We all remember reading The Scarlet Letter in high school, how Hester Prynne was sentenced to wear a badge of shame for her crime. We usually think of this sort of thing as belonging to the puritan culture of that time, but things like this still happen today. In fact, one Indiana man recently received a sentence similar to this for his crime.
Last Friday, a 27-year-old convicted public sex offender in Indiana was sentenced to wear a sandwich-style fluorescent sign reading “Registered Sex Offender Who Bought Alcohol for Kids” on the public sidewalk in front of the Pike County Courthouse for one hour. According to his agreement with the court, he pleaded guilty to contributing to the delinquency of a minor after an incident in which he allegedly purchased alcohol for fourteen-year-old child.
The man was reportedly convicting of child molestation in May of 2010. After being released for prison, he was arrested for buying juveniles vodka last September. At the time of his arrest, he was serving an additional two year probation term. Following his appearance in front of the courthouse, the man will serve an additional eight hundred and twenty-three day sentence.
Sex offenders don’t typically have to submit this kind of shaming ritual, but there are other challenges for sex offenders that present themselves. One of these is having to register as a sex offender and keep authorities updated as to one’s location.
Because the stakes are so high when it comes to charges involving sex crimes, it is important for defendants to build a strong case from the start and to work carefully with an attorney to protect their rights.
Source: 9 WAFB, “Sex offender ‘who bought alcohol for kids’ forced to wear sign,” Brad Conaway, February 8, 2013
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