Data Points to Need to Strengthen Sex Offender Laws
Data Points to Need to Strengthen Sex Offender Laws
Rep. Boozman's Column for the Week of March 20, 2006
Washington, Mar 20 -
There are over 500,000 convicted sex offenders in the United States. The government cannot account for over 100,000 of those 500,000 criminals. When you break that down, that means we do not know the whereabouts of over 20% of the country's convicted sex offenders. On top of that, there are many sex offenders out there that have yet to be identified, so the data we have doesn't paint a complete picture of the threat that lurks out there for our children.
The numbers don't get any clearer - or reassuring for that matter - as you get closer to home. According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, there are close to 5,900 registered sex offenders living in Arkansas. That is a rather large number for our small state and it only reflects known offenders. Again, there is no way to know for sure how many predators are actually in our state as over 100,000 sex offenders in the national database can't be located because they have failed - in most cases knowingly failed - to register in their communities.
All of this is to say that we need accurate data to truly understand the extent of the problem, but also, to be able to fully protect our children. The fact of the matter remains that we don't know where these unregistered sex offenders live, work or go to school. We don't know if they are hundreds of miles away or next door. We don't know if they are leading productive lives or sitting on the park bench stalking our kids. What we do know is that sex offenders are four times likely to be arrested again on a similar charge. The lack of data on these convicted criminals is a frightening reality that we must address.
In an effort to correct this problem, my colleagues and I recently passed sweeping changes to the federal programs that monitor sex offenders. Unanimously passed by the House, the "Children's Safety and Violent Crime Reduction Act of 2005" puts teeth into the current way sex offenders are tracked under federal law.
This comprehensive bill makes improvements to the National Sex Offender Registration and Notification Program to ensure that sex offenders register - and keep current - where they reside, work and attend school. It requires each state, territory and federally-recognized Indian tribe to maintain an up-to-date sex offender registry and ensures that states notify one another when sex offenders relocate across state lines. It also increases the penalties for registration requirement violations making the maximum penalty 20 years in prison.
As I mentioned earlier, the data on convicted sex offenders is glaringly incomplete. The lack of data makes it harder for parents to truly protect their children from being preyed upon. This bill should increase the data, but also make it easily available to the public. Included in this bill is a provision that calls for the creation of a website where citizens can look up information on sex offenders in a public database, which will help parents educate themselves on the whereabouts of sex offenders. The tougher registration requirements and this public disclosure provision will make it easier for parents to know who is really in their communities.
You are going to hear a great deal about this subject during the month of April as it is designated as National Child Abuse Prevention Month. It would be a perfect time for the Senate to follow our lead and pass this bill so that the president can sign these tougher registration requirements into law.
http://www.boozman.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=41051