JEFFERSON CITY — State Sen. Will Kraus, R-Lee’s Summit, today (12-26) applauded the Missouri Supreme Court’s recent decision which upheld a 2009 law, championed by Sen. Kraus, which restricts sex offenders from loitering within 500 yards of a public park with playground equipment or a public pool. Several convicted sex offenders challenged the law claiming it was retrospective in violation of the Missouri Constitution.
“I was happy to see that the Missouri Supreme Court recognized that these changes were criminal penalties, and were not retrospective,” said Sen. Kraus. “Restricting the activities of convicted sex offenders will serve to further protect our children.”
Senator Kraus sponsored House Bill 105 as a member of the Missouri House in 2009. The language from HB 105 was incorporated into House Bill 62, sponsored by then-Rep. Scott Lipke. In addition to the ban on being near parks and pools, HB 105 and HB 62 also banned convicted sex offenders from being near day care facilities and from being coaches, managers or trainers for youth sports teams.
“House Bill 105 came about because of a situation where a parent learned their child’s coach was a convicted sex offender,” said Sen. Kraus. “When I learned that, I knew we had to put laws in place to minimize the contact these offenders have with youth.”
In 2012, Sen. Kraus sponsored Senate Joint Resolution 40 to remove the word “retrospective” from the constitution because of the confusion surrounding its application. SJR 40 also contained language allowing propensity evidence (evidence of past arrests) in certain child sexual offense trials. That constitutional change was passed in 2013 in Senate Joint Resolution 15, sponsored by Sen. Rob Schaaf, R-St. Joseph, and will be on the ballot in November 2014.
For more information on Sen. Kraus’ past or current legislation, please visit www.senate.mo.gov/kraus. |
