More communities restricting where registered sex offenders can live
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KENOSHA COUNTY -- A growing number of Wisconsin communities are moving ahead with ordinances that restrict where registered sex offenders can live, even as state lawmakers are considering prohibiting such ordinances.
The Kenosha County town of Wheatland is the latest to pass an ordinance that includes strict new rules.
The town board recently adopted an ordinance to “promote, protect and improve the health, safety and welfare of all residents of the town of Wheatland” by creating buffers around locations where children regularly congregate. Registered sex offenders would be forbidden from living within those zones, according to the Kenosha News.
A bill scheduled for a hearing Thursday before the state Assembly Committee on Corrections and the Courts would prevent those municipalities from enforcing such ordinances and would prohibit any more such ordinances from being enacted.
One of the bill's sponsors, Rep. Fred Kessler (D-Milwaukee), told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that he wants to prohibit local ordinances because they will result in sex offenders being concentrated in cities such as Milwaukee, which has no residency restrictions for sex offenders, and rural areas, which don't have enough law enforcement officers to enforce such ordinances.
Instead, Kessler said, the state Department of Corrections should write residency restrictions that would be applied statewide. The department would put a priority on returning sex offenders to the communities they came from, he said.
Local officials feel that same way, and say that without a local ordinance, their communities could become dumping grounds for recently released offenders.
The Wheatland ordinance restricts offenders who are not returning to their home community from living within 2,500 feet of such a location, defined as a school, park, trail, playground, church or “any other” place designated by the town.
It also prohibits sex offenders who are being returned to their home community from living within 500 feet of a designated child-safety location.
The ordinance is nearly identical to one adopted in Somers.
The village of Twin Lakes is expected to act on a similar ordinance later this month.
Source: www.kenoshanews.com
Source: www.pressgazette.com
Source: www.jsonline.com
Nov 17, 2010 at 11:52 p.m.
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bigdaddy1: Huh?!?
Mar 10, 2010 at 8:39 a.m.
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hey how about where they work, the office out of Burlington won't let this guy work with young kid's, but he can serve them late into the night. So he get all the hours the young kids get their hours cut way back. I hop she's been watching tv the last few days, and seeing what's been going on.
Mar 9, 2010 at 9:40 a.m.
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Does the bill except those who have no history of abusing children? There are many people on the sex offender registry who are not child abusers, so this would make no sense if applied to them.
Mar 9, 2010 at 9:29 a.m.
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As they should!
Mar 9, 2010 at 9:22 a.m.
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It's about time! Who else is going to protect those that are vulnerable to the preying sex offender? The sex offenders have already proven themselves to not be able to be around those that are vulnerable-- kids, adults, elderly, those with disabilities. The sex offender is one with a diagnosable problem. Many don't want the help, are unwilling to change. Kick'em where it hurts so bad that they CAN'T offend anymore!
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