Sex Offender Registration and Recidivism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Sex Offender Registration and Recidivism - Essay Example   The concept of sex offender registration and notification has been practiced in the American community since the end of 1900s. Research professionals have noted that scarcity of valuable information about the history of sex offender registration in the United States affects their studies. As Richard Gordon Wrights observes, â€Å"despite this lack of information, States began re-embracing the notion of sex offender registration in the 1890s† (Wright, 2009, p. 212).   In 1994 certain states including Florida demanded convicted sex offenders to document their addresses with regional law enforcement agencies. After this, the Congress passed the Jacob Wetterling Crimes against Children and Sexually Violent Offender Act. The law is considered as the most significant step in the history of sex offender registration in the United States. ... As per the instructions of The Jacob Wetterling Act, all states introduced various policies to develop and maintain sex offenders register. In this respect, Elizabeth J. Letourneau et al point out that â€Å"the Pam Lychner Sexual Offender Tracking and Identification Act of 1996 required the development of a nationwide registry to prevent offenders from escaping registration requirements by moving from state to state† (Letourneau, Levenson, Bandyopadhyay, Sinha & Armstrong, 2010). From its initial stages all these registration laws are referred to as â€Å"Megan’s Laws† in the United States in mark of respect to a child victim, Megan Kankla: â€Å"these laws have typically been refereed to as â€Å"Megan’s Laws† in the United States   in tribute   to a child victim, Megan Kankla who was kidnapped, raped and murdered† (Hanser, 2009, p. 169). During the initial stages the making and maintaining of sex offender registrations were mainly conc entrated to prevent sexual offenses in the society and then it deviated to other areas of the judiciary. It is highly remarkable that there is a gradual growth in the process of registering and notifying the information of convicted sex offenders in the United States in recent years. The government can ensure transparency and public involvement in legal procedure. Current status of sex offender register reveals its importance in society. The report submitted to the California Legislature in 2002 underlines the growing status of sex offender registration. The report states that â€Å"currently, about half of our state’s law enforcement agencies notify residents, schools, or businesses of nearby high risk or serious sex offenders or make the information available to the  public†.