Sex offender jailed for attempted luring
I have long struggled with the fact that this country is more concerned with locking up petty drug dealers than child sex offenders, and this case - reported in the Times - only reaffirms my stance:
Police say Henry Richard Newell approached the boy who was with his father inside a supermarket in the 1400 block of Broadway on April 2. While the boy's father was a few feet away talking to a salesperson, Newell walked up to the boy and said, "Come with me," according to charging documents.
Later in the little blurb about the incident, we get a rundown of Newell's criminal past:
Newell, who is homeless, has a prior felony conviction in Oregon for raping an 11-year-old girl and is a registered sex offender, according to the documents. He is being held in King County Jail in lieu of $50,000 bail and is scheduled to be arraigned May 7.
Does it get much worse than raping an 11-year-old? Even if this gets the max sentence for "attempted luring," I'm guessing he's back out on the streets before too long. I know sex offenders have one of the lowest re-offend rates of all criminals, but it seems there are far too many cases of the justice system letting creeps like Newell slip through the cracks.
I'm sure his 11-year-old victim is still dealing with the horrendous crime he committed against her. This time, let's try to keep him where he belongs...behind bars.
