We Won't Forget You, Megan
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On July 29, 1994, 7-year-old Megan Kanka walked across the street to say hi to her neighbor. He was cleaning his boat. He offered the little girl a chance to meet his puppy. Megan was never seen alive again.
Megan Kanka was raped and murdered by 33-year-old Jesse Timmendequas, a previously convicted sex offender. Better yet, he lived with two other sex offenders as well.
No, Megan Kanka's parents did not move into a shady and risqué part of town. They lived in the quaint town of Hamilton, New Jersey, "America's Favorite Hometown." Having your child play outside was not considered unsafe.
After this tragedy occurred, Megan's parents began the Megan Nicole Kanka Foundation with the belief and hope that "Every parent should have the right to know if a dangerous sexual predator moves into their neighborhood."
This also led to the now national, "Megan's Law." Under this law, citizens are able to view a list of registered sex offenders in their neighborhoods. Let me take a moment to point out the word, "registered."
Megan's Law, as amazing as I think it is, covers only those registered. To be registered, one must be convicted of a crime. Do you know how many sexual abusers go without conviction? I'm not even talking about cases that go to trial and are released for whichever of the hundreds of possible reasons it could be. I'm referring to the cases where the innocent child (shouldn't even have to write innocent - EVERY child is innocent) hears things like, "This is our little secret." and "If you tell anyone, something might happen." or "I know you like this. What would they think of you?"
Megan Kanka was raped and murdered by 33-year-old Jesse Timmendequas, a previously convicted sex offender. Better yet, he lived with two other sex offenders as well.
No, Megan Kanka's parents did not move into a shady and risqué part of town. They lived in the quaint town of Hamilton, New Jersey, "America's Favorite Hometown." Having your child play outside was not considered unsafe.
After this tragedy occurred, Megan's parents began the Megan Nicole Kanka Foundation with the belief and hope that "Every parent should have the right to know if a dangerous sexual predator moves into their neighborhood."
This also led to the now national, "Megan's Law." Under this law, citizens are able to view a list of registered sex offenders in their neighborhoods. Let me take a moment to point out the word, "registered."
Megan's Law, as amazing as I think it is, covers only those registered. To be registered, one must be convicted of a crime. Do you know how many sexual abusers go without conviction? I'm not even talking about cases that go to trial and are released for whichever of the hundreds of possible reasons it could be. I'm referring to the cases where the innocent child (shouldn't even have to write innocent - EVERY child is innocent) hears things like, "This is our little secret." and "If you tell anyone, something might happen." or "I know you like this. What would they think of you?"
(I'm absolutely sickened already.)
With further investigation, I find more shocking facts. If an offender moves and does not report to the county sheriff, there is no way of knowing the criminal moved from one location to the next. Also, every state has variations of the law. Some have different definitions of offender and some allow offenders to live near schools (ahem, CA is one of them). By the way, did I mention yet that all 50 states rely on the offender to voluntarily register themselves?! (Did your jaw just drop?)
Wikipedia says, "Approximately 15 percent to 25 percent of women and 5 percent to 15 percent of men were sexually abused when they were children. Most sexual abuse offenders are acquainted with their victims; approximately 30 percent are relatives of the child, most often brothers, fathers, uncles or cousins; around 60 percent are other acquaintances such as friends of the family, babysitters, or neighbors; strangers are the offenders in approximately 10 percent of child sexual abuse cases. Most child sexual abuse is committed by men; studies show that women commit 14 percent to 40 percent of offenses reported against boys and 6 percent of offenses reported against girls. Most offenders who abuse pre-pubescent children are pedophiles, however, a small percentage do not meet the diagnostic criteria for pedophilia."
I signed up for family protection and put in my zip code. Fifty-nine registered sex offenders live in/near my neighborhood. Fifty-nine!! How many have moved into my area? How many have moved out? How many are new but not willingly registering themselves? How many are there but with keen and wicked manipulation not known of?
Isn't it time we invest ourselves in progressing Megan's Law? Isn't it time we bring sex offenders into the light? The safety of the children is at stake. Talk to the children you know. The old rule, "Don't talk to strangers." is still good. But, what if the boogeyman lives down the hall?
With further investigation, I find more shocking facts. If an offender moves and does not report to the county sheriff, there is no way of knowing the criminal moved from one location to the next. Also, every state has variations of the law. Some have different definitions of offender and some allow offenders to live near schools (ahem, CA is one of them). By the way, did I mention yet that all 50 states rely on the offender to voluntarily register themselves?! (Did your jaw just drop?)
Wikipedia says, "Approximately 15 percent to 25 percent of women and 5 percent to 15 percent of men were sexually abused when they were children. Most sexual abuse offenders are acquainted with their victims; approximately 30 percent are relatives of the child, most often brothers, fathers, uncles or cousins; around 60 percent are other acquaintances such as friends of the family, babysitters, or neighbors; strangers are the offenders in approximately 10 percent of child sexual abuse cases. Most child sexual abuse is committed by men; studies show that women commit 14 percent to 40 percent of offenses reported against boys and 6 percent of offenses reported against girls. Most offenders who abuse pre-pubescent children are pedophiles, however, a small percentage do not meet the diagnostic criteria for pedophilia."
I signed up for family protection and put in my zip code. Fifty-nine registered sex offenders live in/near my neighborhood. Fifty-nine!! How many have moved into my area? How many have moved out? How many are new but not willingly registering themselves? How many are there but with keen and wicked manipulation not known of?
Isn't it time we invest ourselves in progressing Megan's Law? Isn't it time we bring sex offenders into the light? The safety of the children is at stake. Talk to the children you know. The old rule, "Don't talk to strangers." is still good. But, what if the boogeyman lives down the hall?
Irini Connerton is a graduate student in Annenberg's broadcast journalism program. Before this amazing adventure began, she was an elementary school teacher for six years. Family and children's issues are close to her heart. Irini's dream is to be an anchor on the morning news, laughing and informing you with a hot cup of coffee in front of her.
Yes, Magen's story is very horrific and her "murderer" should rot in hell. But, the law named and based in Magen's honor with the concept that "Every parent should have the right to know if a dangerous sexual predator moves into their neighborhood." The law is "NOT" working as intended! As the law "PROGRESSES" it is sweeping in many CHILDREN who are "NOT" dangerous sexual predators. And Irini Connerton may or may not be aware of all the facts? Just recently I read a case in Michigan where a 15 year old boy swiped a girls breast in school, he was charged with 2nd degree sexual assault, convicted and registered! Brandon in Texas was 17 and had a consensual sex act with a younger teen, is sentenced to 60 years in prison, www.freebrandon.org., Wendy Whitaker at 17, gave consensual oral sex to a 15 year old FRIEND, is registered for life in Georgia. Many young children are being labeled, their stories are listed at, Ethical Treatment For All Youths, http://www.ethicaltreatment.org/stories.htm. The statistics stated by the author, is based on what? The children I introduced to you, are being counted and listed as sexual offenders? DANGEROUS SEX PREDATOR? Why? What will you do to "STOP" our Government from abusing "OUR" children? Thousands of America's children need your HELP! Help us fix this HUGH mess! Read and Sign the petition at, Reform Sex Offender Laws, http://www.reformsexoffenderlaws.org/statement.php
Maybe something changed since 2008 ... I don't follow Louisana politics each day, but I know the bill was signed, check it out ...
http://www.outsidethebeltway.com/archives/jindal-signs-chemical-castration-bill/
I live in Louisiana, and we do not castrate sexual offenders. Castration doesn't work, anyway. The problem does not lie in the penal organ, it lies in their minds. Living within a certain distance from a school, park, etc. is preposterious. Most offenders live in the same homes as their victims. Oh, and the stats listed above...my newest ones are 1 in 3 females, and 1 in 5 males, will be sexually assaulted before age 18. I think really it is more like 1 in 2 females, and 1 in 4 males. Ask around. Don't take my word for it.
NNT, stop being ridiculous. Shotgun said not all sex offenders are bad, because sometimes people can get unfairly charged as sex offenders. Since you don't feel like reading this part of Shotgun's comment, I will post it for you again:
"When Wilson, an honor roll student with a 3.2 GPA and no criminal record, was 17-years old, he went to a party where a 15-year old girl gave him head. 'The young woman never pressed charges against Wilson, admitted publicly that she consented to the act with the young man, but the kid got 10 years for fellatio -- a blow job.'"
If every teenager who got a voluntary blow-job was put in jail, there'd be few attractive bachelors left to date, and bitter virgins would rule the world.
Luckily, he got out of jail in two years instead of ten, because a judge realized how screwed up the charge was. Here is a more detailed story;
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=10972703
Shotgun ...
You are right. I took your words out of context. I didn't post the entire sentence.
You didn't say: "Not all sex offenders are bad?"
What you said was: "@Jamison Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying: not all sex offenders are bad."
Geeez, that doesn't sound a whole lot better.
@NNT What's idiotic is when people fail to read an entire comment and instead just pick out what they want out of the first sentence.
Nice to see an article that covers an issue nobody ever talks about.
It is a DISGRACE that "sex offenders" (I prefer to call them child rapists) are ever let out of prison in the first place. And if you are going to let them out of prison, follow Louisiana's lead and castrate them first.
Some of the comments on this page are kind of idiotic. "Not all sex offenders are bad?" What is that supposed to mean?
Of course I shouldn't be surprised. Organization such as the ACLU are willing to defend child rapists pro-bono (do a search on ACLU and NAMBLA).
@Jamison Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying: not all sex offenders are bad. Is Genarlow bad? Does he deserve to be labeled a sex offender?
In my opinion? No, he doesn't. He did what each day thousands of teenagers do. Who's to say he had never had sex before and didn't want to lose his "virginity" (as many people don't consider oral sex to be a loss of virginity), so he received oral sex but wouldn't continue on to vaginal intercourse?
This could be far from the truth or dead on, but because he chose to have oral sex instead of vaginal, he is charged? Sounds flawed to me, and I don't think he deserves the title of sex offender, yet he will bear that title until his name is on a gravestone.
So where do we find a balance between forever labeling someone a sex offender and giving a person a second chance? That's such a tough question to answer...which leads me to say: Can't wait until your next piece. I cheated and took a small peek. HAHAHA. =P.
Ugh. Thanks, Kevin.... Hope the New York Times helps bring more attention to California's issue.
I'm rooting for the Los Angeles Times next.
Interesting perspective from today's New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/27/us/27parole.html?_r=1&hp
Sex offenders aren't all bad? What would a good sex offender be like in a month or a year? Are there some sex offenders that we would like to have living around neighborhood schools peering through the fence holes while children are at play? If you have a criminal record, you have to disclose it when applying for a job. Why shouldn't it be required to provide such information when moving into a neighborhood?
I would like neighborhood sex offender information to be available to anyone with children; and that's all kinds of sex offenders.
It's a very difficult situation because there are so many different elements. If you just lump all sex offenders into one group, it is really easy just to say "They're all terrible. Lock em up and throw away the key" or something similar.
But not all sex offenders are terrible people. Take for example Genarlow Wilson, an Atlanta kid, who will forever have the title of being a sex offender. His offense?
When Wilson, an honor roll student with a 3.2 GPA and no criminal record, was 17-years old, he went to a party where a 15-year old girl gave him head. "The young woman never pressed charges against Wilson, admitted publicly that she consented to the act with the young man, but the kid got 10 years for fellatio -- a blow job."
He was arrested and found guilty of having "non-procreative sex with a minor." Funny thing is if he would have had vaginal sex with the girl...no charges.
So don't automatically make the assumption that every criminal is bad. It's usually a little bit more complicated than that and so is Megan's Law.
There is a fury and and sadness inside that I cannot express.
Click on my name, it's the first article.
There is a fury and and sadness inside that I cannot express.
http://cfcoklahoma.org/New_Site/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=204%3Athere-is-a-fury-and-and-sadness-inside-that-i-cannot-express&Itemid=1
Insane registry laws and restrictions did not prevent the perverts, Philip Garrido AND HIS WIFE from doing what they did! The registry laws, and especially the residency / work place restrictions, have done far more harm than good. Forget about all the cases of vigilantism and suicide; forget about the fact that while these laws are proposed to protect the children, they include children, while a huge percentage of those on the list committed crimes that had nothing to do with children; forget about the fact that study after study has proven these laws not only are ineffective, but have actually made matters worse. Forget about the fact that upon release from custody, sex offenders have one of the lowest recidivism rates, not the highest. In fact those who receive counseling and treatment have outstanding records versus those convicted of other violent crimes! The fact is the registry and any restrictions should be limited to those who are proven child molesters and pedophiles; that Law Enforcement could handle and monitor effectively. Do you seriously believe a committed pedophile cannot walk or drive 500, 1000, 2500, 5000 feet or more? Jaycee Lee Dugard was abducted miles from where Philip Garrido lived!
I am sure we will see comments from hysterical, uninformed individual(s) who will suggest that all those on the registry should be locked up for life or worse and say there is no rehabilitation for these people. And for a few they are right, we need to focus on those! Once a person has done their time that should be it. That is the foundation of this great country and its legal system. Don’t like it, move to China, Russia, North Korea, Iran, or wherever individual rights are ignored. If a person is a pedophile, lock them up for a long time and provide treatment. Treatment not working, keep them locked up. Many families are being destroyed for political expediency; children of those on the registry are being abused and ostracized at school. Whole families are forced into isolation and restricted from the work place. If the registry is to truly protect the children, then let’s focus on the pedophiles and child molesters’. Get rid of the residency/work place restrictions, focus on the loitering laws. Let the rest on the registry re-assimilate into society after they have done their time, become solid, productive citizens; part of the solution not the problem. The facts, (and the Garrido case) as well as virtually all of the research, and study after study have proven what we are doing now, mostly for political expediency and to appease hysterical uninformed parents is not working and is in fact making matters worse!
Your passion, compassion, pain and justice comes powerfully through your article. Yet, young people need to have more information regarding their rights and where they can turn for help if the home environment does not encourage them to do so.
There are more pedophiles and sex offenders we will ever know because it is a shameful subject and carries a lot of guilt for the victims a feeling that the offenders are aware of and they know how to use in their favor. God bless you Irini.
You are a beautiful and engaging writer. I completely agree with you in thinking that most sex offenders have never been convicted of a crime. Most of the time, they just happen right within a home and no one ever knows.. I know too many cases of that being the case to even try and argue otherwise BUT I had no idea that sex offenders had to voluntarily register themselves. I knew that thousands were never convicted but to be actually tried in court and then left to voluntarily register? Doesn't seem to make sense to me.
Amazing. Who knew that in order for these offenders to be searchable that they had to be registered?
While I am all for second chances, many of these are repeating offenders and it's something that parents shouldn't risk when choosing a place to live.
You address some really key points, points that I'm not sure everyone knows of. I hadn't realised quite how many loopholes there are in Megan's Law, and you are completely correct in demanding that the law should be progressed. Well done on dealing with such a difficult topic in a clear and coherent manner, I hope it reaches the people who can make a difference!
There is also this:
http://www.familywatchdog.us
Where you can see without signing up if sex offenders live in your neighborhood.
This is so interesting. I knew about the law but I did not know the story of Megan or the actually rules of the law. I'm also really sickened to read about that and I'm very disgusted with how many children wind up in these situations.
How could we go about progressing this law?