House Passes Crime Bills

State and local police would be required to give communities “relevant information” about freed sex offenders - or lose federal dollars, under a bill known as “Megan’s Law” that the House passed Tuesday. It was one of four crime bills passed by the House on Tuesday.

President Clinton supports all the bills, which must clear the Senate.

The other measures approved by the House would:

Make it a federal crime for anyone to stalk someone across a state line or in a federal jurisdiction, such as a military base or a national park.

Increase sentences for federal violent crimes against children 14 and younger and against seniors 65 and older.

Increase the penalty for tampering with or retaliating against witnesses, victims and informants in a federal trial. Currently, the maximum sentence for that offense is 10 years in prison. The bill increases the maximum penalty so that it equals the penalty for the crime being tried in the case.

Megan’s Law is named after 7-year-old Megan Kanka, who was raped and murdered two years ago, allegedly by a twice-convicted sex offender who lived across the street in Hamilton Township, N.J.