"In my state a one-time offender of a 16 year old, without violence or physical contact is a "registered offender" the same as a violent multiple rapist of pre-teens."
What state would that be?Was it a statutory crime or against her will? Was this person's neighborhood notified of his presence? Did the state classify him as a category 3 or 4 offender? And if the state's registry makes no distinction btwn. offenders and their crimes, how do you know what his crime was? And, finally, how does one become a sex offender "without...physical contact" of some kind?
Indecent exposure with a minor is also a felony sex crime resulting in registration. And yes the registry lists the crime convicted of, and supervision varies.
My point is they are all labeled "sex offender" and this has become a catch-all tag when it describes a wide range of offenses and degrees of danger to the community.
On these threads we see the effect: kill all the "sex offenders." We need to be more specific and discriminating based on the individual and the crime.