Saturday, February 9, 2008

Hot topic:Convicted murderer released early today

Daily Times Storychat was abuzz today by readers outraged at the early release of convicted murderer Jermaine Wright,who was sentenced in 2001 for the 1995 murder of tourist Krista Ruggles in Ocean City-she was just 16 years old.Ironically he was serving time in another state for a sexual assault against a minor girl when he confessed the murder to his cellmate!He received credits for his behavior and activities behind the walls at ECI and that,coupled with a lame-ass Alford plea,is how we get to this point-a predator will be back on the streets.The news stated that he would remain on parole until his original sentence is up and required to get some kind of sexual predator therapy but made no mention of whether he will be required to register as a sex offender.I am not pessimistic,I do believe some people can be rehabilitated but violent pedophiles do not fall under that category.How many times has this case been replayed across the country?And by that I mean whenever you see the story of some kid who has went missing or been found dead on the news,and they find the person responsible and they turn out to have a long history of prior sex offenses!Many of them have already been convicted of a sex offense at least once,are on parole and by all rights should have still been locked up!
I do admire Kristas' Dad,Larry Ruggles for the constructive way he has funneled his grief and loss into something positive and is reaching out to schools to make kids aware of predators.As a fellow blogger stated just mere days ago,John Walsh,of Americas Most Wanted,was just an ordinary Dad until the day he lost his son Adam and the difficulties he encountered after his loss made him mad as hell and he rolled with it and today thanks to his efforts,hundreds of criminals have been captured and pressure is put on our lawmakers to get tough on predators.I cannot begin to fathom the pain that the Ruggles family has been through,nor would I want to and I know that there is not a parent out there who does not have strong feelings about Wright being back on the streets.Hopefully all the publicity surrounding his release will be enough to keep him dormant but nevertheless I think I can never say this enough times-Anyone with kids or grandkids,know who your neighbors are!Check your local area for registered offenders online frequently,and just be alert and educate your kids on being proactive for their safety.We cannot instill a fear of the world around them in our kids or put them in a protective bubble-wrap but we can make them aware that there are bad people out there.

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