In the Press...
Trenton Times Page 1 article on Intl Megan's Law Final Passage'International Megan's Law heads to Obama's desk'
BY JONATHAN SALANT FOR NJ.COM -
The U.S. House of Representatives on Monday cleared legislation requiring the government to notify foreign governments when convicted sex offenders travel abroad. U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R-4th Dist.) first introduced the International Megan's Law to Prevent Demand for Child Sex Trafficking in 2008. The measure passed the House last year. The Senate followed suit with some changes, requiring the House to vote a second time. The bill, which passed by voice vote, now goes to President Obama. It was named for Megan Kanka, a 7-year-old from Hamilton who was sexually assaulted and killed in 1994 by convicted sex offender who lived across the street. Saga of Megan's Law still inspires heartache, debate 20 years later Her death led to the original Megan's Law passed by the New Jersey legislature to require public notice when a sex offender moved into a neighborhood. The latest bill would expand that notification internationally. A 2010 Government Accountability Office report said that at least 4,500 U.S. passports went to registered sex offenders in fiscal year 2008. In addition, it seeks to have the U.S. informed when convicted sex offenders from overseas travel to this country. "It is imperative — and long overdue — that the United States take the child protection lessons it has learned domestically with the successful notification systems first created by Megan's Laws and expand them globally to prevent convicted U.S. sex offenders from harming children abroad," Smith said. "Child predators thrive on secrecy that allows them to commit — with impunity — heinous crimes against children." House Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-Calif.) praised Smith's "perseverance" in pushing for the bill. "We want law enforcement to consider this a new tool," Royce said. "It will combat the appalling industry of child sex tourism." |