Understanding and Protecting Your Children From Child Molesters and Predators

Fall 2009:

The FBI estimates that there is a sex offender living in every square mile of the United States. One in ten men has molested children. Most child molesters are able to molest dozens of children before they are caught and have a three percent (3%) chance of being apprehended for their crimes. Boys and girls are at nearly equal risk to be abused and almost a quarter will be molested sometime before their 18th birthday. Fewer than five percent (5%) will tell anyone. The overwhelming majority of child victims are abused by someone they know and trust, someone most parents would never suspect. No one can protect your children but you. Educate yourself and your family about child sexual abuse. Don.t let a child molester do it for you!

Dear Parents, Caretakers and Community Members,
During the past several years, many of us have begun to realize how many child molesters are living in our communities and how incredibly skillful they are when it comes to molesting children and getting away with it. Facing this information has forced many of us to take a hard look at our current child abuse prevention programs. The majority of programs try to teach children to protect themselves and to tell an adult if someone abuses them. Unfortunately, these programs have not been successful in reducing child sexual abuse and most children still don.t tell anyone when they are being abused. One study suggested that the average child victim must tell nine different people about their abuse before someone actually calls the police. Clearly, children are no match for child molesters and parents should never assume that children can protect themselves or be able to report abuse when it happens. Parents and other adults need to acquire the education and skills necessary to protect children and create opportunities for them to report abusive experiences. As parents, adults and community members, we all need to put more effort into learning about child molesters and child abuse instead of placing all of the responsibility for safety on our children.


This packet provides information about child molesters and some of the things you, your family and community can do to help keep children safe. We encourage you and your own community of family and friends to get involved in prevention efforts by learning everything you can about molesters and taking a pro-active stance against child sexual abuse. As you become better educated about this problem, you may want to contact your local school, church, neighborhood association or community organization about sponsoring a workshop in your community. Most law enforcement and child advocacy programs have a lot of information they are anxious to share. We recommend that you call your local agencies to find out what they offer and when they can provide a presentation for your group. Although it takes a lot of hard work and education to protect children from predators, our children will be safer if we all work together.

For the remainder of this report: by Cory Jewell Jensen, M.S.
Steve Jensen, M.A. Center for Behavioral Intervention, 4345 109th, Beaverton, Oregon 97005