Sex Offender Housing Restrictions Lifted

San Jose Sex Offender Lawyer And Santa Clara Sex Assualt Attorney

California’s Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has amended its housing restrictions for paroled sex offenders. Three quarters of California’s paroled sex offenders that were previously forbidden from living near schools, parks, and other locations where children gather now have no restrictions on the location of their housing. The state changed its policy in response to a March court ruling in San Jose County in which the court held that the ban applied only to child molesters.

Housing Restrictions

The sex offender restrictions were imposed by California voters nine years ago. The ban prohibited any registered sex offender on parole from living within 2,000 feet of any public or private school or park where children congregate. As enacted, the ban included not only child molesters but also those whose offenses were committed against adults.

Court Opinion

A group of San Diego County parolees sued after one was forced to live in a dry riverbed and two others in an alley when they could not find housing because of the ban. The court, in its opinion, held that the blanket ban violated the parolees’ constitutional rights, making it difficult to find housing, and did not make a difference in protecting children.

Amended Restrictions

The changes to the ban mean that now, not all parolees whose offenses involved a child are under housing restrictions. There must be a direct connection between the location of the parolee’s residence and the likelihood of reoffending. It is rare that a child molestation victim is a stranger to the offender, but offenses involving strangers are the only sort where the location of the offender’s housing may affect his or her behavior. Rather, most child molesters are family members or acquaintances of their victims.

Effects

The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation initially estimated that only half of California’s sex offender parolees would be affected by the changes to the ban. But in fact, housing restrictions have been lifted for 76 percent of parolees. Lifting the restrictions for some offenders means that one in five transient offenders have been able to locate permanent housing.

Sex offenders will still have their locations monitored with tracking devices and will still be required to tell parole officers where they live. The law also still prohibits many offenders from contact with minors and from loitering near schools, parks, and other places where children congregate.</p?

If you have been charged with a sex crime, please call experienced San Jose criminal defense attorney Wesley Schroeder at 408-277-0377 for a free initial consultation.

Sources:

http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PEN&sectionNum=3003.5

http://www.mercurynews.com/crime-courts/ci_29249349/most-california-sex-offender-parolees-exempt-from-housing