New bounds put on sex offenders

Some worry that tighter restrictions taking effect today lack distinctions and divert focus

Neil Cagle was stocking shelves at the convenience store where he works in the western part of the state when a sheriff's deputy stopped by to tell him he wouldn't be allowed to go to church any longer.

Cagle, 61, is a registered sex offender. Under his sheriff's interpretation of stricter rules governing the state's 11,000-plus sex offenders that take effect today, Cagle can no longer attend Sunday service because his childhood church includes a small nursery.

"I started going to that church when I was 12," said Cagle, who served a four-year prison term for taking indecent liberties with a minor.

Cagle was released three years ago and said he is trying to do as the law requires.

"But every year they increase the things I can't do," Cagle said.

To many people, that's just the way it should be. But, as the state clamps down on sex offenders, most experts and at least one legislator warn that the tougher new law fails to distinguish between offenders who are most likely to offend again and those who are determined to live clean lives.

That places a burden on sheriffs, such as the one in Cagle's home county, who are required to monitor all offenders equally, the experts say. They also warn that the stricter mandates have the potential of allowing the worst offenders to commit their crimes without detection.

Passed by the legislature nearly unanimously and signed by the governor in late July, the sex offender law was the latest effort to bring the state's statutes into compliance with the federal Adam Walsh Act.

The new law triples the length of time many offenders remain on the state's sexual offenders registry to 30 years and requires offenders to register in person with their local sheriff's office within three business days of changing address. Starting today, the law also prohibits offenders from coming within 300 feet of any place where children might be expected to congregate.

Depending on a sheriff's interpretation, that means staying a football field's length away not just from the obvious -- day-care centers, schools and youth camps -- but also from churches, malls and McDonald's Playlands.

Cagle, who lives in an adults-only mobile home park, says he never fondled the teenage boy at the center of his case. But he ultimately pleaded guilty and served his time. He said he lost one job and nearly lost his current one after people raised concerns about his sex offender status. The law's new restrictions will only extend his isolation and paranoia, he said.

"Look, a murderer gets seven years and is out scot-free," Cagle said. "These laws are like telling a murderer, 'Well, no, you have to serve another seven years.' "

There is a common public perception that people who have committed a sexual offense can never be cured.

"And that they always recommit," said Jill Rosenblum, a Chapel Hill lawyer who became interested in the law after representing a man who committed a sexual offense as a teenager but hasn't been in trouble with the law since.

In reality, not all sexual offenders are alike, said Christi Hurt, a longtime rape crisis counselor. Some are on the registry for having consensual sex with a person under the age of 16. Others have sexually assaulted an adult.

Only a very small number -- 3.5 percent according to one federal study -- would be classified as sexual predators. Those are the ones who need the closest monitoring, Rosenblum said. But under the additional requirements of the new law, she worries they might not draw enough attention. That's because law enforcement will be so busy monitoring all offenders at a basic level that the worst offenders might quietly drop out of sight to abuse again.