Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed a measure authored by
State Senator Jeff Denham (R-Merced), which will prevent convicted
sexual predators from residing near schools after their
release.
Hollister – Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed a measure authored by State Senator Jeff Denham (R-Merced), which will prevent convicted sexual predators from residing near schools after their release.
“These child molesters are the worst of the worst,” said Denham. “They’ve shown a habitual problem, and we don’t need them across the street from our children.”
Denham’s bill, SB723, which was officially made law on Tuesday, establishes a quarter-mile “Kid Safe Zone” around all public and private schools K-12. According to a press release issued by Denham’s office, this action is in line with previous state legislation preventing the Department of Corrections from placing paroled felons near schools.
Denham’s “conditional release program” was introduced to the state Senate in February. According to Denham, the bill originally proposed much larger safe zones, but such restrictions in urban areas meant that sex offenders would be driven into more rural areas.
“A distance that size has proven to be effective in keeping children safe,” said Denham. “But ultimately, I would rather see them stay in prison forever.”
Originally, Denham said his plan was to set up a remote location for the rehabilitation of sex offenders – a temporary colony, of sorts, where they could recover far away from potential victims.
Denham says this bill is part of a “bigger package” of legislation aimed at preventing sexual predators from becoming repeat offenders. Some of the other measures Denham is calling for include lifetime Global Positioning Satellite tracking of released sex offenders, as well as toughening up penalties.
Denham says sex offenders have become a personal priority for him. He worked to prevent the placement of Brian DeVries near farmworker housing in Soledad, where many children play, often unsupervised, and prevented the placement of Cary Verse near a school in his home county of Merced.
“The passage of this bill does not signal the end of the fight against child molesters,” said Denham in a press release. “The fight will continue so long as sex offenders reside in California.”
