In case that led to Megan's Law, Timmendequas may appeal, arguing poor counsel

The Mercer County, N.J., man whose rape and murder of 7-year-old Megan Kanka led to the creation of sex-offender registries across the country can contest his conviction by arguing that his trial attorneys were ineffective, an appeals court ruled Tuesday.

The New Jersey Court of Appeals' decision came nearly 17 years after Megan was murdered by her Hamilton neighbor, Jesse Timmendequas, 50, who had two previous convictions for sex offen-ses involving young girls.

Timmendequas has a right to argue that his attorneys improperly failed to prove his "mental retardation" in the case, according to the ruling. But the court did not agree that his conviction for kidnapping, rape, and murder should be overturned.

Timmendequas was sentenced to death in 1997. When New Jersey abolished the death penalty 10 years later, his sentence was commuted to life in prison with no possibility of parole.

His sentence has been upheld by the New Jersey Supreme Court. The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear the case. The appellate decision sends the case back to Superior Court in Middlesex County, where Timmendequas was found guilty.

Megan's father, Richard Kanka, a Republican candidate for state Senate in the district that includes Hamilton, released a statement Tuesday.

"That this killer has any chance to use legal maneuvers to get out of jail is an outrage. The Legislature and Jon Corzine were wrong to abolish the death penalty for sexual predators who kill children," it said.

"Now these deranged killers will waste our tax dollars with appeals, and some will be freed. When I testified before the Assembly Law and Public Safety Committee in 2007, I warned the Legislature that this could be a consequence of their action."

Megan Kanka's death garnered national attention as New Jersey legislators quickly created Megan's Law, which forces high-risk sex offenders to register their addresses with police and requires authorities to notify neighbors of their whereabouts.

Similar laws were passed nationwide after President Bill Clinton signed a bill urging legislators to follow New Jersey's lead.

The Kanka family lived across the street from Timmendequas, who shared a residence with two other convicted sex offenders.

On July 29, 1994, Timmendequas lured Megan inside his home by saying he had a puppy in his bedroom. Timmendequas put her body in a toy chest that he discarded in a weedy area miles away.

He helped neighbors search for the girl, but was charged a few days later after giving police inconsistent stories of seeing Megan. After confessing, Timmendequas showed police where to find her body.

Timmendequas is represented by the New Jersey Public Defender's Office, which also represented him at his trial. Tom Rosenthal, director of communications, said that as a matter of policy, the office does not comment on pending cases.