Post by Sher on Aug 5, 2005 3:37:51 GMT -5
TOLEDO -- When you put your child in daycare, the last thing you probably think about is whether a sex offender lives nearby. But maybe you should. In the state of Ohio, there is no law limiting the proximity of sex offenders to day care facilities, and there is no notification required when sex offenders move close to centers.
In a News 11 investigation, we found at least six day care centers where sex offenders live within a 1,000-foot radius or less. There are several sex offenders living around Dawn to Dusk Child Care on Collingwood. Toddlers School Daycare near the corner of Starr and Euclid also has many sex offenders living nearby.
The owners of Toddler School Daycare didn't want to go on camera, but they do want to see this law changed, because they receive notifications about sex offenders moving into this area on a weekly basis. They say fewer sex offenders in the area would give them more peace of mind.
Administrators at the East Toledo Family Center also hope the law will change. The number of sex offenders nearby makes instructor Cheryl Amborski nervous, "Every person thinks about what if?"
We tried to talk with the sex offenders listed in the area to see what they thought. We finally got a response on Starr Avenue. Patrick Coombes says changing the 1,000-foot law to include day care centers, would make it virtually impossible for sex offenders to find a place to live. "If the law changed, we'd be moving all the time." Coombes says he's still paying the price for a crime he committed in 1991. "I need a place to live to have a job, and you gotta have a job."
Until the law is changed, adminstrators at the East Toledo Family Center aren't skipping security measures. All classrooms have security codes. And parents have to check kids in at the front door. "They have to sign them in when they bring them in. And when they come to pick them up they have to sign them out and if it's someone we're not aware of, we check the ID of the person picking them up. That way we know who's supposed to be picking them up," said Amborski. "And there's a staff member with them at all times during the day, so that we always know where every child is."
All daycare facilities we talked with say it's better to be too safe, than sorry.
In a News 11 investigation, we found at least six day care centers where sex offenders live within a 1,000-foot radius or less. There are several sex offenders living around Dawn to Dusk Child Care on Collingwood. Toddlers School Daycare near the corner of Starr and Euclid also has many sex offenders living nearby.
The owners of Toddler School Daycare didn't want to go on camera, but they do want to see this law changed, because they receive notifications about sex offenders moving into this area on a weekly basis. They say fewer sex offenders in the area would give them more peace of mind.
Administrators at the East Toledo Family Center also hope the law will change. The number of sex offenders nearby makes instructor Cheryl Amborski nervous, "Every person thinks about what if?"
We tried to talk with the sex offenders listed in the area to see what they thought. We finally got a response on Starr Avenue. Patrick Coombes says changing the 1,000-foot law to include day care centers, would make it virtually impossible for sex offenders to find a place to live. "If the law changed, we'd be moving all the time." Coombes says he's still paying the price for a crime he committed in 1991. "I need a place to live to have a job, and you gotta have a job."
Until the law is changed, adminstrators at the East Toledo Family Center aren't skipping security measures. All classrooms have security codes. And parents have to check kids in at the front door. "They have to sign them in when they bring them in. And when they come to pick them up they have to sign them out and if it's someone we're not aware of, we check the ID of the person picking them up. That way we know who's supposed to be picking them up," said Amborski. "And there's a staff member with them at all times during the day, so that we always know where every child is."
All daycare facilities we talked with say it's better to be too safe, than sorry.
