Tuesday, 07 August 2007 00:03
New Court House Location: Is It A Problem For Some Parolees?
Now that the new courthouse is operational
questions have arisen regarding those people that may have a probationary
condition that prohibits them from being within 2000 feet of a school. Can they
attend their court hearings at the courthouse just feet away from a State
Preschool and the campus of Argonaut
High School? According to
District Attorney Todd Riebe; provided that a person's probation had a term
prohibiting a sex offender/arsonist from being within 2,000 feet of a school,
park, day care, church or any place where children congregate, it is possible that being at
the courthouse violates that term. Riebe also reminds us that the old
courthouse was also probably within 2,000 feet of Jackson Elementary, and was
right across the street from a former day care and two churches. Riebe does point out that several counties in
a similar situation in the Third Appellate District have already been sued
pursuant to the 2,000 foot requirement. Amador County was dropped from the lawsuit
because the law that applied the zone, Jessica's Law, did not create new criminal
violations for county law enforcement agencies to enforce. Rather, it applied to parolees, which are the
responsibility of the State.