Safe child spots not all they're cracked up to be

Unfortunately, every day seems to bring a new batch of reasons why the local corner might make a better day care than chaperoned activities. Every day, a new example of why locking the kids in the closet until they turn 18 isn't a half-bad idea.

At any given time, roughly 800 convicted sex offenders reside in San Mateo County and report upon report highlights teenage sex, drugs, drinking and antics. Mayberry, this isn't - unless, of course, we consider the modern-day Mayberry a place where Opie is seduced by his teacher, his scout leader or his coach and faces other unexpected threats from reckless driving and his own family.

Today, for example, former Redwood City teacher Rebecca Boicelli is scheduled to finish the second half of a sentencing hearing. Boicelli admitted having a sexual relationship with a former 14-year-old student and later bore his child. For a double-whammy, on Friday, former Serra High School and Peninsula coach Italo Arbulu stands to receive multiple life sentences for sexually abusing multiple boys.

The list doesn't stop there: Former church teacher Joan Marie Sladky admitted an affair with a student; Menlo Park middle-school coach Bill Giordano stands accused of a lengthy sexual relationship with at least one former student; a Los Altos scout leader was arrested last week; former DMV employee Calvin Cat fondled young women taking driving permit tests; former Redwood City church youth director Christopher Fouts is accused of fondling children.

It may take a village to raise a child but it is pretty clear no one can be certain what kind of monster might be living in what nearby hut.

Interestingly, the recent upsurge in high-profile allegations comes as new government statistics paint a picture of falling sexual assaults. According to the data, assaults against teens ages 12 to 17 dropped 79 percent between 1993 and 2003 and the number of proven sex-abuse cases against all ages fell 39 percent.

In other words, sex abuse is less likely to happen to kids but if it does, the abuser could very well be the person least expected.

Of course, even warning kids about predators and pulling them from activities are no sure-fire ways to ensure they reach adulthood, either. The last weeks have brought tales of teens killed in car crashes and at the hands of their own father. The murders of Alexa and Nicole Richards, along with their mother Nicole, by Tony Richards is the ultimate in parental betrayal. The horrific deaths also prove that sometimes home isn't the last safe frontier.

Maybe the crack den or the shady neighborhood isn't the best idea. It's too bad that the alternatives lately aren't much better.

Michelle Durand's column "Off the Beat" runs every Monday and Thursday. She can be reached by e-mail: michelle@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 102. What do you think of this column? Send a letter to the editor: letters@smdailyjournal.com.