As Halloween approaches and we send our kids roaming through
the neighborhoods to gather their yearly haul of treats safety should always be
on parent’s minds. Visibility, safe costumes, etc. are always checked off. But
do we pay attention to the neighborhoods in which our children trick or treat? And
from whom the treats are obtained? Hopefully, parents escort younger children.
Older children that go unescorted can also find themselves in dangerous
situations.
In recent years, communities have required that registered
sex offenders identify their homes with either a “sex offender” or “no candy”
sign”. MD Dept of Parole and Probation, who manages the Sex Offender
Registry, has had this policy since 2005.
In 2012, Sex offenders in Simi Valley, CA successfully
challenged a city ordinance in Federal Court citing a violation of their First
and Fourteenth Amendment rights. Lawyers for the group California Reform Sex
Offender Laws, CA RSOL, filed a lawsuit in Federal court during September 2013.
The suit alleges that the city of Orange is violating sex offenders First
Amendment rights by requiring the posting of signs on Halloween night. Lawyers
feel that the ordinance places sex offenders at risk. They also cite that there
has not been a documented incident of a sex offender harming a child on
Halloween night.
Should sex offenders be allowed to pass out
candy on Halloween? Communities are saying no. One court has said yes. Expect
the California rulings to pick up steam each year as more suits are filed.
Parents should know the neighborhoods and for
the most part the homes the children are visiting. There are also many online
resources to assist parents in their research.
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