The deaths of two teenage San Diego-area girls spurred calls by politicians and parents for tougher laws to deal with sex offenders. California already has a slew of sex offender measures, such as Jessica's Law, barring offenders from living near schools or parks, and Megan's Law, requiring an offender registry. Experts tell National Public Radio that the case of John Gardner, charged in one San Diego case and a target in the other, is exhibit A in Megan's Law's limitations.
Megan's Law Web site lists Gardner's address north of San Diego. But he also visited his mother's home in San Diego near the area where Chelsea King was found dead. Gardner registered as a sex offender last year in the town where Amber Dubois disappeared. "The registered sex offenders — even though they have an address in one city, they're free to move from city to city as anybody else is," said Boyd Long, assistant San Diego police chief. Says ex-San Diego prosecutor Paul Pfingst: "Whatever precautions are taken to protect a community from sexual predators, they can never be foolproof, unless we do not have a free society."
Posted by carmen
Tuesday, March 16, 2010 10:03
No, the problem is that “THEY” (sex offenders) are getting released from prison.They can not be rehibilatated, it is an incurable disease and we are not protecting are children by not placing them in prison without the possibility of parole.How sad we will place a man in prison for life on a 3 stike law for stealing a pair of shoes when he gets out of prison, but a man who falsly imprisons a 13 teen year old girl and beats and rapes her gets out of prison(John Gardner) after serving five years. WE HAVE A PROBLEM AMERICA WAKE UP
How many children have to die before we stand up?
Posted by DAINA JEAN SHAFFER
Saturday, March 13, 2010 10:18
I am shocked that you quote Paul Pfingst, the very DA who plea bargained down John Gardner’s 2000 conviction for savagely beating and abusing sexually a 13 year-old neighbor. His office recommended only 6 years prison time when a well respected pyschiatrist, that the court hired, recommended the full prison time. Dr. Carroll said in his report that the community needed protection from this violent sexual offender. This DA is making excuses for himself. PLEASE DO YOUR HOMEWORK NEXT TIME.
Posted by Stephen
Friday, March 12, 2010 06:13
The people forced to wear GPS, just cut them off and commit their crime, some don’t even cut them off before the crime. Longer prison sentence and forced treatment is what works. Also if its lives everyone wants to save, what about those DUI people that murder 13000 people a year, and butcher 500.000 more. Do we want revenge, or to be safer. I wouldn’t want any kid of mine riding with a drunk, or hanging out with a drug dealer. Why wont the government give us their names also, so we can protect are families.
Posted by http404
Friday, March 12, 2010 12:44
As it has been said, we already have the toughest of rules and tools to dole out appropriate or permanent justice against sex offenders, and the problem is we aren’t enforcing them. With respect to Gardner “visiting” his mom, a sex offender already must report any other residence they may regularly stay at, regardless of the number of days or nights. We already have a strict GPS law that was passed, and it was written in such a way as to withstand any constitutional challenges. None of us can honestly speculate the motivations or actions of the prosecution and judge in the original case. And the system we have in place certainly allowed for action to be taken at the sign of red flags.
If we’re going to pass new laws, then we need to pass one that will hold prosecutors, judges, psychiatrists and parole / probation officials criminally liable if their lax enforcement efforts result in a person being victimized by someone they let slip through the cracks. Then let’s see how many sex offenders will fall through the cracks.
Posted by Los Angeles Citizen
Friday, March 12, 2010 09:43
Even if Megan’s and Jessica’s Laws prevents one crime against a child or women they have importance.