North Dakota lawmaker have approved a statewide residency restrictions for registered sex offenders considered to be at high risk to re-offend. If approved, the law would prohibit 583 people from living within 500 feet of a school.
The West Fargo Pioneer reports that the director of North Dakota’s sex offender program spoke against the bill, as did one legislator.
The lone dissenting vote against Meier’s bill came from Rep. Luke Simons, R-Dickinson, who believes decisions on sex-offender residency restrictions should be left up to local municipalities.
Simons said several representatives approached him after the vote and told him they wished they could have voted with him. “But they were afraid the news media would have ripped them up too much,” he said. “It’s such an unpopular opinion that nobody wants to talk about.”
Remember, there is no evidence that residency restrictions accomplish anything.