Best defense against child predators is to be proactive

A website in the Los Angeles area is getting a lot of media attention lately because it is run by a self described pedophile, and it ranks various places on how good they are for pre-pubescent girl watching. Two recent locations listed on the website (of many) were within the boundaries of Santa Clarita.

These locations were places in which one could typically expect to find adolescents.

CBS 2 spoke with Jack McClellan, the pedophile who runs the site, and you can see this shocking video at cbs2.com.

While the site is prompting a harsh outcry, there may not be a whole lot anyone can do about it. The site was shut down in the state of Washington, however, now it is based out of Los Angeles. But the truth is that talking about being a pedophile is not, in itself, illegal. McClellan does not have a criminal record.

Lieutenant Brenda Cambra from the Santa Clarita Sheriff’s Department contacted the Special Victims Bureau on behalf of KHTS AM-1220, and she was told that they are aware of the site, and they are investigating.

But in times like these, hysteria may not prove to be the best way to protect children. The fact that this information is public and legal may absolutely disgust people; however the danger children are in remains the same as it was yesterday, or the day before. 

So it seems that the best defense is, as always, prevention. Read through these tips for parents and guardians to help prevent children from becoming targets to child predators. Some of these tips have come from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. 

Children should not generally be unsupervised unless they are old enough to make good decisions in the worst case scenarios.

Take the time to talk to your children about strangers, even if it is for the third, fourth or hundredth time.

Know where your children are at all times. Have them call you when they arrive or depart from their pre-discussed location.

Take outings and use them as teaching experiences. Take the time to practice basic safety tips for children in public places.

Remember: there is no substitute for your own attention and supervision.

These are tips that should be heeded by adults and taught to children as the summer months get into full swing and children are out and about. 

And, if by chance you happen to see Jack McClellan in Santa Clarita, take his picture and send it to KHTS, so we can make him feel very unwelcome here in the SCV.