The Allen Parish fair will go on as usual starting Wednesday, but there will be a major change in who's allowed to attend. This year sex offenders will not be allowed in the gates.
"It's not to pick on them," said Sheriff Doug Hebert III. "But it is to ensure the safety of the people of our parish."
Sheriff Hebert hopes the new protocol will make the fair more family oriented and send a message to the parish's 38 sex offenders.
"At the end of the day, the primary goal is to make sure that the kids, and those that would be victims, are safe as they possibly can," said Sheriff Hebert. "And we want those that are sex offenders, some are worse than others, to know that we are watching you."
Law enforcement officers will be at the fair daily on the lookout for sex offenders. All of the parish's offenders were notified by phone call, and signs outside the fair grounds are reinforcement.
"During the course of my career, I've worked rapes of children, and it's just one of those things tend to see across the united states, you see in the news every day, somebody every day is getting, child's getting molested," said Sheriff Hebert. "I don't know what the cause of that is, but I do know we have to do more to ensure the safety of our people and part of that is to make it so it's not as easy for them to do it."
Louisiana's state law says sex offenders are not allowed to be within one thousand feet of a public park, recreational facility, or child care facility. Sheriff Hebert says he plans to enforce the law just months into his term.
"I didn't infringe upon them, the state of Louisiana did, and I'm going to back them up," said Sheriff Hebert.
One problem he did mention is sex offenders from other parishes coming to the fair. He says that situation will be monitored by his deputies as well.
"There is some technology out there that does some retinal scans," said Sheriff Hebert. "If they're in the system, it can identify them."
To view the state law regarding sex offenders, click HERE. ..Source.. by Holly Carter
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