When you hear the term "Homeland Security" the obvious threats come to mind.

But what if "Homeland Security" was re-defined to include children? That's exactly what PROTECT is doing on Capitol Hill.

Foreign nationals coming to the United States to rape and exploit American children? That's Homeland Security.

American children, most of whom were abused as kids and ran away to escape an abusive family member, being lured and prostituted and trafficked in America? That's Homeland Security.

Someone in your community - maybe even a neighbor, a relative, or the father of your daughter's friend - traveling overseas to rape and exploit foreign children, bringing child pornography back with them to the U.S. and using that material to continue to victimize children here? That's Homeland Security, too.

PROTECT's new federal initiative is going to change the way America defines Homeland Security; and we guarantee... it's gong to be very bad news for the bad guys.

Craig Watkins is a first-term DA in Dallas County. Amidst a campaign for a second term, his brief part in a child abuse case, while he was a criminal defense attorney in 2006, has come into question. The suspect was not arrested until 2007, after Watkins was elected.

Watkins has been asked about his role in aiding a 10-year-old girl to declare that she didn't want to pursue molestation charges against her stepfather.  During the suspect's eventual trial, Watkins was subpoenaed by the prosecutors and the defense. The Dallas Morning News reports that during his testimony, he denied pressuring the girl to sign an affidavit of non-prosecution, (a statement which asks that no charges be filed or that filed charges be dismissed.) It is reported that after the girl disclosed, she then changed her story, and subsequently said she lied about the recantation.

Many in the legal community do find his action questionable, especially because of the girl's age and her situation. One, his election opponent, is quoted, saying "The very thought of bringing a 10-year-old into your office to sign an affidavit of non-prosecution in a sexual assault case in reprehensible."

Sharon Dolovich, a UCLA criminal law and legal ethics teacher is also quoted, saying Watkin's actions are questionable "to the extent that the defense attorney has strong reason to suspect that the recantation comes not form a true recantation, but instead the recantation comes from pressure from the defendant who is not in the room or the mother who is."

It is reported that Watkins often describes himself as "smart on crime" and is proud of his office's high conviction rate. Watkins has also received national attention for his work in freeing inmates who were innocent and wrongly convicted of a crime.

Last week the defendant was convicted and sentenced to 8 years for sexually abusing his stepdaughter; the abuse was reported as "rubbing her through her clothes."

For more details and to read the complete article from The Dallas Morning News, click here.
The article was written by Gromer Jeffers, Jr. and Jennifer Emily.

Tim Burchett takes the reins as Knox County Mayor today, after winning 85% of the vote in the primary. Congratulations, Tim!

As state senator, Tim Burchett sponsored PROTECT's "Minutes Count" in the senate. His house cosponsor was Representative Harry Tindell. Tim was instrumental in helping PROTECT pass our "Second Look Commission" bill, which nearly fell victim to partisan gridlock. As time started fading away, Senator Burchett negotiated senate passage. Through the work of Senator Burchett and Representative Tindell, partisanship was set aside. Every member of the Tennessee Senate signed on as cosponsors.

Before being a state senator, Tim served in the House of Representatives. He has a bachelor's degree in criminal justice.

To learn more about "Minutes Count," click here.

To learn more about "Second Look," click here.

For the KnoxNews.com article, click here.

Not many people have the guts to sue a governor, particularly one named Arnold Schwarzenegger. Even fewer is the list of organizations who would (most usually rely on state funding). But in California, home to well over 100,000 registered sex offenders, one thing remains true - Crime Victims United's (CVU) dedication and perseverance when it comes to public safety.

CVU, run by Harriet Salarno and Nina Ashford Salarno, have prevailed in their first round of motions hearings in their lawsuit against Governor Schwarzenegger and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR).

One need only utter the name Chelsea King to answer the question about whether releasing sex offenders early and dumping them into communities with no supervision is a good idea.

You can read more about CVU's lawsuit here.