By Sandy and John . . . Portez Smith arrived outside Jesse Grover’s duplex early on Sunday, November 17, 2024, yelling through the closed door, “Grover, you’re a f—ing pedophile,” and when Grover opened the door, Smith pulled out a gun and shot him to death. Jesse Grover was registered on Pennsylvania’s sex offender registry as a Tier I offender. This holiday season, Grover leaves behind his wife, parents, four siblings, four stepchildren, and numerous other family members. He is remembered for his sweet smile and gentleness and as a beloved family member, a good friend, and a lover of reading, cooking, and music.

Grover’s murder is not the first registrant to face such a fate. Gary Blanton was a young married father of two infant sons living in Washington State when, in 2012, Patrick Drum shot him to death for being on the Washington registry for a consensual sexual act with another minor from twelve years prior. Drum then went to the home of registrant Jerry Ray and killed him. With the Washington sex offender registry in hand, he was on the way to shoot a third registrant in another county when apprehended (https://archive.is/T5Zc5).

Charles and Gretchen Parker were at their South Carolina home when Jeremy and Christine Moody stopped in front of their house and raised the hood of their car. Charles was a mechanic and went outside to help. The Moodys entered their home and slaughtered both Charles, a South Carolina registrant, and his wife Gretchen, with a gun and knife. Like Drum, they already had targeted their next victim, another person on the sex offender registry, when they were apprehended. In the wake of these murders, the National Association for Rational Sexual Offense Laws asked then-governor Nikki Haley to have the home addresses of registrants removed from the public view of the online registry; the request was disregarded.

Portez Smith’s rant at Jesse Grover reveals almost as much about his beliefs as his senseless act of violence does. It is commonly believed that everyone on a registry has a sexual offense against a child: This is a fallacy. In every state, virtually every crime that can have a sexual component carries with it an obligation to register. In many states, non-sexual crimes require registration. And in some states, many of those required to register are minors. Blanton was the same age as his teenage girlfriend when he was convicted for consensual sex with her; her parents pushed for an arrest when they learned of the relationship. Statistics suggest that a third of the offenders against minors are themselves minors. Children have been put on a registry as young as eight.

The most disturbing factor about these murders is that a segment of the community views these vigilantes as heroes. Social media and online articles about these incidents further this perception by allowing ten or even twenty comments praising the vigilante for each one condemning the act of violence. Recently, the glorification of “predator catchers” has driven groups of gangs and teenagers to show up at registrants’ homes to “carry out justice.”  Numerous studies document various degrees of violence and harassment registrants and their family members face daily. 

Blanton’s wife publicly asked that Drum’s supporters stop the harassment of her and her children. According to CBS News, the judge at Drum’s hearing admonished those who were in the courtroom in support of Drum to cease their activity. Leslie said she and her family had been spat upon, had things thrown at their car, had their house targeted, and more.

So what is the answer? The first, quickest, and most straightforward answer is a “band-aid” measure that NARSOL asked South Carolina to take: remove the home and business addresses from public view. This will at least require vigilantes to work a little harder to achieve their goals. Supporters of the registry argue that knowing where registrants live protects their communities, but the USDOJ reports that more than 93% of the cases of sexual harm are committed by someone known to the victim, and 95% are not registrants. Additionally research shows that sex crimes have the lowest recidivism rates of any crime class tracked except murder.

The long-term fix is not an easy one. It involves changing hearts and minds toward a willingness to put aside emotional responses and adopt rational and logical facts. Several decades of evidence-based data show us the sex offender registry is ineffective at every level. It does not make communities safer, protect children from sexual abuse, help those who have caused harm, nor heal those who have been harmed. Instead, it puts families of registrants in harm’s way, impedes rehabilitation, destroys the opportunity to rebuild damaged lives, and costs taxpayers an enormous and ever-burgeoning amount of resources.

One bright spot on the horizon is the increasing prevalence of restorative justice programs. These alternatives to harsh punishment for offenders and nothing for those offended bring the two sides together—for those who choose it—to dialogue, understand each other better, express remorse and forgiveness, and pave the road for future reconciliation. Because the majority of sexual harm happens within families, this is an excellent choice. 

Policymakers need to abolish the secondary punishments accompanying registration. Special restrictions such as residence, proximity, and Halloween restrictions are statistically useless in furthering public safety and child protection. Abolishing them would save significant public funds that could be better used for evidence-based prevention measures.

Most legislators claim to be fiscally responsible, data-informed, and against unfunded mandates. Yet they seem to forget those words when it comes to tightening the plethora of laws and restrictions (such as residence, proximity, and Halloween restrictions) that affect persons required to register. Politicians wanting to project a “tough on crime” platform turn to sex crimes because society’s taboo on anything sexual combined with the visceral nature of sex crimes causes electors and officials to abandon rationality for emotionalism. 

Meaningful reform will begin when enough citizens protest the waste of human lives and public monies and when decision-makers at all levels adopt evidence-based solutions to preventing sexual harm and rehabilitating those with past sexual offenses.

* A version of this article also appeared in the December 20, 2024 issue of Merion West.

The post Vigilantism & Death: A Harsh Reality for Citizens on the ‘Sex Offender’ Registry first appeared on NARSOL.

By Sandy . . . A 71-year-old man was murdered on September 18 in Fremont, CA. His killer did not know him. He didn’t kill him during a robbery. He had never seen him before. Nevertheless, he set out to kill David Brimmer specifically, going to his house with a knife, attacking him when he opened the door, and chasing him as he tried to escape across the lawn and into a neighboring garage.

Why?

In 1995, Brimmer was convicted of a sexual crime. He served nine years in prison, was released, and was required to register on California’s sex offender registry. Like almost everyone who has served a sentence for the first conviction of a sexual crime, he has, from all evidence, not reoffended in 30 years.

Using the information readily available online, the murderer selected his victim. The killer said that he sought a registrant who was elderly, presumably because he would be easier to kill. However, Mr. Brimmer fought for his life. The attack lasted for what had to have been five minutes or more.

This would be horrific if it had never happened before. But it has, over and over and over again; in state after state, vigilantes have sought, found, and murdered individuals on sex offender registries. In some cases, killer knew victim prior to the murder and killed him after finding him listed on the state registry.

Horrific doesn’t even begin to be adequate. It has happened in Maine; in Washington

State (two separate incidents, four victims)*; in Nevada; in South Carolina; in Minnesota (with moose horns as the weapon); and, less than a year ago, in Pennsylvania.

It has happened before in California, four separate times, from 2007 to 2011. ** Mr. Brimmer’s murder makes five.

And those are just a few of the many that we know about, all senseless murders of individuals on registries. How many more do we not know about?

It is far past time for it to stop.

People will kill other people. But when they identify and locate their victims by means of a government-required online list, complete with address, it has gone too far.

NARSOL calls on state attorneys general to order the temporary removal of home addresses from their states’ online sex offender registries.

NARSOL further calls on state legislatures to enact legislation as soon as possible that will eliminate the online publication of home addresses of persons listed on their states’ sex offender registries.

We will never stop individuals from killing other individuals.

However, our government must stop providing roadmaps to murderous vigilantes by putting their potential victims on a list that tells the world they are dangerous—even though the vast majority are not—and providing their addresses to make the killers’ task as easy as possible.

Adocates, if you have any connection with legislators in your state, send them this or write something about it yourself.

If you know anyone with connections, tell them.

If you don’t know anyone, phone the legislative offices. Talk to the aides. Tell SOMEBODY! Tell anyone who will  listen.

SPEAK OUT; your voice may be the one that makes the difference.

* https://www.cbsnews.com/news/man-claims-child-rapist-murders/

https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2013/12/the-vigilante-of-clallam-county/281968/

** https://www.record-bee.com/2007/12/11/murder-and-megans-law/

https://kesq.com/news/2010/01/12/second-arrest-made-in-sex-offender-murder/

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2319621/Charles-Gaskins-White-supremacist-sentenced-life-murder-child-molester.html

https://ktla.com/news/man-convicted-of-murdering-sex-offender-neighbor-in-vigilante-killing-2/

The post ACTION ALERT: Protect ALL citizens; remove addresses from sex offender registries first appeared on NARSOL.