"Convicted child rapist flee Denver halfway house after ankle monitor cut" by Hannah Kilpatrick

Summary

Eric Eugene Hartwell, a 51-year-old registered sex offender, was convicted of raping a six-year-old girl in 1991 and presumably trying to sexually assault a teenager five years later. Hartwell failed to register as a sex offender in Washington, Texas, and Colorado, earning him a lifetime of supervised release. He was placed in a halfway house in Washington in March 2009, however was only there a week before he managed to cut off his leg monitor and flee to Texas. Hartwell was sentenced to five years in prison and ordered to serve a lifetime of parole by a federal judge in Texas in March 2010 after he was found guilty of failing to register as a sex offender. He has been staying in a group home in Denver Colorado, “Independence House” (not meant to be ironic), up until he cut off his ankle brace Friday evening and walked away. The corrections department's fugitive apprehension unit is working with other law enforcement agencies to find Hartwell "as quickly as possible," he said.

Analysis

What can I say, except for that this is truly frightening? This is going to cause people to freak out, and rightfully so, because a rapist has escaped from jail and now all of a sudden they feel unsafe and scared. But the reality is, there is most likely a psychopath on every single block, at every single turn. There are so many people to be afraid of in our time, and it is terrifying. You never know what will happen; you never know if you will even live to see another day, and I know that sounds incredibly pessimistic but its reality. I just wish that there would be better security in these places. I don’t understand how a rapist is able to just cut off his ankle brace and walk away. This is unsafe and it should be handled appropriately. Sorry I kind of veered off topic there…

Here is the link to my article:

http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/23/justice/colorado-missing-child-rapist/index.html?hpt=us_c1