Ohio takes lead against sex offenders

Sexual exploitation and abuse of children is not a new phenomenon. Through the annals of time children have always been the target of adult deviant behavior. Much of the abuse was either ignored or quietly condoned. Society paid little attention to the victimization of children.
In 1866 Henry Bergh founded the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. More than 12 years elapsed before a Methodist minister was able to prompt Bergh to launch the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children.
With that checkered history in mind, child sexual exploitation has now moved to the forefront of the national crime fighting agenda. Twenty-five years ago Adam Walsh was abducted and murdered. Within 15 years, child abductions became the number one fear of parents. Today, a simple Internet search "child sex assault" yields more than 2,500 recent news articles. From Boston to San Jose, Minnesota to Texas, the articles are replete with gut wrenching accounts of adults imposing their deranged will upon innocent children.
In 1994 only five states required convicted sex offenders to register their addresses with local law enforcement. Today all 50 states including Pennsylvania and Ohio have a form of Megan's Law. The laws in each state provide some form of community notification regarding local sex offenders.
In Ohio, the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Law provides Internet access to the name, address, photograph and offense of each convicted sex offender living in Ohio. The law requires the 88 county sheriffs to regularly update the information.
In Pennsylvania, Megan's Law is managed by the state police. Prior to 2004 Megan's Law only provided the identity of convicted sex offenders who where deemed sexually violent predators (SVP). At the time there were less than 50 SVPs in the entire state. The law was amended to provide Internet access to more than 6,500 convicted sex offenders.
In the mid-'90s congress felt it was necessary to prompt states to take action with regard to sex offender registries. The federal government enacted the Jacob Wetterling Act requiring all states to implement a sex offender registration program or risk a 10 percent decrease is federal law enforcement funds.
Bringing it home
Congress underestimated the unflagging support for broader access to sex offender information. As cable television news brought the tragedies of Megan Kanka, Polly Klaas, Jessica Lundsford and Dru Sjoden into living rooms nationwide, and the fear, disgust and outrage soared to a fevered pitch.
Today, Congress need not do a thing to get states to act. Although this summer, on the 25th anniversary of the murder of Walsh, congress enacted the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act. The act created a national sex offender public Web site. The law also made it a felony to not register and provides stiff penalties for killing children, including the death penalty. The act also eliminates the statute of limitations for all sex offenses involving children.
Nobody likes a sex offender, particularly those who prey on children. State legislatures continue to look for innovative ways to make life miserable for sex offenders. Ohio is on the cutting edge. In August, Ohio became the first and only state in the nation to enact a law creating a registry for alleged sex offenders who have been neither convicted nor found liable in a civil trial. The alleged abuser is provided a hearing before a judge. If it is found more likely than not that the abuse occurred, then the abuser is required to register with the Ohio Attorney General's Internet Civil Registry.
Pennsylvania is not without innovative ideas when it comes to sex offenders. A sex abuse bill supported by the Pennsylvania District Attorneys Association and child welfare advocates passed the Senate, but was recently tabled by the state House. The bill would have permitted victims of childhood sex abuse to bring criminal charges or a civil suit anytime before their 50th birthday -- in some cases more than 40 years after the alleged victimization.
The quest for retribution, revenge and reimbursement will no doubt continue. Sex offenders are easy targets. Legislators get re-elected, prosecutors get elected to higher office, civil trial attorneys get rich and radio talk show hosts become television show hosts all in the name of eradicating pedophilia. No one wants a convicted sex offender living in their neighborhood and legislators, prosecutors, attorneys and talk show hosts won't let you forget it.
Matthew T. Mangino is the former district attorney of Lawrence County. He is featured columnist for the Pennsylvania Law Weekly. He can be contacted at matthewmangino@aol.com)