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'Catch a Predator' host to speak at YWCA luncheon

Friday, August 17, 2007
By Kelly Adams, Columbian Staff Writer


Chris Hansen is nationally known as the last person many alleged sex
offenders talk to before they are led away in handcuffs.


At the YWCA Clark County Benefit Luncheon on Oct. 3, Hansen will talk
about ways to keep children away from predators who use high-tech
methods to groom their young victims.


The host of Dateline NBC's "To Catch a Predator," Hansen works with
the Portland-based organization Perverted Justice to apprehend
potential pedophiles.


In September 2004, Perverted Justice helped find a 14-year-old girl
who had disappeared from Clark County. She was found in Pierce County
with a 47-year-old man who was later sentenced to 10 years in prison
for sexually exploiting her. Perverted Justice contacts potential
pedophiles through the Internet, mainly in chat rooms.


Xavier Von Erck of Perverted Justice said he was pleased to hear
Hansen would be speaking in Clark County.


"Hopefully Chris and his appearance will help raise the awareness of
this crime in the community, as he has in other communities where he
has been a featured speaker," Von Erck said via e-mail this week.


According to information provided by the YWCA, one in three girls and
one in five boys nationally have been sexually assaulted. While the
Internet can be a vehicle for sex offenders to find new victims,
statistics also indicate that 85 percent of all sexual assaults are
committed by someone the victim knows.


In the past year, the YWCA's sexual assault program has assisted more
than 2,400 survivors of such abuse. Among its services, the Y
provides
help to domestic violence victims, youth in foster care and homeless
children.


Hansen's book, "To Catch a Predator: Protecting Your Kids from Online
Enemies Already in Your Home," was released in March and will be on
sale at the luncheon.