An Arizona Republican state senator called out Governor Katie Hobbs for her “harmful” veto of a bill mandating those found guilty of dangerous crimes against children to register on the state’s sex offender website.
Senate Bill (SB) 1583, sponsored by State Senator Sine Kerr (R-Buckeye), aimed to close a gap in state legislation that now only compels those offenders found guilty of committing sex crimes against children to list their names on the website for sex offenders if they pose a significant danger of doing so again. Level one offenders, who are the least likely to re-offend, may not have to list their names on this website.
According to the Arizona Department of Public Safety, thousands of registered sex offenders don’t have their names on the sex offender website.
Last month, Hobbs vetoed the measure noting that the state already requires the department of public safety to publish the names of “the most dangerous” offenders and that they will continue to ensure this information is readily available to the public.
Kerr (pictured above) said that Hobbs’s “lack of understanding” of the seriousness of this issue is a threat to Arizona families.
“The lack of understanding from Governor Hobbs is a serious threat to the safety and well being of all Arizona families with children. My bill would have armed parents, schools, churches, and community centers with a digital tool of notification, transparency, and awareness in order to prevent these offenders currently not listed on the website from further victimizing our kids. Hobbs’ veto letter, which she erroneously wrote to the wrong Senator, shows she doesn’t have a clue what’s going on with sex offender tracking in our state,” Kerr said.
According to Kerr, the state not requiring an offender’s name on the sex offender website gives parents a false sense of security.
“Right now, if a parent signs their child up for a sports team, and that coach was convicted of committing a dangerous sex crime against a minor but is not considered likely to re-offend, that coach may not be listed on the website. When the parent searches the site and doesn’t see the coach’s name pop up, they are given a false sense of security that their child will be in good hands,” Kerr said.
The state senator criticized Hobbs’ veto, stating that preventing sexual abuse of minors in Arizona shouldn’t be a partisan issue.
“Protecting our children from sexual victimization should not be a partisan issue, yet all Democrats in the Legislature voted against the bill and our Democrat Governor vetoed it,” he said.
Kerr said she “will try again next session to fix this loophole in state law so that we stop protecting sex offenders and start protecting children.”
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Hannah Poling is a lead reporter at The Ohio Star, The Star News Network, and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Hannah on Twitter @HannahPoling1. Email tips to [email protected]
Photo “Sine Kerr” by Gage Skidmore. CC BY-SA 3.0. Background Photo “Arizona Capitol” by Gage Skidmore. CC BY-SA 2.0.
