Ex Offender

[Sexnotgender]

AIBU to be uncomfortable about an ex offender working in my garden?

Context - his offences involved children.
I have 2 young children but he would only ever be here when the children were not at home.

He’d never be allowed in the house.

I totally agree with rehabilitation generally and I know I’m probably being hypocritical. But I don’t know what to do.

If more people were nimbys, this country would be a better place.

How do you know about his offence(s) OP?

I have worked with offenders and ex-offenders for years. There are loads of people who have committed sexual offences everywhere. Chances are that you have been served by a sex offender in the supermarket, been driven by one in a taxi and sat next to several on the train. Sexual offences are v common in this country but we don't normally know the person sitting next to us in pizza express has that history, so we dont/cant do anything about it.

I'm passionate about giving ex offenders a chance and helping them back to work etc..

But, I think without knowing the details of the offence, it's hard to say what to do.

I would be happy to shop in a supermarket and use a till where the cashier had a history of sexual offences. But I wouldn't be happy having someone with a sex offence history know the details of my life - how many children I have, their ages, where they go to school, what time we leave for school and return, what after school clubs they do etc... and if you hire this person to work around your home, they will know all this info.

I'm surprised you know this persons history. Employers and others should not be telling you. It would also be very hard for the worker to know that you know their offence, and just as you may not be comfortable with them, they may not be comfortable you knowing - especially as you have kids, as they will likely feel v uncomfortable about it.

There is a reason for confidentiality of these things. Whether this person should be allowed to work with/near kids should be a matter between them and their probation officer. But seeing as you know about it, I personally think it's best (for you, them and your children) to avoid in this case

How long will this garden work take? A day? A week? How long can garden work possibly take? I think this is relevant, maybe, but even then my gut says a firm no to this.

If I had children, I wouldn't take the risk (however slight). However if I didn't have kids, then I would be ok with it.

I share the view of a PP that says if no one will employ people with this kind of history, they are stuck at home with nothing to do. That's surely going to make the problem even worse? Far better for them to be working in some kind of industry, keeping minds busy and obviously in a place that's far away from any interaction with children.

She might have just googled his name. Oh actually, she doesn't know the offense...well she should Google his name.

There are plenty of roles where you will not come into contact with children and any known child sex offender should not be in a position where they are likely to supervised or not. What if your child/children are off unexpectedly or sent home from school

I am surprised he is allowed to take up such a position but not surprised he has this role at all

don’t allow him to come onto your property sex offenders are not rehabilitated they are monitored and no amount of monitoring that is put in place sadly stops them trying to seek out potential victims. Why can’t he work on the grounds of a factory/office block he can but it’s more preferable for him to work where their are families

So I’ve now got a first name, I’m making progress! There is only one chap with that name on the SO registry where I live. If it’s him it’s an absolute no. Psychologist report says a high risk of reoffending.

Not in a million years.

Will update if I find out it’s definitely him.

How the hec are you able to read this persons psychology report? That should absolutely in no way be in the public domain. This is quite an odd thread really! I think someone somewhere has access to and is leaking info about someone they most definitely should not be.

Oh I see, you've read it in a paper.

No not in a newspaper 🙄 on the uk and Ireland sex offender database.

Rehabilitation does not mean letting offenders continue as if they never did the crime.

Rehabilitation for a previous offender against children might be them understanding they need to stay away from children.

this isn’t the report it’s a note from the psychologist report that he is at high risk of re offending

now ask yourself why he wants a job gardening that will allow him to garden family homes

he isn’t to be trusted. I’ve yet to meet a sex offender who isn’t highly manipulative

Actually just googled the guy and got a bbc report that also had the same psychological evaluation.

Yes obviously no one is going to have access to the full report unless directly involved in the case.

Fascinated by the people determined to pick holes in my post 🙄

Rehabilitation for a previous offender against children might be them understanding they need to stay away from children

Quite apart from the issue of why he's been released at all if there's an "extremely high risk" of reoffending, how could the "understanding" of the need to stay away from children possibly be measured?

Very obviously they'll claim to understand if there's a prospect of release, but an overloaded probation system and the figures for recidivism really don't inspire confidence

Source the Lantern Project: "It is often said that the best predictor of future behaviour is past behaviour. Various studies have demonstrated that recidivism rates in first offenders range from 10% to 21% compared with rates of 33% to 71% in those with past convictions (Marshall, Jones, Ward, Johnston & Barbaree, 1991)"

No way.

I don't believe that people who commit these types of offences against children can be rehabilitated.

They will always be a danger to kids.

But you don't know the guys full name so this is all supposition based on you figuring 2+2= whatever number you want it to be.

You've gone from not knowing the man's name, to having a first name to having looked him up and decided the guy in the report you've read is 100% the guy employed by your maintenance service. Unless the man's name is totally unique then you cannot be sure it's the same person.

This is how witch-hunts start ...

Of course they understand they should be staying away from children

Many many don’t though. I work in rehabilitation our monitoring is high in comparison to those living in the community meeting their probation officer once a fortnight and maybe a few other members of their team over the month. We know we really know little of what those we monitor do when out we can only look out for changes in behaviour or information that gets back to us

it often feels we are just waiting I hate this part of the work but that is what we are doing

@Sunsetintheeast

🙇🏻‍♀️🙇🏻‍♀️🙇🏻‍♀️ Maybe it's landscaping/putting in a fishpond/whatever, to be done on specific dates & the OP will be away with the children. We don't know, we just have to accept what the OP has said, HER chikdten won't be there!

So sorry, did you miss the part where I said IF it’s him.

I’ll do precisely fuck all with this information until I clarify if it’s him.

Sod off with your witch hunt accusations. I’m not intending to do anything other than ascertain the actual identity of my proposed gardener and then make an informed decision based on that information.

I think it's important that offenders are found work to aid rehabilitation but it should be chosen well.

We know we really know little of what those we monitor do when out we can only look out for changes in behaviour or information that gets back to us

I believe you, HRTQueen, but it's not much of a consolation when an offender's been deemed "an extremely high risk" is it?

And yes, I realise the man the clip's about may or may not be OP's potential gardener, but it's the principle I'm thinking of here

I am 100% unabashedly NIMBY on this. We had a recent similar issue crop up. Hired someone to drop off some equipment. He told my husband that he used to maintain the yard - before we lived here. Thought about hiring him until another neighbor stopped over and told DH about his <very well known in our neighborhood> history.

We don't even have children living here. It's just a big no.

He doesn’t deserve employment in any form. He deserves to be put in the sea surrounded by man eating sharks. Do not let this man near your life in any way.