POLITICIANS TO HIT TV IN JESSICA'S LAW DEBATE.

Byline: JIM SKEEN Staff Writer

PALMDALE -- State Sen. George Runner, R-Lancaster, and Palmdale Mayor Jim Ledford will be featured on a TV show tonight examining Proposition 83, the Nov.7 ballot measure known as Jessica's Law.

The two leaders will be among those interviewed for an episode of ``California Connected'' at 8:30p.m. on the PBS station KCET (Channel 28). The news magazine show bills the episode as an unbiased look at the proposition with a variety of viewpoints.

Among the initiative's provisions are tougher sentencing guidelines for sex offenders, monitoring sex offenders convicted of felonies by Global Positioning System satellites, lengthening parole terms, and adding five years for someone using drugs on their victim in committing a sex offense.

The measure also authorizes cities to establish 2,000-feet zones around areas where children are present in which a sexual predator could not enter.

The initiative is being sponsored by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Antelope Valley Republican husband-and-wife team of George Runner and Assemblywoman Sharon Runner.

Opponents criticize the 2,000-foot zone provision, saying there's no correlation with a child's safety. Such zones could also force predators into rural and suburban areas, they say.

Opponents also question the cost of the measure. A state legislative analyst's report stated the costs for implementing the provisions in Jessica's Law could grow to as much as $200million annually over the next 10 years. George Runner said he thinks the cost will be closer to $100million, in part because he thinks the cost for GPS use will go down.

The initiative is named after Jessica Lunsford, who was kidnapped, sexually assaulted and slain in February 2005. Investigators arrested a known sex offender with a criminal record with at least two dozen arrests. He faces trial early next year.

james.skeen(at)dailynews

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