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Editorial It's been a long, tough road, but a new law to be signed by Gov. Elliot Spitzer, will provide the best measure of protection against violent sexual predators for our children. After years of debate and dispute, the state has adopted a civil confinement law that will keep dangerous sex offenders off the streets after they are released from prison. They will be sent to secure facilities where they will receive intensive mental health treatment until they are deemed to be of no further threat. The statistics show the need for this change. The rate of recidivism for these criminals is more than 90 percent, clear evidence that they remain a threat within our communities long after they are released from prison. The law provides for due process, requiring that a second jury determine if confinement is appropriate and gives judges the option of imposing intensive supervision with mandatory GPS ankle-lock monitoring as an alternative to confining offenders in a secure mental facility. The law also includes establishment of screening panels composed of mental health officials to determine whether a soon-to-be-released prisoner is a candidate for civil confinement, and a broadening of the penal law to include crimes motivated by sexual violence. Stiffer penalties are also part of the new law.
Our only concern now is in implementation. The state must also provide mental health care for these criminals while they are behind bars, and a close system of monitoring the law to ensure that its objectives are being met. And, they have to back that up.
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