Small cities want sex offenders to keep their distance
- By JOHN AUSTIN CNHI State Reporter
- Updated
AUSTIN – Forty-six small cities were threatened with lawsuits last fall for restricting places where sex offenders may live.
Half repealed their rules for fear of big legal fees. The leaders of many others are lobbying to shore up their authority to keep registered sex offenders away from schools, playgrounds and other places where children gather.
“We’re working on getting the law changed,” said Elicia Sanders, mayor of Eustace, population 1,260, in Henderson County. “I haven’t encountered a single person who says it’s a bad idea.”
However, Richard Gladden, a Denton attorney who represents Texas Voices for Reason and Justice, an advocacy group representing sex offenders, said he’ll continue to sue cities that are “trying to create hysteria” with unconstitutional ordinances.
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