Megans Law Essay Research Paper Steve Butler

Megans Law Essay, Research Paper

Steve Butler and Eric Roos

Ms. Johnson

Advanced English 10

14 January 2000

Megan.s Law

When people think of their neighbors, do they think of violent sex crime offenders. Many people have to deal with this every day of life. There are now laws that inform people of a community when a sex crime offender moves into their town. These laws are said to keep violent sex crime offenders from striking again, but do these laws really work is the question that many people ask. The answer all depends on the opinion of the person who is being asking. Many supporters say that the law is keeping sexually violent predators from striking again, but many critics say that the law is unethical and breaks many amendments. This is another question proposed when the topic of Megan.s Law is brought up, is it breaking any of the amendments or is it necessary for community members to know whether a sex crime offender is living is in their neighborhood. The judge who was deciding this case ruled in favor of the critics, that Megan.s Law was in violation of the Constitution. But then finally President Bill Clinton stepped in and created a total package called the Jacob Wetterling Act. This Law was said to almost end all of the Sex crime cases to come in the future, but did it.

Megan.s Law has once played an intricate part in the life of my family members. In 1995 my aunt a resident of a nearby suburb of Seattle, Washington encountered a scenario which involved the notification of sex offenders.

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She resided next to what appeared to be a pleasant and friendly bachelor. He was very out going and kind to the people in the community. The residents of the community had no idea he was once a child molester about to move in on his next victim. After living five months in this small community he sexually abused a seven year old girl. After going to jail citizens of the community discovered this was not his first offense. This brought great controversy in the notification of sex offenders in communities also known as Megan.s Law.

Megan.s Law is said to be one of the most controversial topics among lawyers today. In this paper one will see how Megan.s Law is enforced, how the name came about, the regulations of Megan.s Law, how the federal government stepped in and created laws enforcing sex crime offenders to register with the town.s Police, some brief opinions of the people on how they would react if they knew that a sex crime offender moved into their community, statements from two lawyers, how Megan.s Law is not really a law, and the problems with the law.

” On July 29, 1994, seven year old Megan Kanka, from Hamilton Township, New Jersey, was walking home after playing at a friends house. She had almost reached her front door when Jesse Timmendequas, 33, a landscaper who had lived across the street for a year invited her over to pet his new puppy ( Richard 1 ).” ” When Megan followed him inside, he led her to an upstairs bedroom, strangled her unconscious with his belt, raped her and then asphyxiated her to death with a plastic bag. Timmendequas then placed Megan.s body in a tool box, drove it in his pick-up truck to a near-by soccer field and dumped her body in some bushes ( Jerome 1 ).” This, and the tragic murder of Amanda Wengert, was how the name was developed. But in my paper I did not discuss the murder and raping of Amanda Wengert.

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Megan.s Law created a registration and notification procedure to alert law enforcement, schools, community organizations and neighbors to the presence of a sex offender who authorities believe may pose a risk to the community ( Verniero 1) .When sex crime offenders are released from prison according to this new law, they must register themselves with the police. If they are thought to be dangerous and will possibly strike again, they must also register with the

community. The sex crime offenders have only three days when they move into a community to register with the police, or they are considered to be breaking the law and will be arrested (Reno 2).

“The general objective of the Act is to protect people from child molesters and sexually violent predators through registration requirements. It is not intended to, and does not have the effect of, making states less free than they were under prior law to impose registration requirements for this purpose ( Reno 10).” The act itself provides that, if a person required to register is let out of jail then the officer responsible for him must obtain the registration information and send it to the registration agency also within three days of receiving it ( Reno 2). Some states assign the duty of getting the information that the child molester or sexually violent predator to either probation officers or parole officers ( Reno 3).

Although there were strong controversial debates over the law, a new law was signed on May 17, 1996 by President William Clinton requiring states to adopt a system of notifying the

public of the whereabouts of sex crime offenders or child molesters by September of 1997, but it leaves it up to the states to establish their own form of notification ( Mader 1). ” First states that wish to achieve compliance with the Jacob Wetterling Act should understand that its

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