Senator Klein Kicks Off Summer Safety Program

Senator Jeffrey D. Klein, (D-Bronx/ Westchester), announced the kickoff of the “Stay Safe with Senator Klein” program, a joint initiative with NY Life aimed at helping children stay safe, and alerting residents to potentially dangerous sex offenders in their neighborhood.

During the program, Senator Klein and staff members, using Internet-equipped laptops, will be visiting summer festivals and street fairs throughout the 34th Senate District in order to sign people up for New York's Sex Offender Alert System. NY Life will also be on hand to issue child identification cards.

Those who sign up for the alert system, which was created last year via legislation that Senator Klein sponsored, will be able to have information about Level 2 and 3 sex offenders who move into your community delivered via text message, email, or fax.

“I don't think there is a single person who doesn't want to know the moment a potentially dangerous sexual predator moves into their neighborhoods,” Senator Klein said. “I'm proud of my law that brought New York's Megan's Law into the 21st Century, and I'm working hard to make sure that everyone is able to take advantage of this very important tool.”

Members of the public can access this information at local police stations or via a toll-free telephone number. Level 2 and Level 3 offenders are also listed on an internet sub-directory at the state Department of Criminal Justice Services Web site. However, the information changes constantly as new offenders are added and existing registrants update their information. NY-alert updates would proactively allow New Yorkers to keep tabs on a specific geographic area, such as where they live or where their children attend school, without having to constantly visit the subdirectory website.

The “Stay Safe with Senator Klein” program had a successful kick off at the recent Westchester Square street fair. There, NY Life issued 120 identification cards, and 60 people signed up for sex offender alerts.

"Our company has been doing this nationwide for quite some time to help customers protect their children free of charge." said Darin Fass, New York Life Managing Partner for Westchester County. "New York Life's Core Values are around safety and security and it ties in perfectly with the Senator's legislation."

The program will also have a table at:

• The Woodlawn Heights Fun Fair on June 11th,
• The Throggs Neck Sidewalk Sale on June 18th, and
• The Allerton Avenue Homeowners and Tenants Association Picnic on June 26th.

Future dates will be announced on Senator Klein's website: www.klein.nysenate.gov., and his Facebook account: www.facebook.com/jeffrey.d.klein.

To sign up for the NY-Alert system for sex offenders, log onto: http://criminaljustice.state.ny.us/nsor/nyalert.htm.

To view the Sex Offender Registry, log onto http://criminaljustice.state.ny.us.

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