PATAKI CALLS FOR WEB LIST OF ALL SEX OFFENDERS

Governor George E. Pataki, saying he hopes to strengthen Megan's Law, has proposed legislation that would put the names of all sex offenders on the Internet and crack down on those who fail to tell law enforcement authorities where they live.  Currently the state's online registry lists information only about those offenders who are considered most likely to commit another sex crime.  The law would post onto the site information about sex offenders the state considers at the moderate and low risk level of offending again.  The governor has proposed similar legislation in the past, but the bills have been defeated in the Assembly.  Currently about 2,000 names of high risk offenders are posted on the Internet, compared with 18,000 sex offenders in the state's registry.

(New York)