Long Pushes for Map Showing Sex Offenders

With a few clicks on their home computers, Ventura County residents may soon be able to view an online map showing the vicinity where convicted sex offenders live.

County Supervisor Kathy Long, who is proposing the map, said a recent series of high-profile child kidnappings convinced her that parents need a convenient way to get information about sex offenders in their neighborhood.

She will ask the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday to support the idea and direct staff to begin working out the details.

Long said it is “scary and ugly” to know that Ventura County is home to eight offenders who have been classified as high risk and 883 who are considered a serious risk for sexual offenses.

“The thing that combats fear is information and access to it,” Long said. “You can work with your children and make sure you are doing everything you can to protect them.”

Information is available at a law enforcement kiosk in Ventura and two in Thousand Oaks. The proposed map would be posted on the county’s Web site and show the general location of sex offenders.

Offenders convicted of repeated violent sexual assaults would be marked as high risk. The locations of parks, libraries and schools would also be indicated.

States have adopted different definitions of who is included in their public registry of sex offenders and how the information is made public.

In 20 states, names of offenders are routinely posted on the Internet.

California law prohibits placing the names and addresses of sex offenders on the Web.

But the public can get their names and descriptions by visiting one of the police kiosks. Rap sheets and photographs are also available there.

Viewers must sign a statement that they will not use the information to harass or commit a crime against a registrant.

Ventura County Sheriff Bob Brooks said his department supports the idea as long as the logistics can be worked out and the project funded.

Los Angeles County, which voted last week to place similar information on its Web site, estimated the cost at $48,000.

One problem is keeping the listing current. About 20% of the registry is inaccurate at any given time, Brooks said.

“Some are dead, some are in prison and some have moved,” Brooks said. “The only way to find out is to individually check locations, which our investigators do periodically.”

Megan’s Law, enacted in 1996, provides for public access to information about child molesters and other sexual offenders.

It is named for Megan Kanka, a 7-year-old New Jersey girl who was raped and killed by a paroled child molester who, unbeknownst to her parents, had moved to a home across the street from their own.

Sex offenders are required to register with local law enforcement agencies after their release from jail or prison.

With few exceptions, they must update this information once a year for the rest of their life.

Civil rights groups have argued that this is unfair to offenders who are no longer considered dangerous to the community. The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule this fall on whether states can post offenders’ names on the Internet.

It’s a dilemma facing all governments right now, with the public clamoring to isolate and punish child molesters, Brooks said.

“It’s a balancing act of the community’s right to know versus the right of someone who has served their time to live a life without harassment or vigilante justice,” he said.