Could bill have helped Destiny?
Smarts pose query as they lobby for sex-offender law
"In the case of Destiny, we don't know whether a sex offender took her or what happened," Ed Smart said during a break in lobbying for a bill by Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, designed to get tougher on such offenders and better track them.
"But keeping better track of sex offenders will help make them a little more responsible," he said. "I don't want to see any family go through the absolute nightmare and pain that we went through and that Destiny's parents are going through now."
Destiny, 5, has been missing from her Salt Lake home since Sunday.
Hatch hopes the Senate will pass today the "Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act," just a week before the 25th anniversary of the abduction and murder of young Walsh (son of John Walsh, host of television's "America's Most Wanted"). He hopes that President Bush can sign it into law on the actual 25th anniversary on July 27.
"Pedophiles use the Web to hunt our children. Now we will start using the Web to hunt down sexual predators," Hatch told the Senate on Wednesday as the Smarts watched — and were introduced by Hatch.
"The bill will create stiffer penalties if they don't register — up to 10 years in jail," and make failure to register and notify of changes a felony, Smart said. "Basically, they have to report changes within three days about where they are living, employed or are going to school."
Hatch told the Senate the bill would create "a searchable national Web site that interacts with state sites. Citizens in every state will be able to inform themselves about predators in their communities with accurate information."
Also, Hatch said, the bill "provides money to put tracking devices on high-risk sex offenders who are released from jail. If we convict these monsters, we can't lose track of them."
Ed Smart said what the bill means to him personally is that if Brian David Mitchell — accused of abducting Elizabeth, then 14, for nine months — is ever set free, his whereabouts would be closely tracked.
"And that he is punished to the full extent of the law," Elizabeth added.
The Smarts lobbied personally numerous senators on the bill, including Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., and Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. They also appeared on several national TV news shows, including "Good Morning America" and the "CBS Morning News."
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