The Fond du Lac city council has approved a series of ordinances designed to protect children from sex offenders. At their meeting Wednesday night the council approved ordinances creating a child safety zone, prohibiting sexually violent persons from residing in Fond du Lac, unless they committed the crime in the city and creating an administrative appeals board to review any appeals of the ordinance. The ordinances were drafted in response to concerns raised earlier this year by councilmember Dan Degner who initially proposed that child sex offenders be prohibited from living a certain distance from schools, parks or day care facilities. Police chief Bill Lamb says instead of residency restrictions, child safety zones may be a more effective option. Lamb says currently police know where sex offenders live in the community and the concern is that restrictive residency requirements could have unintended consequences.
