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.