Communities around the country have been hit hard by the recent downturn in our economy.  Although it appears that we have turned the corner, many neighborhoods still face a long road to recovery.  It will take some time before businesses return and open their doors again.  In the meantime, many vacant storefronts will continue to dot the landscape and present real danger to our safety and well-being. These threats are not to be taken lightly as recounted in the excerpt below.

Recent headlines in a Midwest town read: “A 10-year-old girl was sexually assaulted in the bathroom at the Outlet Mall Center early Saturday evening, police say.”

This incident draws attention to the recent attack of an unaccompanied minor who did nothing to provoke her perpetrator—she merely was heading to the restroom.  Unfortunately, her pathway led her along a desolate hallway at an Outlet Mall, where business was adversely impacted by these economic times, forcing tenants to close their doors.  For the property owners, the reduction in revenue forced down-staffing and mall security suffered as a consequence—a hard lesson that will undoubtedly haunt this innocent fifth grader.  An even sadder burden is the guilt that the child’s guardian must now bear.
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