Jessica Lunsford Act
Punishing Sex Offenders

The Jessica Lunsford Act was first passed in the state of Florida in 2005 less than two months after the rape and murder of the nine year old daughter of Angela Wright and Mark Lunsford, Jessica Marie Lunsford.

Born in Gastonia, N.C. on October 6, 1995, she died February 27, 2005 after being abducted from her home in Homosassa, Florida by John Couey, a 47-year old, previously convicted sex offender, who raped her, then buried her alive.

The act, informally called Jessica's Law, was written to increase the punishment of sex offenders and further reduce their ability to commit another crime. The term "Jessica's Law" has been used in reference to all current and planned legislation in other states modeled after the Florida law.

To date, 42 of 51 states have either proposed or introduced similar legislation from the time the Act became law in Florida. There is also a movement to have a federal version of Jessica's Law.

On April 19, 2005, with a 118 to 0 vote, the Florida House of Representatives approved the Jessica Lunsford Act. Florida lawmakers were encouraged to take quick action just weeks after the details about Jessica's abduction and murder were made public, due to the public outrage the case inspired.

For convicted sex offenders, the Jessica Lunsford Act contains a provision of a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years in prison and lifetime electronic monitoring.

In this state, individuals convicted of sexual battery or rape of a child under 12 years of age is a capital felony that carries the sentence of life imprisonment or death, without the possibility of parole.

In addition, the Act makes harboring a sex offender a third-degree felony in Florida to harbor a sex offender.

Jessica Lunsford moved to Florida in 2004 from Gastonia, N.C. and in July 2007, the North Carolina House of Representatives passed the Jessica Lunsford Act by a vote of 114 to 0 joining Florida in the battle of controlling and punishing child predators.

Any person 18 year of age or older who is convicted of raping a child 13 years old or younger will receive a mandatory sentence of 25 years to life in prison.

Jessica's Law prohibits a convicted sex offender from any gathering place or business where children are likely to be present. This includes schools, clubs and community centers.

Any offender apprehended entering a school area, for instance, would be found guilty of a felony under the proposed law.

Sex offenders currently must register with the local law enforcement agencies within 10 days of their release from prison. This bill shortens the address registry period to three days.

In addition, the Act requires any individual convicted of committing a sexual crime against a child under the age of 13 to be electronically monitored for their entire life in addition to other provisions for behavior control.

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