CA: Sex-offender registry unreliable, data shows.

January 8, 2003

By John Woolfolk and Lori Aratani

Thousands fail to comply with '96 Megan's Law

Thousands of convicted rapists and child molesters required to register their addresses each year with local police have failed to do so since California launched its Megan's Law database in 1996.

An Associated Press analysis suggests that the highly touted database, created to inform the public about dangerous sex offenders living nearby, doesn't provide reliable information.

While cities like San Jose and San Francisco assign units to aggressively track the sex offenders who don't report, others like Oakland admit they are stretched too thin to be able to ensure the registry is up to date.

Child safety advocates who pushed for California's 1996 version of Megan's Law said the findings confirm their suspicions that the database is not reliable -- and that the same problems exist in other states with Megan's laws.

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Source: © 2003 BayArea.com