Convicted sex offenders in Texas must stay away from children on Halloween and they can't do anything to entice them.
There are 415 registered sex offenders living in Precinct 6 alone, and during our ride along what we learned was alarming.
To keep kids safe, the Precinct 6 deputy constables like Sgt. Julio Banda are working hard this Halloween to monitor hundreds of registered sex offenders. The numbers are alarming -- 120 are on probation, 155 on parole and another 140 are just registered convicted sex offenders.
All are required to be in compliance with Halloween rules. That means no decorations, no porch lights on and nothing that would entice a child to come to an offender's home.
We found one offender had gone back to prison just two months ago for cutting his ankle monitor, another offender was at home and in compliance and another was at work, but his mother says she knows the rules. Still the deputy constables will be back later to be sure her son remains in compliance.
They tell us there is zero tolerance when it comes to children's safety.
"They tend to go back to the crimes they committed before," Sgt. Banda explained. "Basically, how they feel is that it's so easy to prey upon children. Children, while they're young, they can't distinguish between how to stay away from danger. They don't know that a person is dangerous based on how they look."
The consequences are serious if someone is caught out of compliance. They will be reported to their parole officer and are likely to go to prison.
If you want to see if there are sex offenders in your area we've made it easy for you. Here's a link to the state's registry.
