ME- Sex Offender Expert Offers Coping Advice

11-26-2008 Maine:

BLUE HILL — Generation after generation of youngsters has ventured from home and into the cruel world with this time-honored parental advice echoing in their minds: “Don’t talk to strangers.”

Turns out the well-intentioned words to live by are way off the mark when it comes to protecting our offspring from the horrors of child sexual abuse.

It would be better to admonish our children to beware of Uncle Charlie, the youth choir director, the babysitter and others near and dear to them.

It would be better yet to teach them the value of talking openly to their parents.

Barbara Schwartz, noted expert in the field of sex offender treatment, made those points before an audience of about 100 area residents who packed the Blue Hill Farm Country Inn Nov. 19.

Schwartz’s talk, “No More Victims: Sex Offenders and the Community,” was sponsored by “Breaking the Silence,” a support group for victims of sexual abuse, family members and community.

In introducing Schwartz, host Jim Schatz said that society is marginally effective at taking deviant behavior out of the community, but not at all effective at taking such behavior out of the offender.

Focusing on child molesters, Schwartz spoke for nearly two hours on managing sex offenders in the community.

“Stranger danger is not where we should put our energy,” Schwartz said, adding that children are far more likely to be sexually abused by a family member, babysitter, minister, Scout leader or some other trusted adult.


Despite a media blitz that creates a scary climate through shows such as “CSI” and “Law and Order,” sadistic pedophiles — those who hurt or kill children — are extremely rare, accounting for less than 10 crimes a year in the United States, Schwartz said.

“They’re all about sex and murders,” Schwartz said of popular television fare.

Far more common are fixated pedophiles, those obsessed with prepubescent children.

“A fixated pedophile is the individual we think about when we think of a child molester,” said Schwartz.

Statistically, 90 percent of child sexual abuse victims in the United States are molested by family members, friends and close acquaintances, Schwartz said, adding that more than 50 percent are molested by other children or adolescents.

“We can teach kids to be afraid of strangers,” she said, “but the guy next door that you’ve known for 20 years is the real danger.”

There is a fine line to observe, however.

“If we scare them too much, they become paranoid about all adults,” Schwartz said. “Who are they going to tell?”

When children tend to fear or distrust all adults, sexual crimes against them go unreported.

Schwartz said it is wise to teach children appropriate boundaries, personal distances and the right to privacy.


She said parents should not force their children to kiss or sit on the laps of relatives and friends, and they should teach their children that when an adult tells them “it’s our secret,” that’s a cue to come and tell their parents what is happening.

“Teach them to use their intuition and their instincts,” said Schwartz. “If it seems yucky, it probably is. Tell someone.”

The ultimate goal regarding child sexual abuse is “no more victims,” but until the goal is reached, there will be victims and offenders.

Schwartz, who serves as the director of Maine’s sex offender therapy program with the Department of Corrections, directed many of her remarks at keeping the community safe.

She urged her audience to educate themselves about sexual predators in order to offset the misinformation and the myths surrounding the subject.

Among those myths is the belief that sex offenders always repeat their crime.

“It’s not true,” Schwartz said, adding that the recidivism rate among child molesters is 15 percent across the board, including those who have received treatment and those who have not.

Another myth, she said, is that treatment doesn’t make a difference. Studies refute that and clearly show that treatment reduces recidivism rates.

The popular notion that banning sex offenders from places where children gather will significantly protect children is ill informed, Schwartz said.

“If you want to molest a child, being 2,000 feet from a school isn’t going to keep you from doing that,” she said. “Ninety-three percent occur in our homes. Places frequented by children are the safest places. The isolated kid is at risk.”

Schwartz also labeled as a myth the notion that the only way to deal with child sex offenders is to put them behind bars.

Likewise, the notion that tougher legislation is the only solution is a myth.

“I’m not suggesting we don’t incarcerate sex offenders,” she said, “but, again, don’t paint them with a broad brush.”


Schwartz offered alternatives, such as putting sex offenders on probation, GPS monitoring, strict loitering laws and more.

She said a “containment approach” works well when a team of probation officers, counselors and other support providers surround the offender with supervision.

Shunning offenders from the community is counterproductive, as offenders become unable to find housing or employment.

Schwartz said they end up homeless or in very temporary shelters and drop off the radar screen.

“If they can’t find a job, they can’t pay for therapy,” Schwartz said. “They need appropriate therapy and they need circles of support and accountability to reintegrate back into communities. That’s something communities can organize for little money.”

She said communities can identify appropriate rental housing for offenders, who often make great tenants because they come with probation officers, must not be involved with drugs and must pay their rent on time. Communities also can offer jobs and welcome offenders into a church with appropriate safeguards.

Schwartz works in Maine prisons where she directs the RULE program, a therapy program for sex offenders.

The program is based on the principles of “responsibility” for the impact of their offenses on victims and community, “understanding” their actions, “learning” new patterns of behavior and “experiencing” new skills to live in a community.

“It’s all about no more victims,” said a participant in the RULE program who had come to the talk with Schwartz.

His presence reinforced the responsibility aspect of his prison therapy program as he encountered several audience members who remain victims of sexual offenses.


The audience, too, appeared to benefit from meeting face-to-face with a sex offender.

The “Breaking the Silence” group was formed more than a year ago as victims and families coped with allegations of sexual abuse by a mentor at Liberty School in Blue Hill. Howard Evans was charged last March with unlawful sexual contact and two counts of assault.

In August, he pleaded guilty to the charges.

Several audience members said issues raised by Evans’ unlawful behavior remain unresolved.

“More needs to be done for victims to rehabilitate them back into the community,” said one woman. “It takes a lot to speak out. There is re-entry for victims as well as offenders.”

Schwartz said forming groups to support victims is an excellent community response. She praised the “Breaking the Silence” group for its work.

The local support group will meet more frequently in response to a recent arrest of a Blue Hill man on three counts of unlawful sexual contact stemming from alleged incidents with a 10-year-old girl in 2004.

“Breaking the Silence will meet every other week,” said program organizer Hugh Curran.

The group meets at the Blue Hill Congregational Church. For information, call 667-4580. ..News Source.. by James Straub