Featured Issue: 4-22-05
Are the consequences of bills, named after a victim, given appropriate scrutiny or just rubber stamped?
What will the "Lunsford Act" do to -juvenile offenders-?
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4-22-2005 Florida:
Manatee legislators back Lunsford Act |
.Legislation named for recent murder victim Jessica Lunsford will now return to the House for a vote with a few minor amendments tacked on. The House will most likely take up the measure for approval today. Manatee House members, along with their counterparts, are set to send the measure to the governor. Rep. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, said only legislation involving Terri Schiavo had moved faster in recent years. "This is very, very fast for a bill that's not tied to a clock running out," Galvano said.
He thinks the measure - which mandates a 25-year minimum prison sentence for those convicted of molesting children under the age of 12 and tightens up electronic surveilance guidelines - goes far enough. But other emotions are tempting. "It's hard to be objective at all, especially if you read the report on her last hours," Galvano said. "You almost want to say, 'Expand the death penalty.' " Rep. Frank Peterman, D-St. Petersburg, wants to stop short of capital punishment, but thinks the legislation sends a strong message.
: by STEPHEN MAJORS, Herald Staff Writer
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Ted Koppel's past remarks on Megans' laws seems appropriate:
"Good laws are almost never produced in the cauldron of public passion. The fact of the matter is that when we are angry, when our primary motive is punishment, we are impulsive and very rarely smart.
The Sicilians have a wonderful line which captures the essence of that: "Revenge," they say, "is a dessert best eaten cold." Passing a piece of legislation with a particular victim or, for that matter, criminal in mind is bound to prove less than satisfactory over the long haul.
Megan's Law may be trying to do too much. So much, in fact, that it's turning out to be unenforceable. That's neither fair to the convicted sex offender who's done his time and now has his sickness under control, nor is it providing any real protection to the most vulnerable among us. It needs to be fixed on both counts."
Ted Koppel, ABC Nightline, 2-5-04 Nightline: Address Unknown: Well-Intentioned Legislation Doesn't Always Produce Good Laws!
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