States vary on dealing with youth sex offenders

When Ricky Blackman was 16, he pleaded guilty to having sex with a
13-year-old girl, and an Iowa judge ordered him to register as a sex
offender.But if Blackman had lived in at least a half-dozen other
states, his name would never have appeared on a registry because states
are deeply divided on how to deal with the nation's youngest sex
offenders.Juvenile justice advocates want rehabilitation instead
of registration, yet public safety experts argue children must be
protected from predators, even if they are minors.The confusing
array of rules for juvenile sex offenders persists despite a vast
overhaul that was adopted four years ago to bring clarity and
consistency to the nation's sex offender regristration laws."It's
a real bind for the states," said Michele Deitch, an attorney who
teaches criminal justice policy at the University of Texas. "Do you want
to comply with what could be poor public policy or risk not complying
with the federal law? And there's no easy answer."Twenty-one
states currently require juveniles convicted of a serious sex crime to
register with law enforcement, according to an Associated Press review
of state laws and interviews with state officials.In 19 other
states, only juveniles convicted as adults or who move from a state that
requires registration are required to provide their information to
authorities. In the remaining states, the laws vary. In Nevada, for
instance, a juvenile sex offender can petition a judge to set aside
registration requirements.In 2006, President George W. Bush
signed a law requiring states to adopt a series of sex offender
measures, including the registration of all juveniles who commit serious
sex crimes such as abuse or rape. The law was designed to create a
national sex offender registry and toughen penalties for those who fail
to register.Ohio is so far the only state to meet the new federal
standards, but states have until July to comply so they can build up
their online registries and ensure the information can be incorporated
into the national database.Of the 21 states that require juvenile
sex offenders to register, at least four states do not publish all of
their details online, such as photographs and home addresses.Critics
said young offenders will be more likely to reoffend because of the
humiliation of being labeled a sex offender."These kids can get
better and here you are punishing them for life without offering any
treatment. That to me is unethical," said Dr. Valerie Arnold, the
interim chief of child and adolescent psychiatry at the University of
Tennessee. "Even convicted murderers aren't put on a list like this."It's
unclear how many of the nation's estimated 686,000 sex offenders are
juveniles. But a recent study by the University of New Hampshire Crimes
against Children Research Center that found more than a third of those
who sexually abuse children are juveniles."It's a difficult
balance," said Ernie Allen of the National Center for Missing and
Exploited Children. "We're in favor of the rehabilitative ideal and
targeting treatment for the youngest offenders, but many of America's
offenders are kids — and they are committing very serious sex offenses."The
stress of being listed on a public registry can be overwhelming for
young sex offenders.In Blackman's case, his family later moved to
Oklahoma, where he was also required to register. After his name was
posted, Blackman said he was kicked out of school and neighbors began
harassing his family.One neighbor followed him with a video
camera and insisted the family move, and they eventually decided to
resettle in a rural area to escape the scrutiny."I was really
depressed and I was always stressed out," said Blackman, now 21. "It
changed me. I lost a lot of my childhood and now I have a lot of
catching up to do."Even though his record was expunged, his name
stayed on the list until his mother lobbied state lawmakers to change
the law. Blackman has since been removed from the registry.Yet he
says he still suffers with the stigma — reluctant to go to the park,
watch his little brother's basketball games or be alone with his
cousin's infant — fearing his actions could be misconstrued."It's
sad. He's 21 now and there's so much damage that's been done to him,"
said Blackman's mother, Mary Duval. "All he wants is his life back but
he doesn't know if it's going to happen."Those who want juvenile
sex offenders on registries acknowledge the requirements are not ideal,
but they say the benefits to public safety far outweigh the impact on a
juvenile sex offender's psyche.Supporters often refer to the case
of Amie Zyla, who was sexually assaulted when she was 8 years old in
Wisconsin by a 14-year-old family friend. She became a leading advocate
of juvenile registration requirements when her perpetrator was sentenced
to 25 years in prison after pleading guilty to later fondling two teen
boys."The simple truth is that juvenile sex offenders turn into
adult predators," she said at a 2005 Congressional hearing. "Kids all
over the country need the same kind of protection as in Wisconsin."Yet
there is a wide disparity in how states treat juvenile offenders.In
Texas, where judges decide whether to put juveniles on the registry,
lawmakers led a push several years ago to make it automatic. But the
measure's sponsor, Texas state Rep. Jim McReynolds, said he abandoned
the effort after concluding the new requirements would be too costly and
may end up harming the juvenile offenders."The more I began to
look at it, the more I saw it was pretty doggone tough on juveniles,"
said McReynolds, who chairs the House Corrections Committee. He now
favors more treatment.In Maryland, powerful lawmakers are aiming
to require those 14 and older who commit rape and other serious sex
crimes to register."Juveniles are treated as adults in other
areas of the law," said Delegate Bill Frank of Baltimore County, one of
the measure's sponsors. "And if a juvenile commits a first-degree rape,
that juvenile should be required to register as a sexual offender."