ME- Sex registry should focus on protection

3-3-2009 Maine:

The online registry loses value if it is used to punish everyone ever convicted of a sex crime.

Law enforcement experts will tell you that the people who commit sex crimes against children are different from other criminals.

Unlike those who commit crimes of dishonesty or violence, there is a population of fixated sexual predators who will hunt victims and violate them in more and more brazen ways until they are stopped.

But the same experts will also tell you that not all sex crimes are the same. There are older teenagers, for instance, who have sexual relations with a willing partner not old enough to legally consent. They have committed a crime but may not be predators.

But under current law, all offenders are required to register with local law enforcement and have their names, photographs, addresses and places of employment published on a state Web site that can be accessed by anyone.

That practice is now under review by both the state Legislature and the courts, in response to complaints that it is an unfair tack-on punishment for some individuals.

The public should understand that rethinking the law makes sense and is not about giving sex offenders a break.

The goal of sex offender registration and the online publication of information should be providing members of the public with information they need to protect themselves. It should not be about public humiliation and, in effect, an extra measure of punishment.

A system that provides too much information and mixes truly dangerous people with those who are probably not a threat is as dangerous as one that provides too little.

The Legislature has been struggling with this issue for several years, and it is not an easy one. Cases now before the Maine Supreme Judicial Court could result in opinions that would provide more clarity.

The important thing for lawmakers to focus on is public protection. Other states have developed registration systems that collect and maintain current data about all sex offenders for police use, but only publish information about the ones considered to pose a real danger to the community.

For the lawmakers who believe that sex offenders would not be punished enough in such a system, there is an option -- longer jail sentences for those convicted of sex crimes.

But the purpose of the registry and the Web site should remain providing the public with accurate information about real risks. Doing that may mean fewer names on the Web site. ..Source.. of: The Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram