12-year-old caught 'playing doctor' ruled Megan's Law offender

A Warren County teenager who, at age 12, was caught "playing doctor" with his 6-year-old half brother must register as a sex offender under Megan's Law, the state Supreme Court ruled today. Last year, a state appeals court ruled the teenager, identified only as T.T., was not sexually motivated and therefore not subject to Megan's Law. It freed him from a lifetime obligation to register with police and the threat of having his whereabouts publicized.

Today, the Supreme Court disagreed. "By its very terms, Megan's Law extends beyond purely sexual offenses and sweeps in other offenders who target children," the court said in a 6-0, unsigned opinion. "Thus, although the Legislature has used the term 'sex offender' as a catchall description for all those who commit Megan's Law offenses, the statute specifically denominates certain acts that have no sexual component as 'sex offenses' subject to its purview."

source: Article '12-year-old caught 'playing doctor' ruled Megan's Law offender'; Posted by The Star-Ledger; www.blogs.nj.com/default.asp?item=197740; NJ.com; 3 October 2006