New law has hundreds of sex offenders declaring themselves homeless

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SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - Hundreds of California sex offenders may be finding a way to get around some new restrictions on where they can live.

A year ago, 70 pecent of California voters approved Jessica's Law, which bars registered sex offenders from living within 2,000 feet of a school or a park where children gather. That leaves few places where offenders can live legally.

And now, hundreds of sex offenders are declaring themselves homeless -- whether or not they really are. And that's making it difficult for the state to track them.

Experts say it's hard to monitor people who lie about their address or who live day-to-day in cheap hotels or shelters, or on the street. And they say it also means the offenders may not be getting the treatment they need.

A therapist who's been chairman of the state Coalition on Sexual Offending says, "We could potentially be making the world more dangerous rather than less dangerous."

Similar laws in Iowa and Florida have driven offenders underground or onto the streets.