Simply Outrageous
A news headline titled, Convicted molester coached girls in the February 20, 2007 “Oklahoman” should be a cause for alarm for anyone that cares about children and their welfare.
The report revealed that Albert Thorpe, 43, who was sentenced to 10 years probation in 1992 for lewd molestation and second-degree rape of a 14-year-old girl was helping coach a 12- and 13-year-old girls’ basketball team at a school gym in Prague, Oklahoma.
The team, although it practices at the school gym in Prague, is not associated with the school. However, most of the teams members reportedly do attend Prague schools.
Thorpe, who reportedly admitted raping and sodomizing the girl, a member of the Prague Middle School basketball team, several times during November 1991 received only 10 years probation for his crimes. Under Oklahoma law pertaining to sex offenders at the time of his conviction Thorpe was only required to remain registered as a sex offender for the term of his probation.
Albert Thorpe is not a registered sex offender today, owing to that limitation under the old law. Mr. Thorpe is however a convicted child molester and rapist and as such it is the opinion of this writer that he should not be in the vicinity of schools and particularly not in close proximity to and supervising young girls. That he was in such a position is simply outrageous.
There’s an important lesson to be learned from this situation and that lesson is that school officials, sports team sponsors, church leaders and anyone concerned for the safety and welfare of children can not simply trust Oklahoma’s Sex Offender Registry to weed out all individuals with a previous criminal record as child molesters and rapists.
If one checks the Oklahoma Sex Offender Registry they will not find Mr. Thorpe listed. However, if they check Oklahoma Department of Corrections records they will find that he was convicted of lewd molestation and second-degree rape in 1992 in Lincoln County.
Bottom line, don’t check only the Sex Offender Registry but also check the Department of Corrections records as there just might be another convicted child molester in close proximity to your children, your grandchildren or any child for which you have a responsibility and a desire to protect.
To fail to do so is also simply outrageous…
