Jonathan Larson, a Randolph firefighter, arrived at a public hearing on sexual violence Thursday night at the Statehouse with a picture of Brooke Bennett pinned to his crisp white dress shirt.Larson, a friend of Bennett's family, blamed lenient sex offender statutes for the murder of the 12-year-old girl that sang in his church each Sunday.
"I come before you today very scared of how Vermont is turning out," Larson told a panel of lawmakers. "(Bennett's) death could have been prevented … by installing stricter penalties for sex offenders."
"In front of you are pictures of a precious life that has been lost," said Mary Larson, handing out photographs of Brooke Bennett. "Why? How could this possibly have happened? Never again should even one more child be the victim of a predator who remains free through a series of a broken criminal justice system's failings."
Michael Yates, a father of three and grandfather of eight, walked one mile to attend Thursday's hearing. He told lawmakers they have neglected their duty to protect the public by failing to install 25-year mandatory minimums.
"Every time I look at the news I see these crimes against children and it just tears me up," he said. "I can't understand why the state is letting this happen."
For the friends and family of Bennett, however, only harsh punishments will quell the grief, anger and fear that have accompanied her murder. Laurie Miller, Bennett's middle school basketball coach, sobbed as she recounted the little girl's life.
"Once a sex offender, always a sex offender," she said. "I think they should be in jail for life."
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