Sex... love... uh oh's

Megan's Law

Megan's Law is named after a 7-year-old Hamilton Township, New Jersey girl named Megan Nicole Kanka. On July 29, 1994, she was lured into her neighbor's home with the promise of a puppy and was brutally raped and murdered by a two-time convicted sex offender who had been convicted in a 1981 attack on a 5-year-old child and an attempted sexual assault on a 7-year-old. Eighty-nine days after Megan Kanka's disappearance, New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman signed the first state-level version of what we know as Megan's Law. The passage of Megan's Law in New Jersey eventually lead to the May 1996 passage of a federal law which is also known as Megan's Law. New Jersey's Megan's Law has specific mandates for active community notification which ensures that the community will be made aware of the presence of convicted sex offenders posing a risk to public safety. Under New Jersey's law, if a convicted sex offender is determined to pose a moderate risk of re-offending then schools and community groups likely to encounter that offender will be notified. If an offender is determined to pose a high risk of re-offending, then schools, community groups and members of the public, such as neighbors likely to encounter the offender, will be notified.

Those of you who have been reading my blog regularly probably understand why I am so passionate about Megan's Law. I check pretty regularly to see exactly who is in my neighborhood, as well as the neighborhood in New Mexico where my sister and brother (in-law) live with my niece and nephew. I want to know at all times who is around me and the 2 most precious kids in my life. I believe the only way to be, or feel safe is to know your surroundings. That's easy to do as an adult, but it's also our responsibility to the children we love to educate them and make them aware of what is and is not ok as far as dealing with strangers, and people touching them, etc. My sister does an awesome job with them as far as that goes, they definitely know what's right and wrong. My nephew actually had a problem that he came to my sister and brother in law with when he was in 1st grade where another little boy kept touching my nephew's "privates" under the desk, which obviously made him really uncomfortable. When my nephew would tell him to stop, the kid would tickle him so he would laugh, then do it again. The first thing I thought of when I heard this was oh my god, this kid is getting molested himself. I bet he gets the same exact thing done to him, when he says stop, they tickle him and turn it into something funny. It makes me so fuckin sick. So, my brother went in and had a little talk with the teacher. I don't know exactly what came of it, but I do know that it stopped happening to my nephew. As far as the other kid goes. I can only pray for him.

Anyway, so I look up my neighborhood and there are 14 within a mile radius of my house where I live now. 14. Most of whom have committed these disgusting acts against children. I knew my sister's neighborhood couldn't be any better, in fact I knew it would be worse, sure enough there are 19 registered sex offenders within a mile radius of her house. Just thinking about it makes me ill. Anyway, if you want to look up your neighborhood, click here.

posted by EIizabeth @ 9:38 PM