MI- Sex offenders may have to avoid bus stops

Again, we have a Journalist who has not done proper research before writing this article which is riddled with errors. This bill will not protect anyone and will harm many. Further, how does one measure 1,000 feet of a school bus stop, when a bus stop has no boundaries, it is a pinpoint where the bus door opens up. And, such bus stops change like folks change their socks. Finally, there is already precedent to prevent such legislation from forcing one (if a RSO) who owns a home from his/her residence. This is bad law all around, contrived by lawmakers on a whim without proper thought or research; sounds good legislation.

10-22-2009 Michigan:

The Michigan House of Representatives has been asked to consider legislation that would prohibit registered sex offenders from working or loitering within 1,000 feet of a school bus stop.

House Bill (HB) 5505 was introduced on Thursday, Oct. 8 by state Rep. Marty Knollenberg (R-Troy). Among its co-sponsors are state Reps. Eileen Kowall (R-White Lake, Highland) and Chuck Moss (R-Orchard Lake). The bill has been referred to the House Judiciary Committee.

"We do not want our children to be menaced by sex offenders," Moss said.

This lawmaker is fear-mongering as there have not been any incidents as he mentions.

State law already prohibits registered sex offenders from coming within 1,000 feet of an elementary, middle, or high school. HB 5505 would revise the definition of a school safety zone to include school bus stops.

There is no law that prohibits sex offender from "coming within" a proscribed distance of schools.

Under the the bill, a first violation would be a misdemeanor punishable by a year in prison, or a fine up to $1,000, or both. If found guilty after one or more prior violations, it would be a felony, punishable with no more than two years in jail and a fine of up to $2,000, or both.

The only exemption would be if the sex offender were meeting his or her own child at a bus stop.

There are several exemptions (See Sec. 36 at bottom of page) to "student safety zones" which have been ignored by the Journalist.

This is a particularly passionate issue for Kowall, who said she is concerned about a group rehabilitation home in White Lake Township. This summer, White Lake police learned that five sex offenders were living in the township at the same address. The home is owned by Sequoia Recovery Services of Pontiac, and now houses residents receiving drug and alcohol rehabilitation.

Just because several offenders are living together in a treatment center, is no reason to enact any law restricting them. This amounts to legalized vigilantism another form of hate legislation!

There are no longer any sexual offenders living in the home. Those that had been living there had jobs, were on tethers and were monitored by the state Department of Corrections.

"The situation in White Lake definitely made me aware, and mad," she said."We question them being able to operate in this neighborhood."

So the lawmaker is "mad" at the Operator of the treatment home, and uses her anger to enact laws against selected residents of the treatment center. Sounds like this lawmaker needs time-out anger training.

Kowall said there are often bus stops set up outside every every few houses, depending on if the stop is for elementary, middle, or high school students.

"We have to have tighter restraints on who we are letting into our neighborhoods. We have to be concerned about the safety of our neighborhoods first," she said.

"With this bill, protecting children is my first priority," she said. ..Source.. by Lisa Brody