The Risks of Re-Offending
Another gruesome back-story about yet another one of Canada's miserable violent social deviants whose actions to avail himself of sexual gratification at the expense of women and girls and girl-children qualify him as an absolute monster. Yet, despite his record of dread and repeated atrocities against his victims there are those in society prepared to forgive him, and to assist him to reach social redemption.
Some people quail in horror at the very thought of a man raping a child, much less murdering that child. Other people can distance themselves from the act itself and focus on the man, imagining him to be needful of compassion and a hand up, because he is, after all, only human. Most people, needless to say, would prefer to shrivel up and die themselves before they would harm a child.
Harold Smeltzer had no such qualms, when he saw a neighbour's child, living next door to the home he shared with his parents as a young man, the thought that entered his mind was "I could get her and have sex with her". That's what he later told police; the one thought that had occurred to him as he watched Kimberley Thompson, a five-year-old Kindergarten student, amble along to school.
He physically took possession of the child off the street, assured her he would see she arrived at school in time, led her into his parents' house, drowned her in a bathtub and when he was finished with her, dumped her body into a trash can, where it was discovered, frozen, the following day. The man was convicted of murder. He is described as a pedophile with an anti-social personality disorder.
He offered to police the information that by his count he had raped and terrorized 40 women and children over a five-year period up until he committed that murder of five-year-old Kimberley Thompson. Police were led to him as a suspect when an 11-year-old girl saw him on the street and recognized him as the man who had raped her at knifepoint.
He was arrested, convicted of first-degree murder, two rapes and two attempted rapes. He was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years. And he served that time. At which point, at age 55, he was permitted to live in a halfway house where he has been since December 2008 when the Parole Board of Canada released him to the community.
He has now been given another six months of residence at the halfway house. He is under no physical constraints. He must stay away from where children could be found: parks and swimming pools and schools, and must return to the residence every night. He performs custodial work at a community centre, earning an allowance.
And this man, who served what is termed in Canada a life sentence is now more or less free to get on with his life. What value his life is to him cannot be questioned other than to note that he functions at a fairly low level. Community outreach workers urge him to call on the cellphone they have provided him with should he feel the need to reach out for their support.
Some people quail in horror at the very thought of a man raping a child, much less murdering that child. Other people can distance themselves from the act itself and focus on the man, imagining him to be needful of compassion and a hand up, because he is, after all, only human. Most people, needless to say, would prefer to shrivel up and die themselves before they would harm a child.
Harold Smeltzer had no such qualms, when he saw a neighbour's child, living next door to the home he shared with his parents as a young man, the thought that entered his mind was "I could get her and have sex with her". That's what he later told police; the one thought that had occurred to him as he watched Kimberley Thompson, a five-year-old Kindergarten student, amble along to school.
He physically took possession of the child off the street, assured her he would see she arrived at school in time, led her into his parents' house, drowned her in a bathtub and when he was finished with her, dumped her body into a trash can, where it was discovered, frozen, the following day. The man was convicted of murder. He is described as a pedophile with an anti-social personality disorder.
He offered to police the information that by his count he had raped and terrorized 40 women and children over a five-year period up until he committed that murder of five-year-old Kimberley Thompson. Police were led to him as a suspect when an 11-year-old girl saw him on the street and recognized him as the man who had raped her at knifepoint.
He was arrested, convicted of first-degree murder, two rapes and two attempted rapes. He was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years. And he served that time. At which point, at age 55, he was permitted to live in a halfway house where he has been since December 2008 when the Parole Board of Canada released him to the community.
He has now been given another six months of residence at the halfway house. He is under no physical constraints. He must stay away from where children could be found: parks and swimming pools and schools, and must return to the residence every night. He performs custodial work at a community centre, earning an allowance.
And this man, who served what is termed in Canada a life sentence is now more or less free to get on with his life. What value his life is to him cannot be questioned other than to note that he functions at a fairly low level. Community outreach workers urge him to call on the cellphone they have provided him with should he feel the need to reach out for their support.
"I don't know exactly the pattern of recidivism that [Smeltzer] showed before his time in prison, but if he was a repeat offender already and, if indeed his modus operandi was always about the same - sex and violence and eventually murder - then even after 20 years the risks of re-offending would remain relatively significant."
Dr. Hubert Van Gijseghem, Pedophilia expert
Labels: Canada, Psychopathy, Security, Society
posted by Pieface | 7:14 PM
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