Proposal Banning Sex Offenders From Living Near Child Facilities - KGWN –Cheyenne, WY– Scottsbluff, NE News,Weather, Sports

Proposal Banning Sex Offenders From Living Near Child Facilities

Owen Petersen of Mountain View wants to ban sex offenders from living within 1,000 feet of state licensed child care facilities.

Currently Wyoming law bans sex offenders from living within 1,000 feet of all public schools.

Brenda Stouffe is the owner and director of Bright Beginnings, a day care in Cheyenne. "Parents allow me to take care of their children... I'm going to protect them every way I can" she said.

Protecting them means keeping them safe from sex offenders. "We do have sex offenders around us. You go online, you see where they're at." said Stouffe.

That's why Owen Petersen has proposed a new law keeping sex offenders from living within 1,000 feet of all day cares. "Providers have approached me and asked for this piece of legislation" he insisted.  

Linda Burt, the Executive Director of Wyoming's American Civil Liberties Union, is against his proposal. "These bills turn out to basically banishment. People don't have any place to live" she explained.

On top of that, she said the sex offender registry is too broad.

Petersen wants state law makers to consider his proposal at the upcoming budget session. In order to be introduced, it will need 2/3 support.