WRIC Richmond News and Weather - Senate Passes Bills Cracking Down On Sex Crimes

Senate Passes Bills Cracking Down On Sex Crimes

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - The Virginia Senate has passed two bills to make life tougher for sex offenders.

One of the bills requires that juveniles convicted of serious sex crimes be added to a sex-offender registry that could be accessed only by law enforcement agencies. Sen. Bill Stanley said the bill is needed to comply with a federal sex registry law and avoid the loss of about half a million dollars in grant funds.

Sen. Dave Marsden of Fairfax County said the bill goes too far by imposing a lifetime penalty on juvenile offenders.

The bill passed 24-14 Friday.

The Senate also voted 27-12 to pass a bill requiring a life sentence for serious sex crimes against children when the prosecutor alleges in the indictment that the defendant is 18 or older.

(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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