The Pam Lychner Sexual Offender Tracking and Identification Act, passed by
Congress in 1996, provides for a national database to track sex offenders. The Pam Lychner
Act shores up the provisions of the Jacob Wetterling Act, which requires state law enforcement to
transmit sex offender data and fingerprints to the FBI, by establishing at the FBI a national
database of released sex offenders to track their whereabouts and movement. Provisions
mandate persons convicted of sexual offenses in states that do not have a "minimally sufficient"
registration program to register with the FBI a current address, fingerprints, and current
photograph. Additionally, the legislation amends the Jacob Wetterling Act by changing the
duration of state registration requirement from 10 years to 10 years or life, depending on the
number of prior convictions and the type of crime committed.
Pam was a victim of an attempted sexual assault. While working as a Houston real
estate agent, Pam prepared to show a vacant home to a prospective buyer. Awaiting her at the
house was a twice-convicted felon who brutally assaulted her. She narrowly escaped her
attacker when her husband Joe arrived at the scene. She lived in fear for two years following
the attack. When she was notified about her attacker's first parole hearing after such a
short time in prison, she contacted the City of Houston's Victims' Assistance Office. Through
this contact she met Justice For All's current president Dianne Clements who had lost a child to
gun violence. In June of 1993, after several brutal crimes in the Houston area, Pam, Dianne
and others helped to form Justice for All, to remind people about the victims of violent
crimes. On July 17, 1996, Justice For All lost its immediate past president, founding member
and driving force, Pam Lychner. Pam and her two young daughters were killed in the crash of
TWA Flight 800 in New York.