Colleges voice concern about sex offenders nearby

SEATTLE – Lawmakers and college administrators are trying to shut paroled sex offenders out of one of the few places they can still live: Student neighborhoods near major U.S. universities.

More than 23 states ban registered sex offenders from living close to schools or other places frequented by children. But nowhere is that protection extended to the areas surrounding college campuses.

“A convicted sexual felon should not be able to live next door to your college student,” said Jamie Ison, an Alabama state representative who sponsored a bill that would include universities under the legal definition of a school.

Online databases of sex offender addresses show that the issue affects universities across the country – wherever there are student neighborhoods with plentiful apartments and cheap rent.

In Los Angeles, 60 offenders live within a mile of the University of Southern California. Nine live within a mile of Duke University in Durham, N.C. Within a two-mile radius of Jacksonville University in Florida are 93 paroled sex offenders.

Some schools such as the University of Washington have sought to push sex offenders out of campus neighborhoods without the aid of legislation.

Gov. Chris Gregoire raised concerns earlier this year with a landlord whose tenants included sex offenders. The landlord ousted 13 of the 25 parolees living near the campus, which was one of the first in the nation to begin establishing a buffer zone that would be off-limits to sex offenders.

Now the state Department of Corrections is trying to avoid placing convicts near the campus. But that effort does not extend to Seattle’s other colleges and universities, including two private four-year schools in areas with more sex offenders than the University of Washington.

“It’s a real problem to find them a place to live,” said Anne Fiala, a corrections administrator. “People end up living under bridges or in cars. We would prefer they have a roof over their heads.”

At Jacksonville University in Florida, at least one official says college students are old enough to protect themselves, and he opposes legislation barring offenders from the school’s urban campus.

“For the most part, these people have done their time,” Public Safety Director Michael Kanaby said. “We’re better off educating students and preparing them to take accountability for their own public security.”