As a teenager, I was sexually and emotionally abused by my HIV+ Father. More recently I waived my legal right to anonymity and chose to speak out. For myself, and for every other person suffering or that has suffered similar nightmares.
It’s been just over 8 years since I last saw or spoke to my Father, yet he still appears in my nightmares and causes me turmoil. My Father was sentenced to 8 years in prison, but served just 4 due to pleading guilty. His sentence has now concluded. He lives in a new area, and has legally changed his name. His sentence has finished, and his life has returned back to relative normality, yet mine is still shaken each and every day.
My Father made the choice to change his name by deed poll in a bid to escape his past. When you search for his previous name, your search engine results would be flooded with articles and reports of his crimes – which of course, he doesn’t like. So, he changed his name, so that now all you see is a Facebook profile, and not much more. Nobody would ever know of his despicable past if they looked. Thankfully, the police are aware of his name change, so his details on the sex offenders register will remain up to date for now, but this isn’t always the case.
A report from ‘The Times’ in July last year revealed that they had been shown examples of convicted paedophiles changing their name by deed poll, failing to inform the appropriate authorities, and using their new identity to get close to children.
What can you do? Sign the government petition fighting to revoke the right of registered sex offenders to change their name by deed poll.
