House panel looks to close sex offender ‘loophole’

RALEIGH — A special legislative panel is looking to tighten North Carolina’s sex offender law after a court ruling found the state has not defined clearly what a residence is.

A House committee met Tuesday to discuss clarifying what addresses sex offenders must provide to sheriffs if they’ve committed crimes which require them to register with law enforcement.

A September Court of Appeals ruling called the state’s definition of a residence ambiguous and not clear. The ruling stemmed from a case involving a Caldwell County sex offender who
had registered at one address but was sleeping at another.

Committee Co-Chair Rep. Karen Ray said lawmakers want to define what a residence is so that sex offenders can’t use the residency “loophole” to get around the intent of the law.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)