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Jessica Lunsford Act takes effect

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GASTONIA, N.C.-- A law intending to protect children from child molesters goes into effect Monday in North Carolina and it's named after Jessica Lunsford. Lunsford grew up in Gastonia, but died at the hands of a sex offender in Florida.

In July Jessica Lunsford's father Mark Lunsford saw that law signed that he hopes will protect other children from his daughter's fate.

Jessica Lunsford was just nine years old when she was kidnapped from her bedroom, raped and buried alive by a convicted sex offender who lived near her grandmother's house in Florida.

Jessica Lunsford

The Jessica Lunsford act would require a minimum of 25 years in prison for all convicted child sex offenders, followed by lifetime satellite monitoring or life in prison without parole.

Jessica's aunt Susan Lunsford says she believes the new law will help save children's lives and help her family begin to heal from the pain of Jessica's disappearance and death.     

"Jessica's memory is going to be a wonderful memory for us because of what a wonderful child that she was.  And what happened to her is the only bad thing. But if we can do this, then we can relieve some of that," says Susan.

The law also prohibits convicted child sex predators from being on school grounds or at school events except for under very few strict conditions. It also requires any company doing contract business at a school to background check its employees before they begin work at the school and every year after that.