GOP, Demos promise they'll work to protect children

WASHINGTON -- Republican and Democratic lawmakers Thursday promised to join forces and pass legislation this summer to crack down on sexual predators, especially those who assault children.

At least 10 bills have been introduced in the House and Senate to address child abuse and sex crimes in the wake of highly publicized recent crimes, including the kidnapping and murder of 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford in Florida in February.

A bill by Reps. Paul Gillmor, R-Ohio, and Earl Pomeroy, D-N.D., would create a national sex offender list on the Web to alert parents a predator may be in their community. Other bills from Rep. Mark Green, R-Wis., would toughen sentences on criminals who murder, kidnap or sexually assault children and would add juvenile offenders to a national sex offender registry.

"Isn't it time to put our kids' safety before the rights of secrecy of sexual offenders, adult or juvenile?" Waukesha, Wis., resident Amie Zyla, 17, said during a hearing Thursday on the bills before a House Judiciary subcommittee.

A 14-year-old boy sexually assaulted Zyla when she was 8 and continued to abuse other children. Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle signed "Amie's Law" in May to allow state police to release information on juvenile sex offenders who pose a public risk.

"We're so proud of her," said Mark Zyla, who sat behind his daughter during the hearing. "I've watched my daughter take her power back."

House Judiciary Chairman James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., will likely move a single bill that includes all or part of recently introduced child abuse and sex crime bills, said Rep. Mark Foley, R-Fla.

Foley and Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, introduced bills last month that among other things would require convicted sex offenders to register with states more often to ensure personal data is up to date.

There are about 550,000 registered sex offenders in the United States, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. But police do not know the whereabouts of 100,000 to 150,000 of them, said Rep. Howard Coble, R-N.C., chairman of the House Judiciary subcommittee where Amie testified.

A convicted sex offender is awaiting trial for Jessica Lunsford's rape and murder. A convicted sex offender has been accused of kidnapping and murdering North Dakota college student Dru Sjodin in 2003.

But the majority of people who sexually abuse and murder children are family members and close friends, not strangers lurking in the community, said Fred Berlin, founder of the Johns Hopkins Sexual Disorders Clinic.

He fears a national sex registry may stigmatize less serious offenders. For example, in some states, a 17-year-old who has sex with a 14-year-old can be labeled a sexual predator, Berlin said.

"I worry there is a rush to judgment here," Berlin said.

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