Violation of Trust
by Timothy Rollins
April 23, 1998
"Beneath the Surface"
In
today's edition of The Dallas Morning
News, an Irving, Texas pastor received a 12 year prison sentence
for sexually assaulting a 16-year-old female student. And once more, a jury
heard how it was not his fault. The jury was told he had been having difficulties
since the death of his wife and that this, combined with his children leaving
home, created a loneliness that led to the criminal conduct. Much to her credit,
Assistant District Attorney Lisa Fox was able to sway the jury that the loneliness
excuse was just that -- an excuse to rationalize and legitimize a felony of
the first magnitude.
Loneliness? Give me a break! When I was 24 and finishing college, I went through
a divorce. I felt alone because my married friends felt I was too single and
my single friends felt I was too married. That, and heaven forbid, it (divorce)
might be contagious. Talk about being all dressed up with nowhere to go. It
was a lonely and frustrating time, especially with my libido such as it is.
But rather than engage in either immoral or criminal conduct such as Reverend
Jerry Power did, I began my career and added hobbies and interests to help fill
the void. After about eight months, I was doing even better than expected. I
did not give in to basic instincts, but disciplined myself to live by a higher
standard. And I feel if I can do it, it is within the reach of anyone.
A recurring theme of tragedy in America and elsewhere is ongoing tales of one
minister, teacher or trusted adult after another being charged and subsequently
convicted of 'child sexual abuse' -- the politically incorrect and more accurate
term would be child rape. Much like Mary Kay LeTourneau, the former school teacher
now serving a 7½ year prison term in Washington State after being twice
impregnated through raping her sixth-grade student, the so-called 'love of her
life'.
The disturbing thing here is the increasing trend of people in positions of
trust and authority, such as teachers, ministers, scout masters, parents and
others to abuse their authority and get only a token sentence for their crimes
-- a slap on the wrist if you will for them, and a slap in the face to their
victims. Whether abused physically and/or sexually, they never completely recover
from the damage maliciously inflicted on them by what can only be described
as an animal. Certainly no caring or responsible adult would willfully inflict
such catastrophic damage upon another person, particularly a child, whose means
of defending themselves is at best limited.
I have been involved with the legal profession in one capacity or another for
over 20 years. Whether as a legal assistant, a complainant, defendant (traffic
court) or witness, I have come to the conclusion that the legal system in both
the United States and Canada is badly broken and needs repair, with the majority
of repair to be done by non-lawyers, so that all people will have a better understanding
of the legal system and their rights within that system. And I believe such
repair can be done without eroding individual rights.
What makes child abuse so insidious -- sexual or otherwise, is the fear imposed
in victims that prevents disclosure so as to weed out the abusers from society.
It is usually not until something violent occurs before the attacker's other
victims come forward with their horror tales. This defendant had a long history
of sexual advances and deviance toward female students that came to light at
trial, which begs the question when abusers get caught, how many direct victims
are really out there, never mind the collateral damage?
Although some may consider this proposal extreme, I am of the belief that there
is only one available method that will successfully and permanently remove child
molesters. And that is execution or in the alternative, surgical (non-chemical)
castration with a life prison sentence that has NO allowance for parole whatsoever.
In my experience with the legal profession, I have learned one inescapable truth:
Pedophilia defies rehabilitation.
Our children are our future. We have a duty and an obligation not only to protect
them, but all who cannot protect themselves. ***
© 1998 Timothy Rollins
COPYRIGHT © 1998 BY THE AMERICAN PARTISAN. All writers retain rights to their work.