Tracking bad policy

THE MORE HEINOUS THE CRIME, the greater the temptation to pass some law, any law, to punish the criminal -- by ballot initiative if need be. And there is no more heinous crime, short of murder, than molesting children. Which is why we can empathize with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger wanting to place a broad

sexual-offender initiative on the November ballot. Unfortunately, too much of the governor’s plan is about politics instead of policy, and it would do little to reduce sexual crimes.

Schwarzenegger’s initiative, based largely on Florida’s “Jessica’s Law,” signed in May 2005, would prohibit registered sex offenders from living within 2,000 feet of a school or a park frequented by children, lengthen sentences for several crimes and require the majority of sex felons to permanently wear a device allowing them to be tracked by satellite. The proposal, which could cost hundreds of millions of dollars, would also lengthen the time sex offenders spend on parole and allocate more money toward tracking down sex offenders who fail to comply with mandatory registration.

Although it’s a good idea to extend and closely monitor parole, given sex offenders’ notoriously high recidivism rates, important parts of the initiative are based on unproven ideas and pander to the public’s fears.

Most problematic is the claim that strapping tracking devices on up to 6,500 felons will reduce crime, when there is little evidence they deter anything. Tracking systems could help determine if any convicted sex offenders were in an area at the time of an offense, which is useful. But they may not be as useful as many advocates say because the vast majority of sexual assault victims know their assailant.

Extending the residence ban around schools and parks from the current 1,300 feet is another dubious idea. Known pedophiles should not be allowed near schools and playgrounds, but there is little reason to think that such an extension will help. In fact, it could backfire -- Iowa instituted a similar distance extension last year, and since then the number of missing sex offenders has doubled. Though it’s too early to know why, some in the field believe that the law has pushed more sex offenders to avoid registration, for fear of violating their parole.

Finally, there could be unforeseen geographic and demographic consequences of such a law. Rural areas are understandably opposed to a measure that would make it difficult for sex felons to live legally in densely populated areas such as San Francisco and most of Los Angeles County.

Considering the vile nature of sex crimes, the public is right to be concerned about its vulnerability to predators on parole. But it’s also important not to let emotions drive public policy.