Tuesday, March 25, 2008

SEXUAL PREDATOR EMAIL ALERTS



New York lawmakers are pushing to adopt a two year old proposal aimed at sending Email alerts to residents in the neighborhoods where sex offenders take up residence.

What triggers the system is the zip code. Then the automatic alert Email is sent to those who sign up for the program. This eliminates the arduous task of searching the websites on some self made schedule.



If you have young kids, you’d like to be informed. This doesn’t mean they are necessarily a threat, and you aren’t supposed to harass anyone on the list, but just knowing is the best tool that parents have.

This was introduced back in 2005 by State Sen. Jeff Klein of the Bronx and State Assemblyman Rory Lancman of Queens. They felt, like I stated, the process of frequent online check-ups is too time consuming, so the alert system would take the effort out of the concerned parents.

This system is intended for statewide use and the City of Kingston is not immune to the relocation of sex offenders. Mind you, there are different levels of offense regarding what these people did to get on the list, so be mindful of those who may have done something stupid as a youngster vs. someone who did the unthinkable.

Quoted in Newsday.com: Laura Ahearn, executive director of Parents for Megan's Law and the Crime Victims Center, said the system, funded with a $593,000 federal grant, should be in operation statewide in April and nationally by May 1. She said she expects "hundreds of thousands" of parents nationwide to sign up to get alerts.


All men and women on this list have served their time. They are free citizens and protected by the same rights we cherish. They just happened to be on a list for the rest of their lives. Consult your Police Chief if you have questions rather than jeopardize your own freedom by doing something rash.

http://www.familywatchdog.us/freeemail.asp

http://www.icrimewatch.net/register.php

Here are just two sites already working in different locations. Lawmakers are looking for a state managed version to eliminate any loopholes and/or duplication of services.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sounds like a positive development!

Parents and custodians can't be TOO informed when it comes to this. Children are very vulnerable and one child predator can negatively affect the lives and futures of a whole lot of kids.

Thanks for the information Mike. I wish some of what is available now had been available a couple of decades ago!

N.S.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the info. Very helpful and very balanced.
A Grand parent.

Anonymous said...

Sometimes the older methods of tracking and informing the public are obsolete. By the time some of us concerned parents are made aware, they have moved on to another apartment causing a sense of vulnerability in our neighborhoods.

Perhaps this new program will inform us in real time. I would rather know, than not know.

This doesnt mean everyone will storm the house in question. You've made a good point on the issue of civil liberties. But safety helps us sleep at night.