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As college students settle into the fall semester, they may be surprised to learn that their off-campus neighbors may include paroled sex offenders.
Hundreds of communities in almost half the nation's states have banned registered sex offenders from living close to places frequented by children, such as playgrounds and elementary schools. But in most cases, those laws do not include the areas surrounding university campuses — so convicted sex offenders have moved in.
"A convicted sexual felon should not be able to live next door to your college student," said Jamie Ison, an Alabama state representative who sponsored a bill that would include universities under the legal definition of a school.
Some schools, such as the University of Washington, have sought to push sex offenders out of campus neighborhoods without the aid of legislation. The university is one of the first in the nation to begin establishing a buffer zone that would be off-limits to sex offenders.
Gov. Chris Gregoire raised concerns earlier this year with a landlord whose tenants included sex offenders. The landlord then ousted 13 of the 25 parolees living near the U. of Washington's Seattle campus.
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A 1990 federal law, the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, requires college security to know if there is a registered sex offender living on campus and, upon request, to inform students and staff where they can find that information.
"They don’t go out and openly publicize that — a lot of the reason for that is so much of the crime that they deal with on campus is student-on-student and with sexual assault," said Alison Kiss, program director for the organization Security on Campus. "Registered sex offenders don’t seem to be the problem."
Still some students insist it's the state's responsibility to protect them.
"I think student safety should be a top priority for all schools," said R.B. Walker, a University of Alabama senior who lobbied for the Arkansas bill. "Anything less is unacceptable."
Beg pardon? They want the state protecting them? What total and complete cowards; while I can understand not wanting to live next to a sex offender, I don't get why they think anyone should protect them if they're not willing to protect themselves. How incredibly spoiled and sheltered do you have to be?
Oh. Right. They're in college. That's normal for them.
Not only that, but "Sex Offender" is an incredibly varied level of offenses, especially depending on the state.
There have been people forced to register as sex offenders because they were convicted of Indecent Exposure because they were taking a leak around the other side of a parked car. Some of these classifications and forced registrations are fscking ridiculous. "Sex Offender" doesn't necessarily equate to "Child Molester", and if it did, COLLEGE students would have little to fear from them, since they don't get excited by "older" people.
Much of this is overblown fear mongering, and depending on the size of the city, living near a college may be the cheapest place for them (nothing like trying to get a high-paying job as a "Sex Offender"), and since they can't live near grade, Jr. High, and High Schools, that doesn't leave them a lot of options in some communities.
They need to focus on SPECIFIC high-risk offenders and what's around where THEY are living - not blanket hysteria about "Sex Offenders" near colleges.
I have no sympathy for the real offenders, but I also know there are many more than people want to admit who have been shafted by the legal system - ESPECIALLY during custody disputes (and it's usually the MEN who are almost always falsely accused).
POLITICIANS & DIAPERS NEED TO BE CHANGED OFTEN AND FOR THE SAME REASON
A person properly schooled in right and wrong is safe with any weapon. A person with no idea of good and evil is unsafe with a knitting needle, or the cap from a ballpoint pen.
I remain pessimistic given the way BATF and the anti gun crowd have become tape worms in the guts of the Republic. - toad
Where I went to University there was a hospital a mile from campus that had a locked wing that housed some of the worst sex offenders in the country, those that had been sentenced to psychiatric care instead of jailtime. What made it even more interesting was that they had no walls, just locked doors, and from what I know someone walked out of there pretty regularly, once a week or so. And it was walking distance to the campus, and to the center of town...
"Life is tough, but it's tougher if you're stupid."
John Wayne
how many of those offenders are guys who at age 17 had a 15 year old girlfriend and got sent through the wringer for it?
“I no longer need to run as a Presidential Candidate for the Socialist Party. The Democrat Party has adopted our platform.” - Norman Thomas, a six time candidate for president for the Socialist Party, 1944
This is hysteria. In almost any American college, if you have something dangling between your legs, you are a sex offender, a rapist, a stalker, and a criminal, regardless of the truth. The authorities are just waiting for some female to mention your name to them (what she says, or whether any of it is true is irrelevant). Perhaps they should do a story on that instead?
The fact that there are sex offenders living close to campuses is no surprise by itself. Most campuses are located in towns and cities, and towns and cities have sex offenders. I bet you that if I looked it up, I will find hundreds of sex offenders within 2 miles of where I go to school. However, I am much more worried about the guys with no sexual offences on there sheets, but rather offenses like "assault", "armed robbery", and "theft".
esa5444 wrote:This is hysteria. In almost any American college, if you have something dangling between your legs, you are a sex offender, a rapist, a stalker, and a criminal, regardless of the truth. The authorities are just waiting for some female to mention your name to them (what she says, or whether any of it is true is irrelevant).
"I saw him, he was undressing me with his eyes!! Why can't you arrest him and charge him with something!!!"
POLITICIANS & DIAPERS NEED TO BE CHANGED OFTEN AND FOR THE SAME REASON
A person properly schooled in right and wrong is safe with any weapon. A person with no idea of good and evil is unsafe with a knitting needle, or the cap from a ballpoint pen.
I remain pessimistic given the way BATF and the anti gun crowd have become tape worms in the guts of the Republic. - toad
esa5444 wrote:This is hysteria. In almost any American college, if you have something dangling between your legs, you are a sex offender, a rapist, a stalker, and a criminal, regardless of the truth. The authorities are just waiting for some female to mention your name to them (what she says, or whether any of it is true is irrelevant).
"I saw him, he was undressing me with his eyes!! Why can't you arrest him and charge him with something!!!"
One of the reasons that I wear dark, prescription sunglasses.
“I no longer need to run as a Presidential Candidate for the Socialist Party. The Democrat Party has adopted our platform.” - Norman Thomas, a six time candidate for president for the Socialist Party, 1944
308Mike wrote:
"I saw him, he was undressing me with his eyes!! Why can't you arrest him and charge him with something!!!"
Try "I called him, and he talked to me, and therefore he's harassing me", and you will have pretty much a story from my life. It would be funny, if it wasn't so true.
