The Senate Judiciary Committee is considering SJR 3 – legislation that would start the process of retrospectively changing the laws regarding the need for convicted sex offenders to register on the sex offender registry.
Senator Jason Crowell (R-Cape Girardeau) sponsors the legislation, which he hopes will address a 2006 State Supreme Court ruling which struck down provisions requiring those convicted of sex offenses prior to 1995 to register. Approval of Crowell’s proposal would ask Missouri voters to change the State Constitution to allow for the retroactivity as it pertains to sex offenders.
Crowell says there are approximately 4,300 convicted sex offenders who would be covered by such an amendment.
A similar measure was approved in 2007 and 2008 by the Senate, but never came up for a vote in the House.
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