Are there really any truly innocent people in this world? There's a saying in law enforcement, “Never blame the victim.” It doesn’t matter who the person is, how they were dressed, or what they were doing, the victim of any crime is just that … the victim. Police and detectives may not agree with the person’s lifestyle, they may not like them as a person, and they may know they’re wanted for committing some other crime; however, when they wind up on the victim side of the equation, they deserve to be treated the same as any other victim. The job of law enforcement is to see them as the victim and find the person who committed this particular crime and bring them to justice.
      That said, there are victims who can never be blamed, in any way, for the crimes committed against them. These are the smallest of our victims … the infants and young children. There are times the children happen to be in the “wrong place at the wrong time” and get caught in the crossfire of drive-by shootings, are riding in a car with or hit by a drunk driver, or in some other way get caught up in the crime around them. At other times, these innocents are the specified targets of crime. They’re molested, kidnapped, or used to smuggle drugs by adults, teens, or older children. In still other cases, the infants and children are the targets and outlets for the anger of the parent (or other person), left in steaming hot cars while the adult drinks at the local bar, or thrown out with the trash because someone decides a baby is “too much to handle”.
      What makes these small victims any different from any other victim? In my view, the answer is their complete and utter defenselessness. They become victims for that very reason. In cases like the drive-by shootings and accidents, they’re exactly the same as adult victims in the same situations. In cases involving molestation, etc, they have no way to defend themselves from the attacks whereas older children and teens have a better chance of avoiding such situations. Where the biggest difference is seen is in the last category where the children are harmed or killed by the very people who’re supposed to be taking care of them. Any time an infant or child is the victim it rips me up, but even more so when they’re victims of neglect, abuse, and death and the only reason they get hurt or killed is because the people who’re supposed to be taking care of them view them as useless, a burden, or another bit of garbage.
      While I may find the ability to understand and even find a little sympathy for some people who commit some crimes, I can’t do the same with anyone who chooses to harm a child in any way. I use “choose” loosely here. Whether or not it’s intentional, someone is responsible for the harm done. I’m sick of hearing gang members say they didn’t want to kill anyone besides their intended target, babysitters claiming they turned their backs for only one minute, parents crying out the sob story about how they didn’t plan to be in the bar long enough for the baby to get overheated, and on and on.
      It’s true a lot of the victims of crime didn’t see it coming or had no time to react and protect themselves. This is always the case when it comes to our smallest victims … they can’t defend themselves. They don’t become victims because they choose to be in a certain place or situation, they become victims because they’re small, powerless, and, quite often, can’t tell anyone who committed the crime against them. The only thing these victims are “guilty” of is being an infant or child and doing the things infants and children do. What hurts me the most is knowing children are our greatest blessings in this life and there are people out there who view them as possessions, accessories, conquests, or garbage.