HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolution - 2860 STATE OF CALIFORNIA ) RESOLUTION NO. 2860
`- COUNTY OF RIVERSIDE)ss
CITY OF SAN JACINTO )
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN
JACINTO, CALIFORNIA, SUPPORTING JESSICA'S LAW
WHEREAS, the State of California and the City of San Jacinto currently place a
high priority on maintaining public safety through a highly skilled and trained law
enforcement as well as laws that deter and punish criminal behavior; and
WHEREAS, sex offenders have very high recidivism rates, and according to a
1998 report by the U.S. Department of Justice, sex offenders are the least likely to be
cured and the most likely to re-offend and prey on the most innocent members of our
society, and more than two-thirds of the victims of rape and sexual assault are under
the age of 18 and sex offenders have a dramatically higher recidivism rate for their
crimes than any other type of violent felon; and
WHEREAS, child pornography exploits children and robs them of their
`. innocence, and FBI studies have shown that pornography is very influential in the
actions of sex offenders, and statistics show that 90% of the predators who molest
children have had some type of involvement with pornography and predators often use
child pornography to aid in their molestation; and
WHEREAS, the universal use of the Internet has also ushered in an era of
increased risk to our children by predators using this technology as a tool to lure
children away from their homes and into dangerous situations, and to reflect society's
disapproval of this type of activity, adequate penalties must be enacted to ensure
predators cannot escape prosecution; and
WHEREAS, California must also take additional steps to monitor sex offenders,
to protect the public from them, and to provide adequate penalties for and safeguard
against sex offenders, particularly those who prey on children, and existing laws that
punish aggravated sexual assault, habitual sexual offenders, and child molesters must
be strengthened and improved, and existing laws that provide for the commitment and
control of sexually violent predators must be strengthened and improved; and