alan shares his opinion,"If the penalty for molesting is life in prison and the penalty for murder is the same, then the panic-stricken mind of an already unstable man is likely to see he has nothing to lose by murdering the only witness to his crime. Because the vast majority of pedophiles would not [ordinarily] consider taking a victim's life, is it truly in the best interest of society to create a situation wherein that thought might be generated by fear of this enhanced punishment? page 198, para. 3. Being a victim myself, it is hard to appraise the topic of punishment for pedophilia without thinking in harsh terms. Moreover the possibility of being murdered intensifies these feelings. In a more perfect world, I would have been separated from my brother and mother and my younger brother could have been separated from my mother. We would all lived better lives, with the emphasis on lived. Alan concludes, "There must be a better way." page 201, para. 2. I agree.
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