While Chelsea’s Law recently cleared its first legislative committee, new legislation is being proposed that would require registered sex offenders to carry marked driver’s licenses. If passed, California would be the third state to have this requirement, joining Delaware and Louisiana, which already require the marked licenses.
While the bill in California is only in its beginning stages, it is clear that it will be met with opposition in regards to civil liberties. Those in support of the measure say that the marked licenses could help the chances of a safe recovery for abducted children. The marked licenses for sex offenders certainly sounds like another good way to punish and track criminals; however, there is more that needs to be laid out before one should endorse it. First, will the bill require all sex offenders to have the marked license or just violent offenders? Second, how exactly could the marked license lead to quicker, safer recovery of victims? Laws that make our children safer are a bonus, but only if they actually work. The last thing California needs is another emotionally charged law that is vague and does little to actually help.
