Child Protection and Safety Act Becomes Law

CHILD PROTECTION AND SAFETY ACT BECOMES LAW

During a ceremony today in the Rose Garden of the White House, Representative Earl Pomeroy joined Linda Walker, Dru Sjodin's mother, to watch as sweeping new sex offender legislation was signed into law by the President.

"With the President's signature today, families in this country will now have the critical tools to protect their children from predators. This has been a long time in coming but I am so proud of the protections we are giving families," said Pomeroy. "This strong response to sexual predators is a result of the courage and commitment of the families of victims to protect others from the tragedies that happened to them. I especially appreciate the efforts of Linda Walker, mother of Dru Sjodin, and John Walsh, father of Adam Walsh and host of America's Most Wanted, for their work on this bill."

"My admiration for the work Linda Walker did to get this bill put into law is endless. She was an unyielding advocate for these critical changes at a time when she was grieving for the loss of Dru. Families around the country have her to thank for her endless determination during a time of great pain," said Pomeroy.

"One of the most important tools in this new law is the Dru Sjodin public website. Keeping our children safe is always a top priority as parents and this website will enable parents and communities to know if there is a dangerous predator living around the corner. This is the right legislation for a dangerous time and I'm happy that I could work with so many great people to get this new law onto the books," concluded Pomeroy.

The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act, includes the Dru Sjodin National Sex Offender Public Website, which enables communities around the country to conduct online searches for information on convicted sex offenders from all states, not just the one they live in. The previous national sex offender database was only accessible only by law enforcement. Pomeroy is the author of the provision in the House and Senator Dorgan is the author in the Senate.

Also included in the law are provisions to increase the frequency that sex offenders have to update their information on where they live, work, and attend school as well as increasing the maximum penalty for not registering to 10 years in prison.

http://www.pomeroy.house.gov/index.asp?Type=B_PR&SEC={B4DAD0D5-78E8-4345-97DC-26B1A667D639}&DE={FEB84F43-AE4D-40C0-A7FB-D76A2523E99F}