Monday, July 11, 2011

It's Soap Box Time!

Michael and I sat down to watch Diane Sawyers interview with Jaycee Lee Dugard last night on ABC. We had heard the story after she was reunited with her family a couple of years ago but we learned so much more from watching the interview.

The thing that got to me the most was the fact that if the parole officers had done their jobs correctly, they would have been able to save Jaycee so much sooner. She was living in the backyard, which they never checked. One time she even talked to an officer in the house and he didn't do anything about it. HELLO, you are here at a sex offenders house and you see a young girl? Shouldn't that be obvious?

A neighbor called to complain that there were girls (Jaycee and her two daughters) living in the backyard. A Sheriff Deputy came out, had a conversation with her captors on the front porch, but never even entered the house or backyard to take a look around. What the heck?!

The incompetence is unbelievable. I'm so glad that eventually she was found and saved due to two UC Berkley officers who went with their gut instinct and looked into something they felt was off.

Hearing stories such as this one makes it impossible to not be paranoid. Or rather, overly aware and cautious. I guess it's better to be that way than to be completely naive and unaware. Michael and I talked about how it's so true that when you have a boy, you just have to worry about one weiner. When you have a girl you have to worry about a world of them.

I would rather be considered overprotective and have a safe daughter at home than not care about where she is or who she is with and have something awful happen to her. I remember getting mad at my parents growing up whenever they wouldn't let me go to a friends house for a sleepover if it was just the dad home, not the mom. Or when they wouldn't let me even go to a friends house unless they knew their parents. I don't think I ever walked to and from school by myself. I always had a friend or two to walk with and the school was close to our home. I am so grateful that I had parents to keep me safe and who looked out for my well being.

Stepping off my soap box now. ;-)

5 comments :

Heather said...

Oh gosh, its insane to me how many people dropped the ball in her case! It's so frightening.

Jessica said...

I totally agree they were negligent in her case and it makes you wonder about all the other unsolved missing person cases out there.

It's a dangerous world we live in and that makes it hard to be a parent! I'm sure you two are going to do a great job :)

Anonymous said...

The world can be a bad place. Being a parent is tough.

Meredith said...

I was just amazed by her strenght and story!! I watched it too,

Hepburn Hilton said...

I hope the people who failed Jaycee can be held responsible somehow. At the very least I don't trust them just like that to be in charge of parole check ups!

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