Source: mystateline.com 3/17/25
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WTVO) — A new bill proposed in Illinois would reduce the distance convicted sex offenders are required to observe when living near schools.
Senate Bill 2254, introduced by Senate Majority Leader Kimberly Lightford (D-Chicago), would reduce the distance sex offenders are required to stay from schools and playgrounds from 500 feet to 250 feet.
[Action alert for Illinois registrants and supporters: Call, write, and show up as soon as possible to support this bill to increase housing choices for registrants]
While it’s nice to see this reduction, any distance is still arbitrary and completely meaningless. If someone wants to offend, then they will, and if not, then they won’t. Simple as that. And when a “bad actor” does offend, the rest of us are blamed and punished for it. All these restrictions do (and have ever done) is push people further and further away from resources and community connections (which may actually be the entire point). My prediction is that the moment a single offense occurs, the distance will immediately double, or triple, or quadruple (even if the individual responsible isn’t on the registry, which is usually the case).
It’s all psychological comfort optics! None of this is done as a deterrent. You give these dumb voters an arbitrary number to work with and they’ll believe it works. All these “public notification” laws are aimless and pointless. The more stuff they put on our shoulders, it just makes the punitive argument louder and more robust.
Funny how parents “care” about the distance from those forced to register, yet live 50 miles from a nuclear power station or in an approach flight-path by a regional airport.
I propose leaving people the hell alone after their sentence is completed.
This is HUGE (sarcasm). It takes an average person about 90 seconds to walk 250 feet. Wohoo, this really makes a difference. What is wrong with these people?