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Will drug offenders be forced to register in PA?
The new registry would be modeled after Megan's Law.
Will drug offenders be forced to register in PA?
Last year, City Paper wrote about how the most significant byproduct of the registration of sex offenders in Pennsylvania may not be an improvement in public safety, but rather the marginalization of ex-offenders attempting to reintegrate into society, find housing and get back to work. Now, a state legislator wants repeat drug offenders to register as well.
In a memo to fellow legislators Republican state Sen. Kim Ward of Westmoreland County explained: "The bill I propose would have any individual convicted of a third or subsequent offense [on charges of manufacture, delivery or possession with intent to manufacture or deliver a controlled substance] … would have to register their name and address with the State Police under a newly established drug offender registry. Offenders would remain on the list for a period of ten years. The new registry would be modeled after Megan’s Law."
Pennsylvania wouldn't be the first to put in place such a registry for convicted drug offenders. It was something of a legislative fad around 2006-'07, and Kansas, for one, does now register sex offenders, drug offenders and those convicted of violent crimes. However, registries in most other states, such as Tennessee, Minnesota and Illinois are targeted specifically at methamphetamine manufacturers. Even those drew outrage from decriminalization advocates, but there's a kind of logic to them that you can understand: Meth labs, after all, have been known to explode from time to time. It's less clear what the direct benefits of a broader drug offender registry would be.
Although, an ACLU lawyer told USA Today back in '06 that the registries might indeed become "an incredibly good resource [for] people looking to buy methamphetamine."
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