Hide Yo Kids

We Were Never Told

I eventually learned that an individual who performed work in and around Galt Commons, and until recently continued to do so, is listed on the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Sex Offender Registry.

According to the official GBI registry, he was convicted of:

And he was sent into our homes.

This was not someone working on an isolated construction site or a stranger who appeared once and disappeared. He was someone that was repeatedly used to perform work throughout Galt Commons, including inside occupied homes and around community spaces such as the pool.

Homeowners were never told that the person being sent into their homes had been convicted of four counts of child molestation and was a registered sex offender.

I had to discover that for myself much later.

Had I known beforehand, he would not have been permitted inside my home.

But that was a decision every homeowner should have been allowed to make for themselves.

Inside Our Homes

A home is different from a construction site. It is a private space where children and families live, and where someone invited inside gains access and familiarity that an ordinary stranger would never have.

Family photographs. Personal belongings. Security systems. Entrances and exits. The layout of the home. The people who live there. These are intimate details of a family's private life that become visible to someone given access to their home.

These were homes where minor children lived or could be present. Children. Grandchildren. Nieces and nephews. Yet homeowners were not told that the person being sent inside had been convicted of four counts of child molestation.

He was allowed into private homes, allowed to interact with homeowners and their families, and allowed to become a familiar and trusted presence to people who did not know his history.

And this was far from the first person with a felony record that was sent into homeowners' residences. That is troubling on its own. But the nature of these convictions, combined with this level of access to families' private lives and places where children could be present, takes it somewhere else entirely.

Continued Work Around Galt Commons

This did not end with the original construction. Until recently, he continued performing work in and around Galt Commons, including work around community areas such as the pool.

That continued presence, even after the original construction was completed, is one reason I believe this information remains relevant to current homeowners and prospective buyers.

1,000 Feet

There is also a separate issue involving the City of Kennesaw's own ordinance.

Kennesaw Code § 62-8(b)(1)

Galt Commons and the builder's location directly across Cherokee Street are within 1,000 feet of three child care facilities.

I reported the issue to the City of Kennesaw Police Department. Unsurprisingly, the City refused to enforce their ordinance.

The Bottom Line

The ordinance matters. The City's refusal to enforce it matters.

But none of that is what bothers me most.

The people responsible for Galt Commons knew, or should have known, his history. Homeowners were not informed.

If someone chooses to employ a registered sex offender, that is their decision to make. Sending that person into someone else's home without telling them is another matter entirely.

Tell people who you are sending into their homes and let them decide for themselves.

Instead, that decision was made for them.

A registered sex offender convicted of four counts of child molestation was sent into the homes of families who had not been informed of his history, where he was given access to their private spaces and the opportunity to earn their trust. To me, that is the definition of putting a wolf in the henhouse.