Campsen's bill is designed to thwart S.C. sexual predators on the Internet

State Sen. Chip Campsen of Mount Pleasant wants to give Internet access providers the information they need to identify and ban from social networking sites the sex offenders who are required to register in this state. The good news is the state of New York already has concrete evidence such legislation can work.

The New York law, which went into effect last year, is called "e-STOP", the shorthand name for the Electronic Securing and Targeting of Online Predators Act. The office of N.Y. Attorney General Andrew Cuomo announced earlier this month that more than 3,500 convicted predators in his state already have been purged from two major social networking websites.

According to the Cuomo, the New York law has allowed Facebook to identify and disable accounts linked to 2,782 registered sex offenders. My Space disabled accounts linked to 1,796 sex offenders. Some registered sex offenders were linked to accounts on both sites, resulting in a total purge of 3,533 individuals.

Since the law was passed, the state now has the registered e-mails of more than 8,100 of the estimated 29,000 New York sex offenders. That means, Cuomo's office noted, that over 43 percent of the sex offenders now registered had identified accounts linked to Facebook and/or MySpace.

Sex offenders are well aware those two Websites are favorites of the young and vulnerable. Fortunately, both those providers also have been most willing to cooperate with the new law.

Unfortunately, according to the Cuomo statement, Facebook and MySpace have been the only ones to date to seek access to his state's new e-mail registry. His office reported that letters have been sent urging others to similarly purge sex offenders from their sites.

The success of New York's initial sweep impressed South Carolina's Campsen enough to author a bill, now pre-filed, that's modeled after the N.Y. law, the first in the nation. South Carolina has a total of 11,961 registered sex offenders with another 206 in the sexual violent predator category. The former category is required to re-register every six months and even sooner if there is a change of address. The latter must re-register every 90 days.

Currently S.C. state law only requires those registering to provide their current physical address. The Campsen bill would require they give their e-mail and Internet identifier, which would be made available upon request to Internet entities. Further, newly convicted sexual predators whose crime involved those under 18 would be prohibited, as a condition of their parole, from having e-mail accounts.

If the Campsen bill is approved, its author says it shouldn't take long to determine just how many of the registered offenders are trolling social networking sites. Falsification of a registration form is a felony that carries a mandatory sentence.

Campsen describes his legislation as more carrot than stick to Internet providers. First, enhanced parental comfort would be a strong incentive to purge sites of convicted sexual predators. Secondly, the Internet entities would be less prone to litigation. And, finally, a safer Website would be of a competitive advantage.

It is Campsen's contention that it is always better to try to motivate those in the private sector rather than trying to dictate. It also should be noted that there are limitations on how far the states can go in controlling interstate commerce. That's why, according to Campsen, the state can place registration requirements on S.C. sexual predators but it can't require the Internet providers to purge their sites.

Under our system, Campsen noted, there are "50 different experiments in self-governance. There's the opportunity to learn what others have done and to emulate those who appear to be successful."

No question the New York experiment has garnered strong support from those who have been working long and hard to protect children. John Walsh, co-founder of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, was quoted in the Cuomo release as saying: "Social networking Websites have become the private hunting grounds for sexual predators and they often use the safety and anonymity of the Internet to groom their next victims. I applaud Attorney General Cuomo and the State of New York for setting the national standard." A legal spokesman for Facebook also was quoted as describing online safety as one of that entity's goals and noting it will require a cooperative effort among the industry, policymakers, parents and teachers.

Campsen recognizes that getting sexual predators in South Carolina off the Internet won't solve the problem, not even in this state. One estimate put the number of registered sex offenders nationwide at 627,000.

But Campsen does believe that South Carolina youngsters are more likely to be victimized by someone in their surrounding area or within their state's boundaries than across the country.

This may well be one of those issues, like immigration, where the states have to take the lead before there is a final nationwide solution.

Barbara S. Williams, editor emeritus, may be reached at bwilliams@postandcourier.com.