Too often, crimes against children end in plea deals. A predator commits an unthinkable act, and instead of facing the full consequences, they plead down to a lesser charge, sometimes avoiding the sex offender registry altogether. Then they walk free, only to hurt another child.

One of the most heartbreaking recent examples is the case of 11-year-old Audrii Cunningham. Her killer, Don Steven McDougal, had a long history of disturbing behavior. Years earlier, he was accused of getting into bed with a 10-year-old girl and trying to remove her pants. He pled down to a lesser charge, enticing a child, and avoided having to register as a sex offender. That decision had devastating consequences. Because he wasn’t on the registry, there was no public warning, no tracking, and no protection in place to stop him from taking Audrii's life.

A more recent case is that of Candon Dahle, a former BYU baseball player. He was accused of sexually abusing a relative from ages 7 to 12. Prosecutors struck a plea deal: Dahle pled guilty to two counts of felony injury to a child, while more serious charges were dropped. As part of that deal, he was not required to register as a sex offender. He received 180 days in jail, eight years of probation, 200 hours of community service, and fines, even though his abuse spanned years. 

Those are just two examples among countless others. So many young girls and boys endure these kinds of crimes in silence, afraid to come forward because they’ve seen how often the system fails to hold predators accountable. It’s time to change that, to demand real justice and real protection for children.

The kind of plea deals offered to these perpetrators rob children and their families of full justice. They let predators avoid accountability, evade sex offender registration, and sometimes re-offend unchecked.

We need stronger laws that protect children, not predators. No more plea deals for crimes against children. No more offenders slipping through the cracks. Every conviction should carry the full weight of the law, with mandatory registration and meaningful prison sentences that truly reflect the harm done.

If you believe children deserve better protection and predators deserve real accountability, sign and share this petition. Let’s send a message that justice should never mean giving monsters a second chance to destroy another life.

This is a sponsored petition. Learn more here.