|
This Day
in History
Read
about historical events that took place today
Calendar of Events
The Inquirer Forum
A place to post
your opinions & suggestions!
New!
Free Online
Classifieds
2009 Mt.
Vernon
Monthly Column
QUICK
LINKS
Archives
 
     
|
|
|
|
05-20-09
Senate Passes Klein Legislation
to Provide Email Notification for Sex Offenders
On May 19,
the NYS Senate voted to pass legislation sponsored by
Senator Jeff Klein which would allow concerned parents and
residents to receive instant email alerts every time a sex
offender moves into a selected zip code (S1362B). The bill
passed with 60 votes, with two Senators excused from voting.
"All New Yorkers should have
the right to notification when a dangerous predator moves
into their neighborhood. Registered sex offenders are kept
track of for a reason and the passage of New York Senator
Jeff Klein's "e-mail notification bill" in the NY Senate is
an example to the rest of the country of how to help keep
our citizens safer," said John Walsh, victims' advocate and
host of TV's "America's Most Wanted."
As of
May 4th, there were 11,428 level 2-3 sex offenders in New
York State's Sex Offender Registry, which classifies
offenders according to their risk of re-offending: low-risk
(Level 1), moderate risk (Level 2) and high-risk (Level 3).
Members of the public can access this database at local
police stations or via a toll-free telephone number. Level 2
and Level 3 offenders are also listed on an internet
subdirectory at the DCJS website. However, the information
changes constantly as new offenders are added or existing
registrants update their information. E-mail updates would
allow New Yorkers to keep tabs on a specific geographic
area, such as where they live or where their children attend
school, and would save them the time-consuming chore of
making regular visits to the subdirectory website.
Thanks
to the statewide emergency communication system, NY Alert,
which is managed by the Department of Homeland Security, it
would be easy for New Yorkers to register for instant e-mail
notifications. Currently, New Yorkers desiring up-to-date
information on registered sex offenders in their communities
must make daily searches of the Sex Offender Registry
maintained by the Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS).
“It
would be near criminal to deny busy New Yorkers with young
families the added convenience of better protecting our
children from the kind of unsavory individuals who are, in
many cases, our neighbors,” said Senator Klein
On
Mother’s Day, Klein released data for all registered sex
offenders living in the 5 boroughs of New York City, broken
down by zip code. Of the 3,428 known sex offenders residing
in New York City, 133 live in Staten Island, 1,197 live in
Brooklyn, 639 live in Manhattan, 928 live in the Bronx, and
531 in Queens (list includes only level 2 and 3 offenders
listed on the registry).
The top
ten zip codes are as follows: 10035 (130), Manhattan; 11221
(126), Brooklyn; 11233 (121), Brooklyn; 11207 (121),
Brooklyn; 11208 (100), Brooklyn; 10016 (82), Manhattan;
11212 (75), Brooklyn; 11216 (67), Brooklyn; 10456 (66),
Bronx; 10453 (66), Bronx..
In
addition, with more sex offenders subject to the 12-year-old
registration requirements being released from prison every
day and an increasing number of sex crimes, like sex
trafficking, being added to the list of registerable
offenses, the registry is likely to continue its expansion
well into the future.
Assemblyman Rory Lancman (D-Queens) carrys
the bill in the Assembly.
|
|
|
