Sex offender registry requirements reconsidered

The Judiciary Committee heard testimony April 5 on two amendments to a bill that would revise the current sex offender registry provisions.

In 2009, senators passed a bill that required sheriffs to send all registrable sex offenders’ information to the community notification division of the Nebraska State Patrol. This resulted in publication of Level 1 offenders who were not required to publicly disclose their information prior to the passage of the bill.

LB460, introduced by Omaha Sen. Brad Ashford, proposes a technical change to require registered sex offenders who move to notify the state patrol of their new residence, rather than their address.

Ashford offered two amendments to the bill. AM873 would revert back to the previous registration and community notification provisions for Level 1 sex offenders determined to have a low risk of recidivism. AM969 would reinstate the prior law altogether.

Dawn Buell supported the removal of Level 1 offenders’ names. The publishing of low-risk offenders on a website impacts the victims, who often are members of the offender’s family, she said.

Assistant Attorney General Corey O’Brien testified in opposition to AM969, citing a federal study showing that 70 percent of offenders who downloaded child pornography later committed physical offenses against children. The passage of the original bill in 2009, he said, was sought to curtail “grooming behaviors” of hands-on predators.

The committee took no immediate action on the amendments.