Bill Protecting Daycare Children from Predators Passes Senate

Legislation by Sen. Jonathan Nichols would create a “Zone of Safety” around the children who attend daycare centers in Oklahoma, making it illegal for sexual predators to live within 2,000 feet of a licensed daycare facility. Senate Bill 1708, by Nichols, R-Norman, passed unanimously in the Senate on Wednesday.

“This bill will provide additional protection for our children when we drop them off at daycare centers in the morning,” said Nichols. “We need to make sure that these predators can’t live near these facilities or be around these facilities.”

In 2003, Sen. Nichols had introduced legislation which led to a new law creating a “Zone of Safety” around elementary and junior high schools, public parks and playgrounds, banning those convicted of sexual crimes against children from lurking near places where children are most likely to be found.

SB 1708 will be a strong tool for rooting out sexual predators in smaller, rural communities, Nichols said. Though some rural communities may not have many schools or public playgrounds, a number of licensed daycare centers in rural areas are operated as home-based businesses. SB 1708 would extend the “Zone of Safety” around those home-based daycare facilities to encompass even more residential neighborhoods where children live and play.

Nichols thanked Sen. Charlie Laster, D-Shawnee, for adding an amendment to the bill that would make it illegal for a convicted child molester who has served their sentence to come back and live in the same house as the child they had previously abused.

“That was a great idea,” said Nichols. “Sen. Laster’s amendment made a good bill even stronger.”

SB 1708 will next be considered by the Oklahoma House of Representatives.