If you remember. In numerous posts I have referred to letters of character reference that a variety of family members, church members, and some church leaders in our community wrote on behalf of Patrick. These were written to say what a great guy Patrick was and what an asset to our community he was and that it would be a waste for him to serve real time in prison for just a moment of poor judgment. These letters boasted that Patrick was repentant. The people who wrote the letters claimed to have already seen a change for the better in Patrick.
There was an Eagle Scout who claimed to be an excellent judge of character. He eloquently stated his personal relationship with Patrick. He wrote a very persuasive letter to the judge requesting that leniency be extended to Patrick. There was also a leader from the Heritage Homeschool Organization that wrote a letter on behalf of Patrick using the organization's letterhead and signing with his official title. I could go on and on.
There was an Eagle Scout who claimed to be an excellent judge of character. He eloquently stated his personal relationship with Patrick. He wrote a very persuasive letter to the judge requesting that leniency be extended to Patrick. There was also a leader from the Heritage Homeschool Organization that wrote a letter on behalf of Patrick using the organization's letterhead and signing with his official title. I could go on and on.
None of these people ever contacted us to verify information they were selectively given by the Rojas family and the leaders of PHF. Nor did they bother to contact the prosecutor or detective involved in our case. One thing that I still don't understand to this day is that, for some reason, Patrick and his lawyer requested that the contents of the letters be sealed. We were able to read each individual letter in the prosecutors office, but haven't been able to attain actual copies because they aren't in the public file.
People would argue that these individuals made a simple judgment error in writing these letters. Fine. But that doesn't take away the consequences of their errors. After the deceit of the Rojas family was revealed and after Patrick was shown to be deviant and dangerous, only one individual felt compelled to write a retraction and send it to the courts. Out of 30+ letters, only one wrote a retraction. Everyone else is still on record in support of Patrick David Rojas, a convicted level-two sex offender who admitted to having sexual interaction with animals and a baby, who admitted to peeping in on mothers and daughters in bathrooms, and who admitted to other dangerous, deviant behavior.
This has always bothered me!
People would argue that these individuals made a simple judgment error in writing these letters. Fine. But that doesn't take away the consequences of their errors. After the deceit of the Rojas family was revealed and after Patrick was shown to be deviant and dangerous, only one individual felt compelled to write a retraction and send it to the courts. Out of 30+ letters, only one wrote a retraction. Everyone else is still on record in support of Patrick David Rojas, a convicted level-two sex offender who admitted to having sexual interaction with animals and a baby, who admitted to peeping in on mothers and daughters in bathrooms, and who admitted to other dangerous, deviant behavior.
This has always bothered me!
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