SPONSOR: Pietzman
COMMITTEE ACTION: Voted "Do Pass" by the Standing Committee on Crime Prevention and Public Safety by a vote of 8 to 1. Voted "Do Pass" by the Standing Committee on Rules- Legislative Oversight by a vote of 7 to 3.
This bill specifies that any convicted sexual offender required to register on the sex offender registry who changes his or her residence to a different county or city not within a county and who was convicted of child molestation in the first degree shall be required to be electronically monitored while relocating. Once he or she has relocated, no electronic monitoring shall be required. Such offender shall be responsible for all costs associated with the electronic monitoring.
This bill is similar to HB 2653 (2018).
PROPONENTS: Supporters say that we lose track of offenders when they move, so this is just a mechanism to keep track of them while they are relocating and hopefully it incentivizes them to re- register so they can get the monitoring to stop. Sometimes the monitoring is done through a phone app. The least expensive method is fine, as long as it's effective.
Testifying for the bill was Representative Pietzman.
OPPONENTS: Those who oppose the bill say that the language as it stands is too vague about what happens with the cost of monitoring and who bears such cost.
Testifying against the bill was Kevin Merritt, Missouri Sheriff's Association.
Statutes affected: