The very mention of sex offenders and that too child sexual abusers gives us a feeling of revulsion towards the person tagged with it. Jessica’s law, the populist Sexual Predator Punishment and Control Act has since come under debate as some feel it violates the parolees’ constitutional rights, in line with the same the Supreme Court issued a three-week reprieve Wednesday to four recently released sex offenders who are illegally living too close to schools and parks. However, the ruling does not apply to nearly 1,800 others who have been warned to move or risk having their parole revoked and being sent back to prison.
What does Jessica’s law ordain?
• Ensure that all child molesters who molest children under the age of 14 are put into a prison with a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years or 25 years to life. Closes all loopholes in California’s ‘one-strike’ laws.
• Eliminate all ‘good-time’ credits for sex offenders ensuring that these sex offenders are required to serve their entire sentence and will not be released for good behavior.
• Electronically monitor convicted sex offenders for life, if they are ever released from prison, through GPS tracking.
• Create a 2,000 foot ‘predator-free’ zone around schools and park to prevent sex offenders from living near where our children learn and play.
Attorneys for the four parolees argue that the law punishes sex offenders after they have already paid for their crime by serving prison time. They allege the law is unconstitutionally vague and imposes unreasonable conditions on parole.
Are sentenced criminals the only perverts?
Many view sex offenders living too close to schools as a major societal problem. Many feel that residence restrictions definitely help protect children. This is the populist assumptions society has about sex crimes, sex offenders and pedophiles. But there is also another side to the problem. The sex offender whom parents are so worried about is very likely someone they know. Criminals are not in the parks only, parents should instead be mindful of neighbors, friends and family members who in fact might be perverts.
Which areas of the world are devoid of children?
If these sex offenders live in an urban area, they will have difficulty finding another place that meets the law’s conditions. Such a location would have to be nearly two-fifths of a mile away from schools, parks, or any other place that children come together. Only small portions of sexual offenders are actually fitted for Global Positioning System satellite tracking devices. They are given GPS bracelets, even those who do get one do not have to wear it once they have completed their parole. If life is made so difficult for these people, they are likely to go underground, become untraceable and more dangerous.
