VAN NUYS Governor Pete Wilson has signed a controversial law making California the first state to force repeat child molesters to undergo "chemical castration".
Under the law, repeat child molesters when released from prison on parole will be given weekly injections of a testosterone inhibiting drug to reduce their sex drive. Mr Wilson said this would take away the urge "to attack and attack again".
"Child molesters can't stop because they have a compulsion to do what they do," he said.
"And as long as they have that urge, they'll keep on victimising children unless we do something about it. That's why we're taking a common sense step to eliminate that sick impulse among our sickest criminals," Mr Wilson said.