Child safety should trump sex offenders' voting rights

If the interests of convicted, high-risk sex offenders clash with efforts to ensure our children's safety, the decision ought to be a no-brainer: The safety of children ought to prevail.

So there should be little dispute in the Legislature over a bill that would prevent Level 3 sex offenders — those at the highest risk of re-offending — from voting at schools or libraries. If an offender's polling place is at a school or library, he or she would be required to vote by absentee ballot.

The rights of these sex offenders are not being violated. They are still allowed to vote, which is not the case everywhere. The voting rights of convicted felons are left up to individual states. Some prevent convicted felons from ever voting again. Some prevent them from voting until they have served their entire sentence, including probation and parole.

This bill would simply require them to plan ahead. It preserves their rights, while making the world a bit safer for children.