Attorney General Lockyer Unveils Improvements to Megan's Law

(San Jose) – Attorney General Bill Lockyer today announced improvements to California's Megan's Law system that will provide law enforcement agencies with daily updates on identity and whereabouts of registered sexual offenders and allow the public to obtain access to the information in 13 languages.

Starting today, California law enforcement agencies will be able to obtain daily updates of Megan's Law information by accessing a Department of Justice database via a secure Intranet connection. The new web-enabled application replaces a CD-ROM produced by the Attorney General's Office and distributed monthly to law enforcement agencies.

"This means that citizens looking up sex offenders in their communities will see information gathered the previous day, rather than information gathered the month before," Lockyer said. "It also will make it more difficult for a registered sex offender to hide by moving from place to place often, as many of them now do."

The new technology also will make available Megan's Law information in 12 additional languages: Arabic, Armenian, Cambodian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Punjabi, Russian, Spanish, Tagalog, and Vietnamese.

"For those in our diverse state who do not speak English, this will open a door to information they can use to protect themselves, their families, their loved ones," Lockyer said.

Enacted in 1996, California's Megan's Law allows the public access to information on the identities and whereabouts of most of the state's registered sex offenders. The information is available in three ways: Police and sheriff's departments may notify residents of a nearby sex offender; citizens may call (900) 448-3000; or citizens may view the information at a law enforcement agency. Of the state's 93,000 registered sex offenders, 77,000 are considered "serious" or "high risk" and information regarding their identities and whereabouts is subject to public disclosure.

To date, law enforcement agencies have disclosed information on more than 3,500 sex offenders, more than 80,000 searches have been conducted using the 900 phone line, and more than 100,000 people have viewed the CD-ROM under the supervision of law enforcement officers.

Two new laws also take effect this year that will further improve law enforcement's ability to protect the public from sex offenders. Beginning January 1 of this year, specified sex offenders are required to annually, instead of only upon first registering, update important information, including: the licence plate of any vehicle owned by or registered to the offender, fingerprints, and a current photograph.

Also, beginning October 28 of this year, sex offenders attending classes, participating in programs, or working on college campuses will be required to register with the campus police department in addition to registering with the police or sheriff's department in the community in which they live. If a campus does not have a police department, those offenders will be required to register with the police or sheriff's department that has jurisdiction over that campus.

Lockyer was joined by Chief William Lansdowne of the San Jose Police Department, and representatives from Crime Victims United and the rape crisis center at the YWCA of Santa Clara Valley.