The Lottery is Not the Problem

The most heinous thing happened the other day and, if true, the man should spend the rest of his life behind bars.  That, however, is the less likely scenario of the situation involving Daniel Snay of Uxbridge.  Snay, a four time convicted Level 3 sex offender was arrested for yet another sex crime against a child.  It was reported that Snay used money that he won on a scratch ticket in 2008 to lure the victim.  So instead of tightening up the incarceration laws in the Commonwealth, Rep. Richard Moore of Uxbridge has proposed a bill that will solve this issue going forward, he wants to ban sex offenders from participating in the Lottery.  That makes almost as much sense as CNN anchor Don Lemon asking if supernatural powers were involved in the missing Malaysian Airlines flight.

Rep. Moore's heart is in the right place, unfortunately as a lawmaker he needs to take the emotion out of it and look at this with a clear head.  The lottery winnings were a contributing factor, not the reason.  If convicted, again, shall the winnings be forfeited? Yes.  But to prevent them from participating?  Not only is that a civil rights violation how you could possibly police that? 

This is where it gets tricky.  If a convicted felon, of any crime is released from prison they have supposedly paid their debt to society and or, are rehabilitated according to parole boards.  If Snay had been released four times by the Commonwealth, the parole board obviously felt he was not a danger to society and would not commit this crime again, or again, or again. Preventing him to purchase a lottery ticket, where the odds are in the millions of him winning, is going to prevent him from committing this act again, or again, or again.

It's staggering to me while watching the news and I hear stories of people getting arrested and I hear it's their "sixth DUI", or it's their "eighth drug charge" or "fourth sexual assault on a child".  There is the problem people.  I am all for rehabilitation, but I am also a proponent of three strikes and you are out, must be the umpire in me.

If we are going to take away the ability of a convicted sex offender to purchase lottery tickets then we need to prevent convicted DUI offender from purchasing cars, convicted arsonists from buying cigarettes or convicted drug dealers from buying aspirin.  If we are going to start banning what they can do on the outside, then why not keep them on the inside.  This is coming from a state that First Degree Murder by a juvenile does not carry an automatic life sentence.

I hope Snay spends the rest of his days in prison, because I know the treatment he will get will be much more appropriate.  But as the lights dim down on this issue the lawmakers should abandon the ban on lottery tickets and focus it more on keeping monsters like Snay behind bars.  The money may have contributed, but he would have continued to do this without the lottery ticket.

3D

If you don't take it from, ask my wife.