Tuesday, February 17, 2009
My Research Question
My topic for my research paper is Megan's Law. This law is named after a 7 year old girl, Megan Kanka, who was raped and murdered by a neighbor who was a convicted sex offender. Megan's Laws require that people in the community be notified when a sex offender moves into the area. I haven't decided for sure which issue to discuss; I can debate whether it is fair to the sex offenders to pass such laws or I can discuss the effectiveness of these laws and whether they really work in protecting people from possible sex crimes being committed. I have selected this issue because it is an issue that is very interesting to me, and it is also very two-sided. I feel some sympathy for the offenders, as they could have been convicted of something that was completely unintentional, or something that would never happen again, making it somewhat unfair that for the rest of their lives they have to be labeled as a sex offender. For example, if a man had non-forcible sexual relations at the age of 19 with a girlfriend who was, say, 16, he could be charged with statutory rape, and be labeled a sex offender for life. According to Megan's Law, the entire community may be notified of his presence, and he may be ostracized, harrassed, etc. for being "dangerous." However, if a man has a history of sexual crimes, he may be very likely to repeat them, therefore making him truly dangerous to those around him. In such a case, it seems fair that people are made aware of his presence, in order to protect their children, daughters, girlfriends, and wives. I could look at the laws from another perspective, though. I could research how effective the laws are in minimizing the number of sexual crimes being committed. At the moment, I think I'm leaning towards the research question of whether community notification laws, especially Megan's Laws, are fair to the sex offenders being punished by them.
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I think this is a fairly interesting topic. It's a different approach to try and look from the perspective of the 'offender,' and I think it's a good thing to try and assess the validity of the label of 'offender.' Also, you probably already took this into consideration, but your example of a 19 year old having sexual relations with a 16 year old is only illegal in some states. In NJ, for example, the age of consent is 16, so it's not statutory rape. That varies from state to state, though. Which leads to another interesting problem: what if a person does something illegal in one state and soon moves to another state, where it is legal. Should the 'offender' still be labeled as such in an area where his 'crime' is no longer a crime? Just a thought.
ReplyDeleteI am really interestied in learning more about your opinions on the rights to individuals convicted of a sex crime and how it effects them and the others interacting with them. I also am interested in hearing you opinions on the fairness of the laws. Your approach in considering the perspective from both sides is different but i think good in assesing this fairness. However the example of the nineteen year old would not be considered statutory rape in states like NJ where the age of consent is 16, but i understand what point you are trying to make with this example, and I do not think that the age of consent is the same in every state so of course it may be rape in other states. Also, I would like to know more about the specifics of the laws and if it has proved to be effective. Do the laws work in protecting others from society or just in alienating those who are labeled?
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