Once again: the foolishness of Halloween restrictions
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY3) – By Michael Hoffman . . . Deputies from the Greene County Sheriff’s Office knocked on doors, but they did not look for candy. They made sure sex offenders adhered to the rules.
“They know what they’re supposed to do,” said Deputy Paige Rippee of the Greene County Sheriff’s Office. “Also, this is another charge. So if they do violate it, they’re getting charged with a Class A misdemeanor as well. It can be a fine or up to a year in jail.”
Officials from the Greene County Sheriff’s Office say there are 930 sex offenders in the greater Springfield Area. Of those 930, 411 received a visit to ensure they adhere to specific rules.
“They need to be inside their residence from 5 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.,” said Deputy Rippee. “They cannot have any exterior lights on. They can’t pass out candy, obviously. And they can’t have any decorations or anything like that. They should have a sign in the yard that says, you know, no trick-or-treaters, no candy here, stuff like that. Just letting people know just bypass go on to the next residence because they are not allowed to do that.”
We contacted the National Association for Rational Sexual Offense Laws for comment. The group sent a statement that reads in part:
“Missouri’s Laws restricting the movement of registered sexual offenders and requiring a sign be posted make many untrue assumptions. Law Enforcement wastes countless hours doing “compliance checks” Halloween evening and night when they should be doing traffic patrol and running intoxicated driver checkpoints.”
