Sunday reading...

I spent the weekend house-sitting down on the water. So far, one of the most gorgeous Vermont weekends this summer. I took advantage of it yesterday - lawnchair, cool drinks, and the Sunday Times. Always a week's amount of reading. After I tackled the crossword, I found a 10-page feature in the Magazine deflating juvenile sex offender myths that was both disturbing and showed the complexities of the issue.

The significant controversy isn’t whether there is a problem; it’s how to address it. In other words, when is parental or therapeutic intervention enough? What kind of therapy works best? And at what point should the judicial system get involved — and in what ways?

[Robert] Longo and other experts have increasingly advocated for a less punitive approach. Over the past decade, however, public policy has largely moved in the opposite direction. Courts have handed down longer sentences to juveniles for sex offenses, while some states have created tougher probation requirements and, most significant, lumped adolescents with adults in sex-offender legislation.

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