Sex Offender Registries In Some States Pitifully Weak

I believe non-public sex offender registries have only one benefit: they assist law enforcement in keeping tabs on sexual fiends. However, the state of New Jersey, one of several that has such a registry, is costing itself the primary benefit of these systems. They are not designed for public humiliation, but public safety. In a matter of seconds, neighborhood parents can know who to keep their children away from without relying on the good will of felons or waiting until it is too late and a child has been exposed to danger. All sex offender registries must be public.

New York, meanwhile, only lists some offenders, the worst of the worst. Someone who gropes a cocktail waitress would not be visible to the public, but a repeat child molestor would. No matter how severe the offense, the public deserves to know.

In other states, like Ohio, Michigan, and Wisconsin, sex offender registry can expire after 10-25 years. People who commit sex offenses, as of now, cannot be rehabilitated, and, therefore, they should not be trusted with removal from the public safety and LEO surveillance afforded by this status.

Lifetime, public sex offender registry for all offenders, alongside probation and ankle monitoring.