Fired for protecting children?

Chalk it up as one of those cases that gets under your skin and continues to haunt your mind.

In February, in Lindsay, Calif., a library assistant named Brenda Biesterfeld notices a man viewing child pornography on a library computer. She reports this to her supervisor who tells Ms. Biesterfeld to warn the man that if he is again caught viewing such material, he will be banned from the library. She does so. Later, Ms. Biesterfeld says she would like to call the police, but is told by her boss that the library handles these types of situations internally.

Earlier this month, the man returns to the library and again begins viewing child pornography. This time, Ms. Biesterfeld calls the police. The police arrive on the scene and arrest the man, 39-year-old Donny Lynn Chrisler, for viewing the illegal pornography. (Chrisler remains in custody on $10,000 bail after an investigation uncovered more child pornography on his home computer.)

And then the unbelievable part of the story happens.

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When the police attempt to seize the computer Chrisler was using, the library supervisor tells the officers that they have no business meddling in a situation that should be handled by the library staff. The police tell the librarian that federal laws have been violated. The librarian then asks who reported Chrisler's use of the computer to the police. The officers refuse to say. But the librarian claims to know that it is Brenda Biesterfeld who has reported it.

In an unbelievable turn of events, two days later and without explanation, Brenda Biesterfeld is terminated from her job.

Liberty Counsel, the nonprofit religious freedom organization that is affiliated with Liberty University, has now stepped in. The organization says the firing of Ms. Biesterfeld has "outraged the Lindsay community and has raised concerns over how the library responds to the viewing of illegal child pornography on library property."

Liberty Counsel has now sent a demand letter to the Tulare County Board of Supervisors, challenging the termination of Brenda Biesterfeld, who I believe is a hero. I also believe her firing is an outrage.

The demand letter urges reform in three areas. The library should: change its policy to prevent the use of its property for illegal behavior; establish a prompt reporting system; take measures to protect children who utilize the library.

This is all perfectly reasonable.

What's amazing is that a library staff would need to be instructed about how to deal with a cut-and-dry issue such as viewing child pornography.

Has our nation really lost its way to the point that some of our citizens don't understand the necessity of painstakingly protecting our children?

Mathew Staver, who is the founder of Liberty Counsel and dean of Liberty University School of Law, correctly notes that our tax dollars should not be used to provide safe havens for sexual perverts to view child pornography in our libraries.

He says of this case: "Child pornography is illegal under state and federal laws. Brenda Biesterfeld had a moral and a legal responsibility to report to police a library patron whom she observed viewing child pornography. It is outrageous that the Lindsay Branch Library fired Ms. Biesterfeld for reporting child pornography usage. Child pornography is a despicable crime against children."

I'm sure most parents are hoping that Ms. Biesterfeld is exonerated. This case serves as an important reminder to all parents that we must remain vigilant in protecting our children, because some in our nation do not have their best interests at heart.

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