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Megan's Law Essay

1552 Words7 Pages

The sexual offender registration and notification act, also known as Megan’s Law, was enacted in 1995 by Pennsylivania Governor Tom Ridge. Megan Kanka was a seven year-old girl that resided in Hamilton Township, New Jersey, with her family. On Friday, July 29, 1994, Kanka was raped and murdered by their 33 year old neighbor, Jesse Timmendequas. Timmendequas had two prior convictions of attempted sexual assault on five and seven year old girls. He lured Kanka into his house by offering to show her a puppy. He then raped and strangled her. He placed her body into a wooden toy chest and dumped her body in Mercer County Park. One day later, he confessed and led police to her body. The court sentenced Timmendequas to the death penalty, but on December …show more content…

First, it informs the public of offenders’ important addresses and convictions. This can help guardians protect the children under their care. A prime example of this is Megan Kanka as she might still be alive today if her parents had access to this information. Second, Megan’s Law also has a picture of the offender where all their information is listed. Addresses can be helpful to a certain point, but offenders can go to other places such as parks and stores. A guardian can show a child this picture and explain to them that they are dangerous. A child could possibly recall the picture of the offender and avoid him or …show more content…

It is known that some individuals listed do have repeat offenses, but some offenders are reformed and live successful lives. One minor incident could haunt someone for years and impact his or her career, relationships, and community involvement. A person who wants to live a better life and be a better person may have trouble escaping the label of a sex offender (The Law Office of George Gedulin, 2017). Another major criticism is that it affects the family members of those on Megan’s Law. It might degrade the whole family's reputation, because one member is listed. A final criticism is that it subjects sex offenders to indefinite punishments (Levenson,

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