FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE VAWA MONDAY, APRIL 7, 1997 (202) 514-2008 TDD (202) 514-1888 JUSTICE DEPARTMENT RELEASES MEGAN'S LAW GUIDELINES WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Justice Department has issued guidelines to the states to assist in implementing Megan's Law and the Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent Offender Registration Act. The guidelines were published on Friday, April 4, 1997, in the Federal Register. "These guidelines provide minimum national standards for states to follow in developing community notification systems for sex offenders," said Attorney General Janet Reno. "President Clinton and I want to ensure that members of the public can protect themselves and their families by obtaining information about registered offenders." The Wetterling Act, encouraging states to adopt effective registration systems for released sex offenders, passed as part of President Clinton's 1994 Crime Act. In May of 1996, the President took the next step by signing the federal Megan's Law. Megan's Law amends the Wetterling Act to require states to release relevant information concerning registered child molesters and sexually violent offenders when necessary to protect the public. The Guidelines make it clear that: -- States must release information about registered sex offenders to the public, not just to law enforcement agencies, other governmental or non-governmental organizations, prospective employers, or the victims of the offenders' crimes. -- States can't release registration information on a purely discretionary basis. Information must be released to members of the public as necessary to protect the public from registered sex offenders. -- "Community notification" programs must apply both to child molesters and other sexually violent offenders. -- States may comply by adopting an "affirmative" approach to community notification (for example, by notifying neighbors about the presence of "high risk offenders") or by making sex offender registration information accessible to the public on request (for example, by making registration lists open for inspection by the public or by establishing call-in numbers through which the public can learn whether an individual is a registered sex offender). The guidelines also note that states may impose the new registration requirements on offenders convicted prior to the establishment of their registration system. In addition, the guidelines note that offenses consisting of consensual acts between adults are not among the offenses for which registration is required under the Act. "The Administration is committed to helping states adopt strong community notification programs," said Bonnie Campbell, Director of the Justice Department's Violence Against Women Office. "We will continue to encourage and provide assistance to states in their efforts to comply with Megan's Law." The Justice Department has participated extensively in litigation defending the validity of state community notification laws and will continue to do so in the future, Campbell noted. The guidelines can be found on the internet at the Violence Against Women Office's site at: "www.usdoj.gov/vawo/jwguid2.htm". Comments must be received within 60 days of Friday's publication in Federal Register. Comments may be mailed to Bonnie J. Campbell, Director, Violence Against Women Office, U.S. Department of Justice, 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20530, 202-616-8894. ### 97-140