All too often, we hear or read stories in the news about sexual predators being released from prison, only to commit their crime again. Long Islander, Sal Inghilleri, was convicted of sexually abusing Katie Beers in 1992 while the 9-year-old girl was living with Inghilleri and his wife. Inghilleri admitted molesting Katie only after she was kidnapped by a neighbor and found by police imprisoned in an underground dungeon. Inghilleri is up for mandatory parole on July 1 under current state sentencing law, because he has served two-thirds of his 12-year prison sentence.

Assembly Republicans have been pushing legislation that is supported by Gov. Pataki and the State Senate that would allow authorities to ask a judge and jury to commit high-risk sexually violent predators to a secure mental hospital after completion of their prison sentence.

Since 1993, this legislation has been consistently blocked by my Democratic counterparts in the Assembly. We need to implement civil confinement in New York State. Last year, the US Supreme Court voted that civil confinement was constitutional because a sexual predator statute determined to be civil in nature was not punitive and therefore did not violate the Constitution's "double jeopardy" clause that prohibits multiple punishments for the same crime.

This is the second time the US Supreme Court has ruled in favor of the practice. In 1997, the Supreme Court upheld a Kansas law allowing sex offenders deemed incorrigible to be held indefinitely in mental hospitals after serving their prison sentences.

Sexual predators are classified into three categories: Level one, Level two and Level three. If the risk of repeat offense is low, a Level one designation is given; if the risk of repeat offense is moderate, a Level two designation is given; and finally, if the risk of repeat offense is high, and there is a threat to the public safety, the sex offender will be labeled "a sexually violent predator" and a Level three designation is given.

It is imperative that we get these dangerous perpetrators out of our neighborhoods and commit them to secure mental facilities until they are completely rehabilitated so women, children and others can feel secure.

There is no reason for the Assembly Democrats to stand in the way of this important legislation that will ensure communities are safe from sexual predators. How many more women and children have to be sexually assaulted before this bill is passed? I do not want violent sexual predators, who still pose a threat, released from prison and living in our communities.