by Cris Italia
He was engaged in an electronic conversation with a pedophile, using the disguise of a 13-year-old girl. With each instant message, I couldn't help, but feel rage. How can people do this to innocent children?
Last week the Herald printed the first installment of what will be an ongoing series on pedophiles. In the article, Chief Jeff Mackston mentioned that pedophiles can be from "all walks of life." Although he has seen it himself, I had my reservations -- and an image of what a pedophile was and looked like. After spending time with Hamilton, my perception had changed radically.
Pedophiles can be anyone, and I got a first-hand look of my own. From a high school administrator to a maintenance man to a vice president of a company, pedophiles roam free on the Internet. And while they sent sexually explicit photos and used sexually explicit language, I sat there thinking, This so-and-so does not belong in society.
Just think about a man who is in charge of children in his professional life going home and pursuing his fantasies by way of children he lures from chat rooms. With each invitation for sex, with each attempt to lure Hamilton's imagined 13-year-old, all I wanted to do was go get this guy.
What made it worse were the photos sent by these sexual predators. They looked like normal people. Someone you would see on the street and never guess that they would harm a child. Adding faces to the conversations made them all the more sickening.
I know now that there are tens of thousands of pedophiles surfing the net for fresh prey. They can be anywhere: Your teachers, your neighbors or, as Mackston explained, sometimes even members of your own family.
The images are disturbing. This was just one night for me -- Hamilton sees it every day -- but it was enough to make a lasting impression. Growing up, never thought about this. Never would I have imagined that there were sexual predators looking to take the innocence away from children.
I thought about my young cousins, some of whom are nearing ages 12 and 13. If something were to ever happen to them, I don't know what I would do. I imagine it's common for parents to jump to conclusions when a child is harmed. How can you tell them not to react on impulses?
Pedophiles don't discriminate. There are enough of them who are looking for any child regardless of his or her age, gender or race. The most sobering statistics are the sheer numbers. There are so many out there.
Hamilton referred to an episode of "Law & Order, Special Victims Unit," in which the characters on the show were interrogating a pedophile and he said, "There are too many of us. You will never stop us from doing what we do."
"They believe in that," Hamilton said. "And because they believe that, they will always feel that they will not get caught."
It's hoped that, through the work of Hamilton and others, Internet crimes against children will be reduced dramatically.
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The Long Island Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children's Child Abuse Unit will present Swinging in the '50s and '60s, a holiday cocktail reception, Tuesday, Dec. 7 from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m. at the VFW Hall, 155 Searingtown Road in Albertson. To sponsor or buy tickets for the event, call (516)562-7415. For more information, log onto www.childabuseunit.com
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