The last sentence of this report shows why it should not become law, there is a registry where folks can check regularly. Special Interest groups do not have to have their own system when what is available to the public accomplishes the same thing.12-18-2008 Ohio:
An important piece of legislation designed to protect elderly people in our society crashed and burn in the Ohio Senate. The Ohio bill called for care facilities to notify residents when registered sex offenders move into the homes.
The idea came up after a series of reports on Local 12 in which Reporter Rich Jaffe exposed the fact there was no such notification. The bill sailed through the House but died this week in the Senate.
According to its author, House Bill 57 is just common sense.
State Rep. Courtney Combs: "Nursing homes, assisted care must give the same notification that you get in your neighborhood. If you have a sexual predator who lives in your neighborhood two blocks away you get notification, you've got a sexual predator. Why shouldn't your mom your grandmother get the same notification if she's got a sexual predator in the room next to her?"
It was common sense to Ray McDaniel too when he testified in Columbus. His daughter was raped by convicted sex offender Rickey Smith, in a Bond Hill care facility. No one ever knew Smith and other sex offenders were residents, because currently the facilities are not required to tell anyone. "I wouldn't have let her go in there period, my wife wouldn't have let her go in there neither, we would have told them to find another place."
After unanimous support in the house, the bill died this week in front of Senator Tim Grendell's Criminal Justice Committee in the Senate. "I called at least six times, I talked face to face with Senator Grendell. What's going on? Well we've got more important things to do. What's more important than notifying my mom, gramma, grandpa tHat there's a sexual predator in proximity to them?"
Grendell told Combs the notification would upset residents, it would be one more paper people have to sign, and he wanted to know what kinds of facilities would be next. Some nursing homes make big money providing housing to sex offenders through Medicaid.
They also have powerful lobbyists. Combs say he thinks he knows what happened. "Big money got grandma... It's sad but I think that's what's going on."
We called Senator Grendell's office for an answer as to why the bill died in his committee we're still waiting for a response. Courtney Combs tells us he'll re-introduce the bill next year.
If you have a loved one in a facility, you can still find out if sex offenders are living there by typing the address of the home in to a sex offender registry. We have the registries for Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio posted in the "Get it section" of Local 12.com. ..News Source.. by Local 12 News
1 comment:
there is a registry where folks can check regularly. Special Interest groups do not have to have their own system when what is available to the public accomplishes the same thing.
so then just why do sheriffs have to have another sponsored by a pay for site?
With the state's having finance problems so bad this is just one place to cut the sheriff's budget! D
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