Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Chelsea's Voice

On March 30 at 6:30 p.m., a large crowd of people gathered at the Maranatha Chapel in Rancho Bernardo for a public forum hosted by Kelly and Brent King, the parents of murdered teen Chelsea King.

The forum was co-hosted by state assemblyman Nathan Fletcher. There were two panelists: Captain O'Hanlan, of the San Diego Police Department internet crimes against children (ICAC) task force; and Todd Spitzer, an outspoken assistant district attorney from Orange County.

The purpose of the forum was to promote the passage of “Chelsea’s Law,” which would mandate life in prison without the possibility of parole for convicted violent sex offenders.

As people entered the meeting, they were given an orange card to fill out with their contact information. The forum began with a prayer, then a video of Chelsea’s life was shown on two large screens at the front of the chapel as many attendees quietly wept.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Fletcher, Spitzer, and O'Hanlan educated the audience about Chelsea’s Law and then the audience was invited to ask questions or make comments.

Fletcher emphasized that public safety should be our highest priority. He asked people to sign up for the Chelsea’s Light Foundation on the Chelsea’s Light Foundation Facebook page. He said that in a few weeks they were going to introduce “Chelsea’s Law.” He asked the audience to fill out the orange cards so they could be contacted to write and phone legislators and ask them to pass Chelsea’s Law. Fletcher said if the law doesn’t pass, then the plan would be to get enough signatures to make it a ballot initiative.

Assistant district attorney Spitzer complained that the lax attitude of the department of corrections toward registered sex offenders was why Chelsea’s alleged murderer, John Gardner, was out of prison even after several parole violations.

Spitzer was upset that the parole board commented that the retention of John Gardner’s parole records (which were destroyed) wouldn’t have made a difference in preventing the crime he's accused of perpetrating. Spitzer said that the routine destruction of parole records after one year allowed them to cover up their mistakes.

SDPD captain O’Hanlan suggested implementing a system in which police officers are given detailed information on registered sex offenders in order to monitor them more closely; officers would find out they're dealing with a registered sex offender even writing a traffic ticket. Then the forum was opened up to the audience for comment.

Several people expressed condolences to the King family and praised them for having the courage to confront the problem of registered sex offenders in their neighborhoods.

Two people complained that there were registered sex offenders living in their neighborhoods who had access to their school because they had custody of children who were students there. Someone commented that sex offenders should never have custody of children, yet the family court routinely gives custody of children to sex offenders.

A man came forward to say he works for a company that is in the process of patenting a device that would alert a person’s cell phone if a registered sex offender came within a certain distance.

A high school teacher presented a student’s idea to legalize marijuana in order to make more room in prison for sex offenders.

Other problems that were addressed were the lack of tax dollars going to law enforcement to track sexually violent predators and the problem of registered sex offenders registering at one address and then living at another.

At the end of the forum, Kelly King spoke to the audience, saying her heart was not just broken but shattered because of the murder of Chelsea. She said the system was also not just broken but shattered and had to be rebuilt from the ground up, and then she thanked everyone.

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Live Five: Greyboy Allstars, Acoustic Revolt, Scary Pierre, Thee Sacred Souls, Glass Spells

Anniversaries, record releases, and fundraisers in Solana Beach, Ocean Beach, Little Italy, and Midway District
Next Article

Issa aide collaborates with Ukrainians

Carlsbad's Tracy Slepcevic, Warrior Mom, and her ties to RFK, Jr.

On March 30 at 6:30 p.m., a large crowd of people gathered at the Maranatha Chapel in Rancho Bernardo for a public forum hosted by Kelly and Brent King, the parents of murdered teen Chelsea King.

The forum was co-hosted by state assemblyman Nathan Fletcher. There were two panelists: Captain O'Hanlan, of the San Diego Police Department internet crimes against children (ICAC) task force; and Todd Spitzer, an outspoken assistant district attorney from Orange County.

The purpose of the forum was to promote the passage of “Chelsea’s Law,” which would mandate life in prison without the possibility of parole for convicted violent sex offenders.

As people entered the meeting, they were given an orange card to fill out with their contact information. The forum began with a prayer, then a video of Chelsea’s life was shown on two large screens at the front of the chapel as many attendees quietly wept.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Fletcher, Spitzer, and O'Hanlan educated the audience about Chelsea’s Law and then the audience was invited to ask questions or make comments.

Fletcher emphasized that public safety should be our highest priority. He asked people to sign up for the Chelsea’s Light Foundation on the Chelsea’s Light Foundation Facebook page. He said that in a few weeks they were going to introduce “Chelsea’s Law.” He asked the audience to fill out the orange cards so they could be contacted to write and phone legislators and ask them to pass Chelsea’s Law. Fletcher said if the law doesn’t pass, then the plan would be to get enough signatures to make it a ballot initiative.

Assistant district attorney Spitzer complained that the lax attitude of the department of corrections toward registered sex offenders was why Chelsea’s alleged murderer, John Gardner, was out of prison even after several parole violations.

Spitzer was upset that the parole board commented that the retention of John Gardner’s parole records (which were destroyed) wouldn’t have made a difference in preventing the crime he's accused of perpetrating. Spitzer said that the routine destruction of parole records after one year allowed them to cover up their mistakes.

SDPD captain O’Hanlan suggested implementing a system in which police officers are given detailed information on registered sex offenders in order to monitor them more closely; officers would find out they're dealing with a registered sex offender even writing a traffic ticket. Then the forum was opened up to the audience for comment.

Several people expressed condolences to the King family and praised them for having the courage to confront the problem of registered sex offenders in their neighborhoods.

Two people complained that there were registered sex offenders living in their neighborhoods who had access to their school because they had custody of children who were students there. Someone commented that sex offenders should never have custody of children, yet the family court routinely gives custody of children to sex offenders.

A man came forward to say he works for a company that is in the process of patenting a device that would alert a person’s cell phone if a registered sex offender came within a certain distance.

A high school teacher presented a student’s idea to legalize marijuana in order to make more room in prison for sex offenders.

Other problems that were addressed were the lack of tax dollars going to law enforcement to track sexually violent predators and the problem of registered sex offenders registering at one address and then living at another.

At the end of the forum, Kelly King spoke to the audience, saying her heart was not just broken but shattered because of the murder of Chelsea. She said the system was also not just broken but shattered and had to be rebuilt from the ground up, and then she thanked everyone.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Issa aide collaborates with Ukrainians

Carlsbad's Tracy Slepcevic, Warrior Mom, and her ties to RFK, Jr.
Next Article

Gonzo Report: Jazz jam at a private party

A couple of accidental crashes at California English
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader