First, "sex offender" is not the same thing as "predatory sex offender" is not the same thing as "child sex offender." Second, as others point out on FR, some "sex offenders" are folks caught urinating in public, or teens with younger girlfriends. Third, of "child sex offenders" the vast majority were known to their victims, and the vast majority of those were family members.
The "leap out of the bushes" child sex offender is in fact a quite rare thing.
Oh yes, I almost forgot. According to federal studies (search for "U.S. Department of Justice Statistics"), over half the sex offense convictions every year are First-Time convictions. And when it comes to child sex offenders, the number goes up way higher.
Also, zoning laws around the country have been extremely counterproductive. In Iowa OVER HALF the registered sex offenders disappeared when they enacted their zoning law. Think about it a minute: they're homeless, they're probably unemployed, they have Nothing To Lose anymore -- and you have no idea where they are. Just like the fellow in this article.
The politicians are actually making it more dangerous for you and yours, not less. But the public remains ignorant of the real issues so they get away with with selling feel-good sounds-good snake-oil nostrums.
No I'm not. There's a level III sex offender, rated "potential high risk to the community" and "a threat to re-offend", who just moved in down the road from my son's preschool. And yes, he is a child molester. "Fortunately" he has lately only been caught videotaping young girls.
I can see what you mean by the "nothing to lose" factor. Nevertheless it is obviously true that there are child sex offenders who have a compulsion to offend over and over again. As the Catholic priest scandal shows, not to mention the frequent news about child molesters who have been caught working in other occupations that allow close contact with children, the number of these people is not small. Parents are right to be concerned about protecting their children.