The Jessica Lunsford Act sets a mandatory sentence of 25 years to life in prison for people convicted of molesting children under 12. If offenders serve less than life, they would be required to wear a global positioning system device after their release so authorities can monitor their whereabouts.
Watch Right Internet Crimes Against Children Syndicated News Feed
Source ABC News
Spurred by the kidnapping and murder of a 9-year-old girl, Gov. Jeb Bush signed legislation Monday that strengthens punishment and monitoring of child sex abusers.
The Jessica Lunsford Act sets a mandatory sentence of 25 years to life in prison for people convicted of molesting children under 12. If offenders serve less than life, they would be required to wear a global positioning system device after their release so authorities can monitor their whereabouts.
The bill was quickly drafted after the Jessica's body was discovered March 19 near her home. The proposal sped through the legislative process, pushed by outraged lawmakers many of whom said it was hard to temper their anger and not go for something even harsher.
It passed both the Senate and House unanimously and was sent to Bush on April 22.
Convicted sex offender John E. Couey, who lived near Jessica, is charged with her killing. Couey did not inform the state when he moved into the girl's neighborhood in Homosassa, about 60 miles north of Tampa.
The House had passed the bill unanimously April 19, two days after another sex offender was charged in the abduction and murder of 13-year-old Sarah Lunde of Ruskin. David Onstott allegedly told police he choked Sarah and dumped her body in a pond on April 10. Onstott was convicted of a sex crime in 1995.
Advocates for satellite monitoring of offenders say that in addition to warning authorities when a sex offender is someplace he shouldn't be such as near a school it also will allow for quick pinpointing of suspects if a child is abducted.
The tracking requirement only affects people convicted in the future, but current sex offenders who violate their probation would be ordered back to jail or be placed under GPS monitoring.
On the Net:
Florida Legislature: http://www.leg.state.fl.us/
Internet Crimes Against Children
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