Plan would help find ‘missing’ sex offenders

The State Senate Majority Conference last week urged Governor Elliot Spitzer to implement a plan within 60 days that would help track down the more than 1,000 sex offenders convicted in New York whose whereabouts are unknown.
The three-point plan would help law enforcement find missing offenders who have failed to comply with address verification requirements and could be put into place by Spitzer without legislation.
“It is unconscionable that 1,000 convicted sex offenders have failed to comply with registration requirements and right now are wandering our streets and living in our neighborhoods,” said Senator Serphin R. Maltese, a former prosecutor and homicide bureau chief, in a statement.
The plan would heighten media and public awareness about missing sex offenders by creating the New York Sex Offender Apprehension and Felony Enforcement Office (NYSAFE Office). The investigative unit would focus solely on tracking registered sex offenders, verifying residency compliance and notifying the public when an offender’s whereabouts become unknown.
A new web site fashioned after the state’s existing “100 Most Wanted” web site and containing similar information such as the missing offender’s name, picture, crime and location of criminal activity would also be created through the plan.
Once a sex offender’s whereabouts could no longer be determined the NYSAFE Office would be required to post moderate-risk Level Two and high-risk Level Three offender information there until that person was located and became legally compliant.
Low-risk Level One offenders must register their whereabouts for a period of 20 years. Level Two and Level Three offenders must register for life.
The web site would enable private citizens to identify sex offenders in their communities who are trying to hide from authorities. It would also assist law enforcement to more easily identify and apprehend offenders who repeatedly violate residency requirements.
The third element of the plan would be the creation of the Protect, Deter, Alert, Track, and Report System (PREDATOR Alert System).
Similar to the Amber Alert that immediately notifies authorities of missing children, the new system would alert law enforcement and media of missing registered Level Two and Level Three offenders.
At present when a Level Three offender is determined to be missing an arrest warrant is issued, but the public may remain unaware. The alert system would quickly disseminate information to both law enforcement and the media, thereby increasing the likelihood of finding the offender.
It is thought the PREDATOR Alert System could also deter some offenders from failing to report their whereabouts because of the public attention it would bring them.
“Every sex offender who is unaccounted for is a sex offense waiting to happen,” said Maltese. “This is a threat to public safety that needs to be addressed immediately. I am hopeful that the Governor will implement our suggestions so that we can better protect all New Yorkers from these dangerous criminals.”