Monday, October 03, 2011

NY Enacts New Sex Offender Law Which Increases Danger to Public

On September 23, Gov. Cuomo announced a list of bills that he has approved. Among them was a bill that requires Level 2 registered sex offenders to report their employment addresses. (Level 3 offenders are already required to do so). This new law requires these employment addresses to be posted on the Internet registry. This law applies retroactively to all Level 2 registered sex offenders, including those who have lived and worked safely in the community for up to 15 years. (While most with criminal convictions find that the consequences of their convictions decrease over time, the consequences of a conviction for a sex offense often increase with the passage of time).

A recent study has found that such policies make communities less safe. Recidivism is more likely in the absence of stable employment and stable housing. This law will cause some former offenders to lose their jobs and make it much harder for others to find employment.

This new law is not based on any facts or research, quite the opposite. Illinois lawmakers recently pointed out that the main reason lawmakers vote for such laws is that they are afraid not to. There is too much political risk in appearing soft on sex offenders, even if legislation is counter productive. Sadly, elected officials would rather increase the risk to communities than increase the political risk to themselves.

4 comments:

oncefallendotcom said...

Every single New Yorker that experiences unemployment as a result of this law needs to sue the state of New York for lost wages.

Anonymous said...

Once these laws are passed, they are essentially etched in stone and difficult if not impossible to appeal. Violating due process and bill of attainder. Also, the judges are afraid to rule in a certain way because they will create a precedent and that could in effect "change" the law and in effect change future rulings. The game is rigged and the legislative and judicial branches are just covering their collective azzes. This nonsense has got to stop. The Adam Walsh Act is a joke and a bad idea that just got momentum.

Knowing where someone lives does not prevent or deter crime, much less save lives. The ill-conceived and ineffectual sex offender registry is nothing more but SECURITY THEATER.

I suppose perfectly ok to completely ruin a person's life, as long as we think we're protecting children, right?

Anonymous said...

Ah, but what of those children whose parent is on the registry, now loses his job due to this new law, and cannot find another due to the same law. When the parents are evicted and unable to buy food, those children are homeless, hungry, and terrified right along with the parents. What children are being protected now?
Shelomith Stow

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