2C:7-12. Findings, Declarations Relative to Sex Offender Central Registry on the Internet.
1.
The
Legislature finds and declares that the public safety will be enhanced
by making information about certain sex offenders contained in the sex
offender central registry established pursuant to section 4 of P.L.1994,
c.133 (C.2C:7-4) available to the public through the Internet.
Knowledge of whether a person is a convicted sex offender at risk of
re-offense could be a significant factor in protecting oneself and one's
family members, or those in care of a group or community organization,
from recidivist acts by the offender. The technology afforded by the
Internet would make this information readily accessible to parents and
private entities, enabling them to undertake appropriate remedial
precautions to prevent or avoid placing potential victims at risk.
Public access to registry information is intended solely for the
protection of the public, and is not intended to impose additional
criminal punishment upon any convicted sex offender.
The
Legislature further finds and declares that, in some instances,
countervailing interests support a legislative determination to exclude
from the Internet registry the registration information of certain sex
offenders. For example, the interest in facilitating rehabilitation of
juveniles who have been adjudicated delinquent for the commission of one
sex offense, but who do not present a relatively high risk of
re-offense, justifies the decision to limit public access to information
about such juveniles through the Internet. Other instances where the
Legislature has determined that making sex offender registry information
available to the general public through the Internet would not
necessarily serve the public safety purposes of the law include moderate
risk offenders whose sole sex offense involved incest or consensual
sex. However, in such cases, the legislature deems it appropriate and
consistent with the public safety purposes of the law to provide a
process that permits inclusion of information about these individuals in
the Internet registry where public access would be warranted, based on
the relative risk posed by the particular offender.
L.2001,c.167,s.1.
