NCJ Number
162995
Journal
Seton Hall Law Review Volume: 26 Issue: 2 Dated: (1996) Pages: 764-802
Date Published
1996
Length
39 pages
Annotation
This Comment focuses on the registration and notification components of Megan's Law, nine bills dealing with registration, incarceration and supervision of sex offenders.
Abstract
The Comment: (1) provides an overview of the registration and notification components of Megan's Law and explores the goals behind each provision; (2) profiles the sex offender and illustrates the problems encountered by the criminal justice system in dealing with violent sexual criminals; (3) examines the numerous constitutional issues raised by the challenges to Megan's Law and discusses the New Jersey Supreme Court's response to those issues; and (4) concludes that, despite venturing into uncharted waters, the New Jersey Supreme Court's pragmatic decision upholding Megan's Law salvaged a well-intentioned but constitutionally infirm law that is both timely and necessary. Despite the potentially severe impact that registration and notification may have on the lives of sex offenders, the law as interpreted and upheld by the New Jersey Supreme Court remains within constitutional bounds. Footnotes, attachments