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Court Strikes Down Law Forcing Sex Offenders To Live More Than 2,000 Feet From Parks

SACRAMENTO (CBS/AP) - California's Supreme Court ruled Monday the state cannot prohibit all registered sex offenders in San Diego County from living within 2,000 feet of a school or park.

The court said the restriction has greatly restricted sex offenders' access to housing in the county, increasing the incidence of homelessness and depriving them of access to services available to parolees. The court said sex offenders could still be forced to live more than 2,000 feet from schools, but the decision would have to be made on a case-by-case basis.

"Blanket enforcement of the residency restrictions against these parolees has ... infringed their liberty and privacy interests, however limited, while bearing no rational relationship to advancing the state's legitimate goal of protecting children from sexual predators," the court said in its unanimous decision.

The residency restrictions were part of Jessica's Law, which was approved by California voters in 2006.

Supporters say it keeps children safe from sexual predators. But opponents say it forces offenders onto the street or away from their families, creating hardships that make them more likely to reoffend.

A call to a spokesman for the state attorney general's office was not immediately returned.

The ruling, which upheld an appeals court decision, came in a case brought by four registered sex offenders in San Diego County.

A San Diego County judge ruled in 2011 that the law violated the three men and one woman's right to intrastate travel, to establish a home and maintain their privacy and was not specifically tailored to the each of their circumstances. The court ordered the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to stop applying the residency restriction as a blanket provision against all paroled registered sex offenders who were under supervision in San Diego County.

A state appeals court upheld the decision, prompting the state Attorney General's office to appeal to the State Supreme Court.

© Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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