Can S. Offenders Earn Forgiveness?
Question
Do criminal sex offenders get forgiven on Yom Kippur? Can they ever be forgiven if they wholeheartedly repent? I am curious because I recently noticed there is a registered sex offender in our community who is an Orthodox Jew. When I looked recently at a list of sex offenders in the part of town where I live, I saw most are goyim. But there is this one exception. I don’t know him not Jews, but he looks familiar like someone I have seen. And I certainly do not want him near my children. From what I have researched, I found one news article about him. His alleged victim is not Jewish. He has not served any prison time, but is on supervised probation for 10 years. He has several minor children of his own. He does not look like a monster. He looks like any other religious man in our community.
Answers
Yes, sex offenders can attain forgiveness but only if they ask the victim(s) for forgiveness. If they do forgive them, and the offender goes through the other conditions necessary for Teshuvah, they are considered to have atoned for their evil deeds.
However, all people living in the area of such a person should not rely on the fact that the offender has done Teshuvah. Rather, they should keep their children far away from him and never let their children be alone with him.
Best wishes from the AskTheRabbi.org Team