Whether you *need* to protect your kid or not depends on whether the person is likely to reoffend or not. A register doesn't tell you that... It doesn't tell you whether they are likely to reoffend and it doesn't tell you who the new offenders are going to be.

There is a public register in NZ too... There was a public outcry that this guy was being released after 30 years and was going to live with his elderly mother in some small town. They were trying to prevent him living there. But... Where was he supposed to live?

They looked through the public register and this guy lost his job as a bus driver too. They were thinking they would not let people drive buses ('cause of school busses) if they had been charged for a sex crime with children.

One man went on TV. He was two years away from retirement (so he was around 63). He had been charged by his girlfriends parents for having sex with his girlfriend when she was 15 (legal age is 16). He married her the next year and they are still happily married... But he is no longer allowed to drive intercity busses of tourists up and down the north island. Because he is on the register.

Repeat offenders... Seriel offenders...

IMO it is a shame that the authorities don't do their job and actually properly protect us from these people by keeping them away until they are properly rehabilitated.

All I want to say is... Spare a thought for those who are rehabilitated / those who were falsely accused. That kind of thing literally can be life destroying. Even in cases where there was no victim.