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News
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Senator
Stachowski
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February 2008 SENATE ACTS TO STOP ONLINE PREDATORS On January 29, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno, and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver announced the introduction of e-STOP, which aims to establish greater protections for users of the Internet - especially children - against sexual predators. The Senate passed this legislation on February 13 and sent it to the Assembly for consideration. Recidivism rates for sexual predators is a paramount concern in the area of public protection. According to the Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS), there are 9,565 level 2 sex offenders and 6,515 level 3 sex offenders registered in New York State. In a 2005 study undertaken by that agency it was determined that sex offenders have an 8% recidivism rate for new registerable sex offenses 8 years after being registered. That same study also revealed that sex offenders have a 48% recidivism rate for new non-sex related arrests. The most popular Internet social networking sites, MySpace.com and Facebook.com, each have tens of millions of users. Each site allows users to create a personalized web page ("profiles") for free, with the aim of building networks of "friends" for social purposes. Both sites also allow different categories of personal information (including age, address, contact information, screen names, and sexual preferences) as well as pictures to upload onto the profiles by registered users. However, because such information is supplied by the user, it can easily be manipulated or fabricated to appeal to minors. There is no secret that minors can and do use these sites, thus creating a significant risk that they may be exposed to obscene or indecent materials, or fall victim to sexual advances from adults. e-STOP is part of a greater effort to enhance the safety protections of these types of social networking sites launched by the Attorney General in early 2007. Last spring, he joined with other states' attorneys general and MySpace.com to identify and remove registered sex offenders that had been found on the site. In October, Attorney General Cuomo and Facebook.com announced new safeguards aimed at protecting network users from sexual predators, obscene content, and harassment. The agreement was met after serious deficiencies were found in the site's safety controls: in a sting operation investigators posing as young teenagers were sent online sexual advances from adults within days of setting up their Facebook accounts. The Electronic Security and Targeting of Online Predators Act, or e-STOP, will enable New York to combat the increasing misuse of the Internet by requiring sentencing courts and the State Board of Parole to impose mandatory restrictions on dangerous sex offenders; and by granting those courts express statutory authority to impose Internet restrictions on convicted sex offenders as a condition of probation. This groundbreaking legislation provides the most comprehensive set of Internet security provisions in the nation and will enhance the safety of all New Yorkers, regardless of age. -
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For
Information:
Dennis Kozuch 826-3344 senstachowski@yahoo.com |