originally posted 2/19/2012
Though I have had other personal incidents and difficulties with having to retroactively register as a sex offender, I will relate only one of many that illustrate an unintended consequence.
My wife and I, (now ex in large part because of her fear of public humiliation) my youngest step-daughter, and her friends were pulled over for going 3 miles over the speed limit. (The policeman was upset because I decided to pass him.) While at our car window, the fact that I am a registered sex offender is loudly announced on the officer’s radio. My wife, who is now mortified, gets out of the car and almost runs down the road. My daughter, stuck between her friends, is fighting to hold back tears of embarrassment as the police officer, hand on gun, follows me as I get out of the car to go after my wife in an attempt to console her.
How is publicly embarrassing my family keeping others safe? I know this is relatively minor, as compared to other incidences, but it is one of the more common ways that the registry destroys relationships. I can’t begin to tell you how the registry has affected me, as it permeates every aspect of my persona and all those that I love and who love me!
s.