Hudson Valley Lawmakers Hope to End ‘Dangerous’ Sex Offender Loophole
A potentially dangerous sex offender loophole may end.
The state's Division of Criminal Justice is responsible for tracking around 39-thousand sex offenders in the state. But, Many sex offenders go to their local police departments to fill out change of address forms, rather than the Division of Criminal Justice, officials say.
This means sex offenders can go unaccounted for days or even weeks.
“We must ensure that we are doing everything in our power to protect our children, and that starts with making sure that this registry is as effective as possible,” Assemblyman Ken Zebrowski stated.
New bi-partisan legislation written by Hudson Valley lawmakers, Republican Senator Terrence Murphy and Democratic Assemblyman Zebrowski, requires such a form to be sent directly to the Division of Criminal Justice within five business days.
"Right now the duty falls on the sex offender to notify the state to keep their address and personal information up to date," said Senator Murphy. "There has been some confusion when a sex offender has reported his or her change of address to a local law enforcement agency and the information has not reached the state level. This new bill will ensure that the sex offender registry is accurate and up to date so residents can be made aware of any offender moving into their neighborhood."
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