Megan’s Law Loophole Allows Offenders To Slip Through

As Megan’s Law approaches 10 years, a loophole that requires certain sex offenders to register for only a decade will allow thousands of pedophiles to disappear under the radar.
Beginning next January, only convicted Level 3 sex offenders will be required to remain on the registry for life, while Level 1 and 2 will be “dropped” after the 10 years have expired. This means that the sexual predators, deemed “low- or moderate risk,” will not have to check in with their local precincts by the end of 2006.
And in light of last week’s arrest of Timothy Felton, 31, an ex-convict with a history of pedophilia, in MacNeil Park in College Point, many parents and officials are calling for Megan’s Law to be amended.
“I think that they [the authorities] should always know where the pedophiles are at all times no matter what,” said Nancy Credidio, who has a 15-year-old daughter. “Ten years later they can start all over again.”
Michael Gianaris, one of the biggest proponents of strengthening Megan’s Law, has worked to get two bills passed, one of which would require sex offenders to register in the state they are currently living in, no matter where they were convicted; the other bill would have all pedophiles visit their local precinct to re-register annually.
“The more information we provide to neighborhoods, parents and communities, the safer their children will be,” said Gianaris.
That process of information dissemination works like this: sexual predators register with the precinct in which they live and are monitored by law enforcement officials, who have “discretion” to notify any “entities with vulnerable populations” about offenders at moderate and high-risk levels of re-offending (this includes schools, parents, teachers, women’s groups, etc.). It is up to the schools, then, to decide who is notified and how they are informed of the presence of a pedophile.
Vallone, who sees this process as skewed, however, and wants proper notification for parents and teachers, is calling on Mayor Michael Bloomberg and urging for a citywide written standard for the dissemination of information through Megan’s Law.
“There seems to be too much discretion,” said Councilmember Peter Vallone Jr., chair of the city’s Public Safety Committee. “That is why I plan on asking the Mayor to implement a written policy. The community must be able to rely on the information and know that it is timely, accurate and circulated properly throughout the neighborhood.”
If you are a parent or teacher and want information on sexual predators in your neighborhood, visit your local police precinct and ask for either the community affairs or crime prevention officer. You can also visit the site www.criminaljustice.state.ny.us/nsor/ or www.predatorreport.com.
toni@queenscourier.com