JOCO parents argue for tougher sex offender restrictions in Topeka
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Posted: 09/23/2010
Last Updated: 18 hours and 57 minutes ago
Watch the Story Tonight on NBC Action News at 10 p.m.
Topeka, Kansas -- A Johnson County group argued for tougher restrictions on registered sex offenders on Thursday.
The Joint Committee on Corrections and Juvenile Justice discussed the supervison of sex offenders during a day-long session at the capitol. Parents from Kansas Rights 4 Kids testified during the meeting.
NBC Action News has followed the Olathe-based group since it started an effort to make it illegal for convicted child molesters to live near parks and schools. Currently, the state of Kansas does not have residency restrictions for sex offenders.
The idea has been debated before. However, opponents argued the restrictions make it tougher for law enforcement agencies to track sex offenders and decrease public safety.
Kansas Rights 4 Kids wants the restrictions only to apply to offenders convicted of child sex crimes. The effort started after an Olathe neighborhood learned registered sex offender James Delgado had moved into their cul-de-sac with his wife and three kids, located very close to an elementary school and playground.
"This has served as a spark to illuminate the problem that affects every neighborhood, school and child in Kansas," said Michelle Rich with Kansas Rights 4 Kids.
Last year in California, Delgado was convicted of molesting one of his daughter's 13-year-old friends and sentenced to 120 days in jail.
As NBC Action News reported in July, the Kansas Department of Corrections was unaware that Delgado had moved from California and was living in Olathe. He has since moved back to California and is waiting for formal approval from probation officials in Johnson County.
"It should not totally fall on citizens to police these criminals when we're not given the tools to do anything," said Olathe parent Lesley Ramirez.
Discussion in Topeka focused on the instance with Delgado, and the communication involved between states when an offender wants to transfer to another location.
Officials from the Department of Corrections and Kansas Bureau of Investigations gave presentations, along with Johnson County Sheriff Frank Denning, who is representing the Kansas Sheriff's Association.
Denning expressed a need for better communication between agencies when an offender moves into Kansas. While he understood the concern from parents, he said he could not support residency restrictions.
"The no restrictions right now is an advantage to us in terms of tracking them," Denning said. "So I guess I would have to vote in a column of no restrictions based on what I know and empirical data I'm familiar with."
Despite the studies and statistics, it was still a tough sell to concerned parents.
"One child coming into harm's way is one too many," said Olathe parent Joanna Daugherty. "Please consider doing more to help parents keep their children safe in Kansas."
At the end of the day, the committee made recommendations for the upcoming 2011 legislative session. Lawmakers favored taking a closer look at "safe zones" instead of residency restrictions. They said based on research, it might be more effective to prevent offenders from going to places like parks, schools and daycares, instead of restricting them from living near those locations.
Parents with Kansas Rights 4 Kids said they would like to see the restrictions go further, but said Thursday's dialogue was a big step in the right direction.
http://www.nbcactionnews.com/dpp/news/region_kansas/johnson_county/joco-parents-argue-for-tougher-sex-offender-restrictions-in-topeka
Posted: 09/23/2010
Last Updated: 18 hours and 57 minutes ago
Watch the Story Tonight on NBC Action News at 10 p.m.
Topeka, Kansas -- A Johnson County group argued for tougher restrictions on registered sex offenders on Thursday.
The Joint Committee on Corrections and Juvenile Justice discussed the supervison of sex offenders during a day-long session at the capitol. Parents from Kansas Rights 4 Kids testified during the meeting.
NBC Action News has followed the Olathe-based group since it started an effort to make it illegal for convicted child molesters to live near parks and schools. Currently, the state of Kansas does not have residency restrictions for sex offenders.
The idea has been debated before. However, opponents argued the restrictions make it tougher for law enforcement agencies to track sex offenders and decrease public safety.
Kansas Rights 4 Kids wants the restrictions only to apply to offenders convicted of child sex crimes. The effort started after an Olathe neighborhood learned registered sex offender James Delgado had moved into their cul-de-sac with his wife and three kids, located very close to an elementary school and playground.
"This has served as a spark to illuminate the problem that affects every neighborhood, school and child in Kansas," said Michelle Rich with Kansas Rights 4 Kids.
Last year in California, Delgado was convicted of molesting one of his daughter's 13-year-old friends and sentenced to 120 days in jail.
As NBC Action News reported in July, the Kansas Department of Corrections was unaware that Delgado had moved from California and was living in Olathe. He has since moved back to California and is waiting for formal approval from probation officials in Johnson County.
"It should not totally fall on citizens to police these criminals when we're not given the tools to do anything," said Olathe parent Lesley Ramirez.
Discussion in Topeka focused on the instance with Delgado, and the communication involved between states when an offender wants to transfer to another location.
Officials from the Department of Corrections and Kansas Bureau of Investigations gave presentations, along with Johnson County Sheriff Frank Denning, who is representing the Kansas Sheriff's Association.
Denning expressed a need for better communication between agencies when an offender moves into Kansas. While he understood the concern from parents, he said he could not support residency restrictions.
"The no restrictions right now is an advantage to us in terms of tracking them," Denning said. "So I guess I would have to vote in a column of no restrictions based on what I know and empirical data I'm familiar with."
Despite the studies and statistics, it was still a tough sell to concerned parents.
"One child coming into harm's way is one too many," said Olathe parent Joanna Daugherty. "Please consider doing more to help parents keep their children safe in Kansas."
At the end of the day, the committee made recommendations for the upcoming 2011 legislative session. Lawmakers favored taking a closer look at "safe zones" instead of residency restrictions. They said based on research, it might be more effective to prevent offenders from going to places like parks, schools and daycares, instead of restricting them from living near those locations.
Parents with Kansas Rights 4 Kids said they would like to see the restrictions go further, but said Thursday's dialogue was a big step in the right direction.
http://www.nbcactionnews.com/dpp/news/region_kansas/johnson_county/joco-parents-argue-for-tougher-sex-offender-restrictions-in-topeka
