Wyoming, it seems, is worried. Why? Because it has become a playground, so to speak, for convicted sex offenders, who flock there from all over the country because Wyoming places few restrictions on them:
…While other states often prohibit sex offenders from living near schools, daycare centers or other places with children, Wyoming has no such laws.
"They can live right next to a school if they want to. They can live in a home with children if they want to," said Laramie County sheriff's Sgt. Linda Gesell.
Also, unlike many other states, Wyoming does not require people convicted of indecent exposure or sexual battery to register as sex offenders. In addition, ex-convicts who are deemed low- and medium-risk offenders are not listed on the state's publicly accessible Web site.…
Wyoming also lacks a standardized system for accepting convictions from other states. That means authorities must obtain court papers on each sex offender before determining the corresponding Wyoming crime and deciding whether that person must register. That can cause long delays, because only one person is in charge of such efforts.
"It becomes daunting," said that person, Bob Brackett, program manager for the Wyoming sex offender registry.…
"They look around for states that do not have the strongest laws, because if you can go someplace and you don't have to be a registered sex offender, you don't have to check in with authorities, obviously from their perspective that's a better situation," Wyoming's attorney general said.
Now substitute "haredi" for "Wyoming" and "communities and schools" for "states," and reread the the quote. Haredim have no registry of sex abusers, their schools are not mandated to do background checks, they resisted making clergy mandatory reporters, they have no central database or investigatory authority and they tend not to cooperate with police.
Are there more abusers in the haredi community per capita than average? I don't know. Statistics do not exist, in large part because haredim will not cooperate in gathering them. But, if Wyoming's example is any guide, one would think there would be. One would also think there would be more and more prolonged abuse, as well – especially when you factor in the rabbinic old boy's network that consistently sweeps abuse under the rug.