CA Assembly Passes Stricter Bill for Sex Offender Laws

A bill named for Chelsea King, a slain San Diego County teenager passed the California Assembly Public Safety Committee. The bill proposes stricter sex offender laws.

Chelsea's Law won approval, clearing its first legislative committee and calls for some child molesters to be on lifetime parole with electronic monitoring, the Associated Press reports.

As previously discussed, Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher, R-San Diego is the sponsor of the bill.

The provisions of the bill would include:

• Life in prison without parole for forcible sex crimes against children under 18 with aggravating circumstances
• Registered sex offenders would be subject to misdemeanor charges and possible parole revocation if found without permission from authorities in a park where children regularly gather.
• Parole terms would be doubled to 10 years for a forcible sex crime, regardless of the age of the victim.
• Those convicted of a sex crime against a child under 14 would be on lifetime parole, requiring constant supervision and electronic tracking.

The parents of Chelsea King are the mains advocates pushing for stricter penalties on sex offenders. By pushing revision of California's sex offender laws, King's parents hope to prevent sexual predators from having a second chance. 

As previously discussed, John Gardner, a 30-year-old registered sex offender has pleaded not guilty to murdering Chelsea King.

In addition to being charged with murder, authorities are calling Gardner a person of interest in a case involving the body of another San Diego teenager, Amber Dubois, 14, who disappeared a year ago.

In 2000, Gardner pleaded guilty to committing a lewd act on a child. The victim was 13 at the time.

• California Sex Offender Laws Under Review (FindLaw)
• California Bill Proposes Stricter Sex Offender Laws (FindLaw)
• MySpace Removes Convicted Sex Offender John Gardner (FindLaw)
• Rape, Sexual Assault, Date Rape and Statutory Rape (provided by Richard Lougee)
• Sex Offender Registry (provided by Law Office of John R. Fielding, Jr. & Associates)