7-31-2000 News Article in The Guardian:
Probation chiefs are considering legal action against the News of the World if the newspaper does not halt its campaign to "name and shame" sex offenders, it emerged yesterday.
The Association of Chief Officers of Probation (Acop) said it might have to explore ways of stopping the campaign through the courts. Its threat came amid growing evidence that many offenders are being driven underground by the campaign, launched in the wake of eight-year-old Sarah Payne's murder.
Yesterday the paper printed the photographs and details of 34 sex offenders, after naming 49 last Sunday. It also called on readers to sign a petition calling on the home secretary, Jack Straw, to introduce legislation giving the public the right to see a register of convicted paedophiles.
Chris Smith, the culture secretary, questioned the paper's methods. "It is a noble motive to want to ensure the issue of paedophiles is more widely discussed and children are properly protected," he told BBC 1's Breakfast With Frost.
"But I fear that this is not the right way of going about doing it and I feel it would be wise for the News of the World to listen to the advice of the police."
The Home Office minister Paul Boateng, writing in the Observer, said the decision to name offenders should be taken only by the police and probation services.
Child protection and offenders' organisations are to meet News of the World executives tomorrow to argue that the campaign should be stopped.
Among the bodies expected to be represented are the National Association for the Care and Resettlement of Offenders, the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, the Association of Chief Police Officers and Acop.
Acop has compiled a report on the impact of the campaign and has written to the News of the World and the press complaints commission spelling out its concerns.
Yesterday a spokesman confirmed that Acop would seek legal advice if the paper did not back down, arguing that the campaign was impinging on its ability to carry out its statutory duty. Taking the paper to court, said the spokesman, was "a route we have got to explore".
Acop said: "Offenders under probation are talking to probation staff about moving away from their home area, changing identity/appearance and breaking contact with the services - effectively going underground. Treatment and assessment programmes are being disrupted and compliance is threatened."
Cases cited include a man who committed a sex offence at the age of 19 - 33 years ago - and is considered unlikely to reoffend. He is said to be suicidal over fears of being identified in the paper.
Meanwhile, some prisoners on the south coast have said they are reluctant to participate in treatment programmes, saying they cannot see the point if they are going to be "outed" on their release.
The newspaper publicity has been blamed for a series of vigilante attacks on innocent people. On Friday night a group of around 60 people waving banners and shouting abuse threw paint at a house in Plymouth which they had wrongly identified as home to a paedophile.
In the Midlands, vigilante groups have told police that they intend to use violence to drive out sex offenders.
Probation officers have reported "high levels of anxiety" from wives and children of sex offenders - and from victims.
One officer in Yorkshire told of an adult victim who came to him angry and drunk, threatening to kill the man who abused him. "Prior to this he had been dwelling less on the past and his drinking was more controlled. This has set him back," said the officer.
Probation officers are worried that, because many victims are related to their abusers, there is a risk that they could be identified.
Leading children's charities have said the government should launch a major public education campaign offering practical advice on how to protect children.
The News of the World was last night sticking by its campaign. Referring to tomorrow's meeting, a spokesman said: "We are ready and very willing to meet these important organisations. We will of course listen with the greatest care to everything they have to say. At the same time, we will clearly explain our position and restate if necessary our defined objectives."
• Police last night prepared to clear away the final toys, cards, letters and mementoes from the site where Sarah Payne's body was found 14 days ago. ..more..
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