N.J. acts to keep sex offenders off Internet

TRENTON - New Jersey is closer to barring released sex offenders from using the Internet.

An Assembly committee yesterday approved the proposal along with others to combat sex offenders. The Internet ban was approved by the Senate in March and can now be weighed by the full Assembly.

"Every day we see reports on television of sick people taking advantage of the Internet to prey on our children," said Senate President Richard J. Codey, the bill's sponsor. "The time has come to pull the plug on these criminals."

Under the plan, convicted sex offenders would have to submit to periodic, unannounced examinations of their computer equipment, install equipment on their computer so its use could be monitored, and inform law enforcement if they have access to a computer. Those caught using the Internet would face 18 months in jail and a $10,000 fine.

Sex offenders caught using the Internet to solicit a child would face a mandatory five years in jail, rather than three years imposed under current law.

Online dating sites would also have to notify New Jersey residents whether they do background checks, a proposal opposed by Internet companies such as Yahoo!, AOL, eHarmony and Match.com.

No federal law imposes Internet restrictions on sex offenders, while states like Florida and Nevada can limit their Internet use as parole conditions.

The committee also approved, among other bills, increasing mandatory prison terms for repeat sex offenders from five to as many as 20 years, requiring annual reviews of released sex offenders to determine if they're properly registered, permitting sex offense victims to get a restraining order against their offender, and studying the effectiveness of Megan's Law.

The Megan's Law registration requirement was enacted after a 7-year-old Hamilton girl, Megan Kanka, was killed in 1994 by a sex offender who lived next door.

The Assembly panel approved making permanent a state pilot program under which released sex offenders wear GPS -global positioning system - monitoring devices to allow the state to track their movements. Sean Asay of the state Parole Board said nine of 238 offenders under monitoring had been charged with violating parole since the program became law in August 2005.