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I'm sure some of you have read about the horrendous murder/kidnapping case that took place in Coeur d'Alene and is still unfolding. I was in Denver when the Groene murders/kidnapping occurred and just happened to see a headline on the internet one day during my visit. Coeur d'Alene rarely makes national news so I was surprised to see a headline about it. I read about the murders and missing children and wondered where in CdA this had taken place. Then I started seeing all the television coverage and was alarmed by how much attention was being paid to the situation.

As soon as I arrived home Mom and Dad informed me that the murders had actually taken place in Wolf Lodge Bay, just 10 miles from our house. We drive through Wolf Lodge to and from our home every day. It was frightening to think about such a grizzly murder taking place so close to home, especially when you feel safer out in the less-populous country. At first it was assumed that this was a drug deal gone bad (Meth is a big problem in the area) because the adults had drugs in their systems when they died. As the weeks stretched into a month, posters went up everywhere and people talked about whether the children would ever be found. We wondered whether they had been murdered or sold into slavery. It's such an awful thing to happen in such a nice small town.

July 3rd Dad called from work and told us that Shasta Groene had been found at the Denny's on 4th Street in town. Denny's is the first restaurant you see when you drive into town from the East on I-90. It was surprising that this miscreant had the gall to return to CdA, especially since the children's missing posters are everywhere. And it was even more surprising that he went to the Denny's at 2 in the morning with a young child. Thank God for the alert waitresses who recognized Shasta and detained her while the police arrived. It was heartbreaking to learn that her brother was dead and they had both been sexually assaulted by this reprobate.

And now begins the accusations, recriminations and attempts to prevent such a tragedy from occurring again. This is a problem that Spokane and Coeur d'Alene must deal with quickly and thoroughly. Unfortunately our area is the "dumping ground" of the penal system for sex offenders. You'd think that a lovely area like ours wouldn't have such a problem but the big cities send their criminals to live amongst us, endangering our children.

Some may consider me hard-nosed about this issue but I believe in "one-strike you're out" in sexual assault cases. I believe that if you sexually attack someone, whether a child or an adult, you deserve the death penalty. The recidivism rate for sexual offenders is so high that I don't believe rehabilitation is possible. And sexual assault victims suffer not so much from the physical attack as the emotional trauma and lifetime scarring. Sexual assault, in my opinion, is the most heinous of criminal behavior and those who perpetrate it should be treated accordingly. Shasta Groene will spend the rest of her life mourning the loss of not only her mother and brothers, but the loss of her innocence. I pray that she will be one of the strong ones who come through such a hellish experience with courage and determination.

Now it is society's responsibility to prevent this from happening to other young girls and boys. Will we have the guts to stand up to those who argue against the death penalty? Will we fight for quicker execution of those convicted? Now is the time for legislators to act, when public opinion is inflamed and ready to move. Let's hope that Shasta's tragedy will be the impetus for change that will save thousands of children from lifetimes of terror.