L.A. TO MAP SEX OFFENDERS ON THE INTERNET
Los Angeles County officials have approved a plan to post the general locations of sex offenders' homes on the Internet.
The online map would resemble the design of San Diego County's "Regional Sex Offender Pin Map," which designates within about a half-block the areas where convicted sex offenders are living after being freed from prison.
San Diego County's map became available online July 1. "The response has been overwhelming," Denise Vedder, a public information officer with the San Diego County District Attorney's office, told UPI's On the Net. "The community sees it as an important service that provides ... general information on where and how many sexual predators live in their neighborhood."
As in San Diego, Los Angeles County residents must go to the sheriff's office to obtain addresses, photos and criminal histories of offenders because state law prohibits such information from being disseminated on the Internet.
The Los Angeles map will appear on the county's Web site in about a month.
The new site will make its debut following several high profile abductions, including the kidnapping and murder of five-year-old Samantha Runnion of Orange County. Authorities have arrested and charged Alejandro Avila with Runnion's murder. Tony Bell, communication deputy for L.A. County Supervisor Mike Antonovich, told UPI's On the Net this program will help prevent similar situations from happening. Currently, there are 18,000 convicted sex offenders in the county. "If you arm people with this information you allow them to better protect their families," Bell said.