Why do sex offenders have to provide their street address and drug dealers, etc. don't?

Answer 1

Because sex offenders are ichier. Instead of tracking all convicted felons we track those that we think are ichy. Logic and law don't often meet.

Apparently the sarcasm in my answer was lost. These laws get passed because people push their legislature to address "the problem" what ever the problem of the day is. When sex offenders started hitting the news on a regular basis people felt "something" had to be done. A bunch of people jumped on the band wagon that it would stop if we just knew where they lived. They get this idea that their kids will be safe as long as a registered sex offender does not live nearby. This is fallacy for two reasons:
1. You have no idea how many un-registered sex offenders live nearby. The sex offender arrested in California a year or so ago molested hundreds of kids and was not registered. A person has to be arrested and convicted to become registered.
2. It is based on the false assumption that sex offenders will not travel to find victims. If you force a sex offender to live 20 miles from the nearest school, he will drive 20 miles to get there.

Sorry for being vague in my original answer.

Answer 2

There will be more killings. Just imagine drug dealers' information available to the public... The sex offenders is a must because it's good to know if you live around them. But drug dealers if you don't try to deal with them you should be fine

Answer 3

Aside from helping the drug dealer by making it easy for the drug buyers to find them, we have a general premise that selling drugs usually involves a willing and voluntary buyer and sexual assault usually occurs to someone that is not a victim of their own actions. I personally feel that if a known sex offender is a risk to re-offend, their sorry butt should still be in jail and we wouldn't have to worry about their addresses either.

Answer 4

I agree.

I think the above answers all misread your question. I take it as "why do sex offenders have to provide their addresses at all?"

A guy who usually writes good answers says above because sex offenses are "icky". That is hardly valid grounds for the ex post facto laws we are imposing on sex offenders.

Murderers are "icky" too but we don't get told if one is next door or in the same zip code.

And it might surprise people to know that there have been sex offenders in the same neighborhoods (pretty much everywhere) before and after relatively recent notification laws. How did everyone make it through all those years without names and faces and addresses being posted everywhere?

Are there specific people in your neighborhood that you used to think were OK but now won't associate with? If so, why? because they are "icky" now? You didn't trust your own judgment then? It is not like they did anything to you, right? Do you think they will do something to you in the future?

Edit-

OK, David edited his answer for clarity. As I told him privately, I generally like his answers. I did miss his point this time and now I like his answer :)

Answer 5

Good question. I think it would be a positive to know where the drug dealers are so they could be watched. I would rather they be in prison. Then we wouldn't have to worry about it. Sex offenders too.

Answer 6

You don't see the possible effects of having drug dealers' addresses easily accessible by everyone?

Answer 7

That would be free advertising for the drug dealers.

Answer 8

I consider that a great question, why don't you email your congressman and ask for that to passed into law. I will send that to my congressman this week. If enough of us do this who knows we could help make our cities a little safer.

Answer 9

america loves drugs. we don't like perverts.

excellent answer above from dialectic. lol. be like free advertising.