Local Mom Wants Castration for Son Charged with Sex Crime

EASTON, PA-October 30, 2002 — Linda Macaulay told a judge that her mentally retarded son, who is charged with sex crimes against children, should be castrated.

Macaulay spoke at a hearing on Tuesday for her son, William A. Smith, 30, who has been in prison since 2000 on charges of sex crimes. It was his fourth such charge.

"Ma'am, you understand I can't order that your son be, as you put it, fixed," Northampton County Judge Stephen G. Baratta said.

At the hearing, psychiatrist Daniel Greenfield testified that Smith, who has an IQ of 50 to 60, functions on the level of a "first-, second- or third-grader" and is incompetent to stand trial. He recommended that Smith be housed in a secure residential setting.

But Macaulay said she wanted Smith at home with her. She said that if he was castrated, he couldn't commit sexual abuse.

"I'd take his rights away as a man," she said.

Texas law offers voluntary castration to repeat offenders, but Pennsylvania has no equivalent legislation.

Smith's attorney Mark Minotti has asked that Smith be declared incompetent and Assistant District Attorney Patricia C. Broscius has petitioned to have Smith placed in a secure facility.

Baratta said he would rule on those requests in early December.

Smith was arrested on June 28, 2000. Police said he exposed himself to a 5-year-old and asked the child to perform a sex act. He is charged with attempted involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, indecent exposure and corruption of minors.

(Copyright 2002 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Last Updated: Oct 30, 2002