Los Alamitos amends sex offender law

3-19-2013 California:

City’s ban on such convicts in certain public places will be narrowed to only target those who committed a sexual offense involving a minor.

LOS ALAMITOS – Looking to address potential legal issues surrounding sex-offender-related laws, the City Council on Monday night amended its code that bans registered sex offenders from public places.

The local ordinance now narrows the definition of "sex offender" to those who specifically have been convicted of a sexual offence involving a minor.

"This will ensure that the restriction serves to protect the public from the specific threat of child predators, without unnecessarily burdening the rights of individuals who may not present that threat," according to a staff report.

Cities across Orange County in the past two years have adopted ordinances patterned after an Orange County law that bans sex offenders from public parks.

Recently, a registered sex offender – who served his sentence more than 15 years ago and is now married with children – sued Costa Mesa, Huntington Beach, Lake Forest and Seal Beach, alleging the bans violated his First, Fifth and 14th Amendment rights. Lake Forest repealed its law last December.

In addition, the Orange County Superior Court Appellate Division reversed the conviction of Hugo Godinez, a registered sex offender who entered Mile Square Park in Fountain Valley. Godinez argued the county ban is too vague and is trumped by state law.

"One of the reasons for the court's decision was that if every city adopted different restrictions, a registrant would not necessarily know what the rules of any particular city might be (or even which city he or she was in at the moment)," according to a Los Alamitos staff report.

To address that potential problem, city officials plan to place signs in specific areas that alert the public of the "child safety zones" and of the city's rules. ..Source.. by ROXANA KOPETMAN