Myths & Facts

Myth: Individuals on the sex offender registry are contributing to IOWA’s revenue source. 

  • Fact:  Many individuals on the sex offender registry struggle to find stable income and are rejected from potential jobs due to the negative stigma associated with the term “sex offender”, thus unable to contribute to the Iowa tax revenue stream.

  • Fact: The Sex Offender Registry costs Iowa taxpayers more money per person than what the individual is able to contribute to Iowa’s financial revenue.

Myth: Those on the sex registry are “80% frightening and high” to repeat their offense.

  • Fact: Sex offenses have a 5% - 7% recidivism rate (drugs is 62%).

  • Fact: Our lawmakers capitalized on sex offenses from the 1988 U.S. Supreme Court document titled, “A Practitioner's Guide to Treating the Incarcerated Male Sex Offender” written by Barbara Schwartz, who authored a 231-page report full of myths and fabrications, excluding facts and statistics, including the above statement without data to support her claim.

    • Barbara Schwartz, seen in the YouTube video titled “Frightening and High” stated she could NOT find data to support her assignment, using a dictionary and a one-liner from an article published in Psychology today in her 231-page document.

Myth: The Sex Offender registry keeps society safe.

  • Fact: Patty Wetterling, originator of Megan’s Law, enacted by (then) President Clinton, intended the sex registry for law enforcement only, not as a public access tool.

  • Fact: Our lawmakers have created a fear mongering society, refusing to speak on this topic, including proactive solutions to prevent sexual offenses.

  • Fact: The countries of Norway, England, Sweden, Finland, Germany, and New Zealand, all having the lowest recidivism rates from their proactive stance by using both public and television advertisement for therapy (but not the United States).

Myth: The Sex Offender Registry is only used as a monitoring tool.

  • Fact: A sex crime is the only crime who serves a punishment sentence after they have served their required judicial sentence. 

  • Fact: Those on the sex offender registry are targeted and harassed by law enforcement, sometimes daily, in the attempt to find them guilty of another crime as an attempt to send them back to prison. 

  • Fact: Those on the registry are afraid to stand up for their rights because of retaliation by law enforcement, the judicial system, and/or for fear of violating the registry’s rules. 

  • Fact: Individuals on the public sex offender registry are targets for hate crimes, yet the term “Sex Offender” is not privy to being protected when faced with a hate crime.

Myth: Those on the sex offender registry are all considered heinous monsters.

  • Fact: Many of those on the registry are also victims of childhood molestation, early childhood trauma, and/or exposed to sexual content at an early age, with their brains tainted from logical reasoning due to their own trauma, abuse, and exposure. 

  • Fact: Sex Addiction is not recognized as a valid addiction with the Psychology Association, nor is sex addiction advertised publicly for recovery purposes.

Myth:  The sex offender registry prevents crimes.

  • Fact: To date, the Sex Offender Registry has little to no impact on crimes of a sexual nature. It is used as a fear mongering tool, provides a false sense of security, and is only used to enhance the public’s misconceptions. 

  • Fact: Some of the sex offender registry individuals are either “Romeo and Juliet” crimes, fabricated crimes, indecent exposure crimes, Internet crimes, hands-on crimes, or battling a sex addiction, with a vast majority of them being victims of sexual abuse themselves.

Myth: Strangers commit most sexual offenses.

  • Fact: 95% of sexual offenses are committed by family members or acquaintances.

  • Fact: Most sex crimes are not reported and, therefore, are not prosecuted.

  • Fact: Only a small fraction of those who commit a sexual assault are apprehended and convicted for their crimes. Most convicted sex offenders eventually are released to the community under probation or parole supervision.

Myth: Only males commit sex offenses.

  • Fact: Although most offenders are male, females commit sex offenses too.

Myth: All children who are sexually assaulted will grow up to sexually assault others.

  • Fact: Over 85% of inmates were molested as children, craving to speak of their pain but forced to stay in their trauma due to no public outlets of support, leading to an addiction to porn.

  • Fact: Most victims turn to child pornography seeing themselves as the victim, reliving their pain, and feeling like they deserved their abuse.

  • Fact: Parental abandonment lends itself to an addiction with pornography, finding their identity through sexual imagery.

Myth: Adolescents do not commit sex offenses.

  • Fact: Adolescents represent a fair number of sex offenders.

  • Fact: Adolescents are viewing child pornography regularly, as its freely available without searching/paying for it, found on adult websites, apps, games, and social media.

Myth: Child molesters are lurking in bushes, wearing a trench coat, and spontaneously attack when they see a vulnerable potential victim.

  • Fact: Many child molesters and pedophiles spend years positioning themselves into a place of authority and trust within the community and can spend a long time "grooming" one child.

  • Fact: Registered citizens are not allowed on school property without approval from their probation officer, along with the school’s permission, BEFORE stepping on school grounds.

What happens to families of sex offenders?

Partners and spouses of registered citizens report a variety of consequences resulting from stigma and policy restrictions. Among them are: Social isolation, loss of employment, loss of their social supports, and a poor mental state. Children are caught in the middle with most avoiding extracurricular activities due to the negative stigma and public reaction that follows their parent’s choice, all emotionally detrimental to the child.

With sexting being the primary communication among students who possess a cell phone, your district would benefit more from hiring firms to teach students about internet safety, how sexting is producing child pornography, the negative effects of sexual imagery on the developing brain, along with the websites, games, and apps where child pornography can be freely found. Sexual content warps the developing minds of our youth, leading to a thirst for sexual content before brains are mature enough to handle the content. A dopamine fix from sexual imagery is equivalent to a dose of heroine. Fight the New Drug is a great educational resource for the sex topic.

  • Fact: 1 in 5 girls and 1 in 9 boys are molested every 6 minutes. Society focuses on “save the children” when we also need to “save the adults” as trauma does not expire when one becomes an adult. Molestation and rape individuals are trapped in the darkness, filth, pain, and anguish of their violation, thinking they deserved the pain, shown through signs of depression and lack of self’s (confidence, esteem, worth, dignity, etc.).