| Murder of Megan Kanka | |
|---|---|
 Megan Kanka | |
| Location | Hamilton Township, Mercer County, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Date | July 29, 1994 |
Attack type | Child murder by ligature strangulation, child rape, child abduction |
| Victim | Megan Nicole Kanka, aged 7 |
| Perpetrator | Jesse K. Timmendequas |
| Motive | Pedophilia |
| Verdict | Guilty on all counts |
| Convictions |
|
| Sentence | Death (1997) Commuted to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole (2007) |
On July 29, 1994, in Hamilton Township, New Jersey, seven-year-old girl Megan Nicole Kanka was raped and murdered by her neighbor, Jesse Timmendequas, after he lured her into his house; Timmendequas had previously been convicted of child molestation. The murder attracted national attention and subsequently led to the introduction of "Megan's Law", which requires law enforcement to disclose details relating to the location of registered sex offenders.
In 1997, Timmendequas was convicted of Kanka's murder. He was initially sentenced to death, but his sentence was commuted to life without parole after New Jersey abolished capital punishment in 2007.