Megan's Law

[GePap]

Originally posted by Sava
Gepap wants a society where child molestors can live next door to you without your knowledge.

Yes, exactly Cause I have no right to know that, and given that people like you exist, the dangers of desiminating that information should be obvious.

[Sava]

BTW, I am for stricter penalties also. WTF Gepap, I thought you were a liberal. Liberals are supposed to want information to be made available to the public.

I'm not seriously advocating vigilantism, that was just a troll. But the information should be legal and available. No question about it.

Now all of a sudden Gepap has become an advocate for child molerstors... what is up with that?

[Kuciwalker]

Originally posted by GePap
I oppose the idea of a Megan's Law in the first place- if we believe child molestation is so heinous a crime that a scarlet letter must be drawn on the perpetrators after they have served their prison sentence, then just make the required sentence life in prison.

No half-assed or unfair subsitute.

Scarlet letters

[Imran Siddiqui]

But the information should be legal and available.

Should you have the right to all of your neighbor's criminal history? Just in case?

[Sava]

Originally posted by GePap


Yes, exactly Cause I have no right to know that, and given that people like you exist, the dangers of desiminating that information should be obvious.

Records of criminal activities is public. What's wrong with already public information being made available?

And if it leads to vigilantism, then those responsible should be prosecuted as well.

What kind of sick secret society do you want to live in? Where criminals are protected by secrecy? Where honest law-abiding citizens can't know if they live next door to Jeffrey Dahmer???

[Kuciwalker]

Originally posted by Sava
lotm

freedom of information

dumbasses who want to make it so you can't find out if a child molestor lives next door

Something just occured to me - could one demand such information from prisons or the government under FOIA (of which I don't know the details)?

[Sava]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui

But the information should be legal and available.

Should you have the right to all of your neighbor's criminal history? Just in case?

Yes, and they should be able to know my criminal history.

The only exception I would make is for juvenile offenders.

[lord of the mark]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui

Because that is what prison was for-to have the individual pay their due to society. The combination is the problem, because once you come out of prison and also out of parole, then that's it.

Im not sure why an ex-pedophile deserves more privacy than my friend.

They don't. You don't think they get their names in the paper? Was your friend on a database dedicated to have people know he took a bribe if, say, he moved to another town?

Didnt need to be. His whole life was in that city, and folks there didnt need a database to know.

So its ok to put it in the paper, and ok for the paper to have a searchable database. But if the STATE has a searchable database, thats a violation? Theyre violating privacy by making it easy to find something thats already a matter of public record (unlike, say, medical records)?


Seems to me this is less about privacy than about the assumption that parents of kids are loonies who will lynch ex child molestors.



A problem technology has given us. I dont see the answer as at all clear.

[GePap]

Originally posted by lord of the mark
GePap, i had a friend (may he rest in peace) who did federal time for taking a bribe, as a local politician. He lost his promising political career, his career as a lawyer, and his marriage. When he got out he rebuilt his life from the ground up - he began as an unskilled construction laborer, eventually became a developer, and even reentered public life in a minor capacity. He was the president of a synagogue i belonged to and a great guy (and BTW, more dovish than I am on Israel). He did this in front of a community where EVERYONE, and I mean EVERYONE, knew what had happened. Youd have had to do serious damage to the first amendment to preserve his privacy. Sometimes thats life.

Im not sure why an ex-pedophile deserves more privacy than my friend.

What are you talking about? Did your friend have to sign a registry by law so that everyone in the neighborhood would know what he did and know if he moved, and if he had moved, would everyone living there been informed of his infracture?

If not, then he had far more privacy than a sex-offender, pedophile or not, gets.

[GePap]

Originally posted by Sava
BTW, I am for stricter penalties also. WTF Gepap, I thought you were a liberal. Liberals are supposed to want information to be made available to the public.

I'm not seriously advocating vigilantism, that was just a troll. But the information should be legal and available. No question about it.

Now all of a sudden Gepap has become an advocate for child molerstors... what is up with that?

I am an advocate for rights- whoseever's rights.

A simple Lexis nexis search will show you if someone has a criminal record, as prison records I believe are part of the database. I know in NY you can search records of current inmates.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Originally posted by Sava
Yes, and they should be able to know my criminal history.

The only exception I would make is for juvenile offenders.

Why make an exception for juvenille offenders?

[Sava]

Originally posted by GePap


I am an advocate for rights- whoseever's rights.

A simple Lexis nexis search will show you if someone has a criminal record, as prison records I believe are part of the database. I know in NY you can search records of current inmates.

So if the information is already public, why do you oppose someone simply making a list of certain types of offenders?

[Sava]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui


Why make an exception for juvenille offenders?

IIRC, one's juvenile records are already sealed. I just support the status quo. People do dumb things when they are kids. It shouldn't be held against them.

But obviously the most heinous crimes should be treated differently.

[Imran Siddiqui]

So its ok to put it in the paper, and ok for the paper to have a searchable database. But if the STATE has a searchable database, thats a violation? Theyre violating privacy by making it easy to find something thats already a matter of public record (unlike, say, medical records)?

A paper is reporting news. A state database is simply to identify people. If you want, you can dig and dig and find out the information. But I don't think the state should make it easier to find that information.

Seems to me this is less about privacy than about the assumption that parents of kids are loonies who will lynch ex child molestors.

That is part of privacy though, isn't it?

[DanS]

Should you have the right to all of your neighbor's criminal history? Just in case?

Of course. Why not?