How many high-risk registered sex offenders should be allowed to live in the same apartment building?
At 1149 E. 1st St. in Long Beach, where at the same time as many as 19 rapists and child molesters on parole have resided in an apartment building near two licensed day-care centers, the question, and its elusive answer, have become an emotionally charged issue.
A female neighbor carries a baseball bat at night for protection. Many families have added extra deadbolts to their doors. At least one couple has moved out of the downtown neighborhood of palm-shaded apartments and condominiums less than two blocks from the beach. Children no longer play outside without parental supervision.
"My girlfriend is freaked out, so we're looking to move," said Dana Reichers, 30, whose apartment building is only a few blocks from the 12-unit complex that locals have labeled "the predator house."
Joe Quiniro, 49, said his wife wants to move out of the condominium they bought 3 1/2 years ago for $200,000.
"I don't want to go; I love this place," he said. "But we don't want to live like prisoners in our own home."
With angry residents demanding action, the Long Beach city attorney's office and the parole board of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation are weighing the rights of the parolees against residents' concerns. Meanwhile, the Long Beach City Council has unanimously agreed to draft an ordinance that would ban high-risk registered sex offenders from being allowed to live within 2,000 feet of a day-care center.
On Tuesday the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, at the urging of Supervisor Mike Antonovich, directed the county counsel to determine if state law allows local governments to restrict the housing of sex offenders in neighborhoods. Under state law, a convicted sex offender released on parole since 2006 may not live within 2,000 feet of parks or primary or secondary schools.
"The parole department needs to be more thoughtful of the community and the parolees in their care," said Councilwoman Suja Lowenthal, whose 2nd District includes the apartment building. "Instead, they placed these men in what has become a circus cage. For us, the parole department is public enemy No. 1."
"How arrogant can authorities be to walk into a neighborhood and do this without once uttering a word?" she added. "They need to know I hold them and a greedy landlord responsible."
