Megan’s Law requires public access to information about registered sex offenders, particularly those who have targeted children. It is named after Megan Kanka, a girl who was sexually assaulted and killed by a repeat offender. The law is often associated with the Jacob Wetterling Act, which requires every US state to create a registry of sex offenders. Megan’s Law requires the registry to be made public through various means, including internet sites. Its effectiveness is debated, with some defending it as a way to alert parents and children to potential predators, while others argue it can prevent offenders from reforming and re-entering society. The UK has a similar law named Sarah’s Law.
Megan’s Law is a term used to refer to one of several United States (US) state laws that require public access to information regarding registered sex offenders, especially those that have targeted children. These laws are typically used in conjunction with United States federal law that requires states to maintain and maintain a sex offender registry. The idea behind such laws is that sex offenders can commit more crimes and that people should be aware of anyone with a history of sexual offending against children living in their neighborhood. Megan’s Law is named after Megan Kanka, a seven-year-old girl from New Jersey who was sexually assaulted and killed by a repeat offender.
In many respects, Megan’s law is often associated with the Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent Offender Registration Act, both enacted in 1994. Jacob Wetterling was an 11-year-old boy who was abducted at gunpoint in 1989, and it is believed that the kidnapper had committed previous attacks against children. In response to these types of crimes, the Jacob Wetterling Act established a requirement for every U.S. state to create a registry of the names and addresses of sex offenders.
Paul Kramer, a member of the New Jersey General Assembly, introduced the initiative that became Megan’s law after Megan Kanka was raped and killed by a repeat sexual offender who lived across the street from the girl with two others convicted and released for sexual offences. Under Megan’s law, and variants of the law in other states, the registry established in a state regarding sex offenders must be made public through a number of different means. This often includes Internet sites that allow people to search for a location or neighborhood and see if convicted sex offenders live in the area, along with information such as the offenders’ names, a photograph, and what crime they were convicted of.
While the effectiveness of Megan’s law is somewhat debated, many parent and youth advocacy groups defend such laws as ways to alert parents and children to the presence of potential predators. Those who oppose these laws, however, often point to the number of offenders who do not repeat offenders, but who are not allowed to reform and re-enter society without harassment. In the United Kingdom (UK) a law similar to Megan’s Law, named Sarah’s Law after an eight-year-old girl who was kidnapped and killed, would allow citizens to be aware of the presence of a sex offender but would probably not reveal the identity of the person.
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