I am concerned by the recent arrest of an out-of-state sex offender in Ellsworth. The man, who had been arrested at least twice in his home state of Indiana, was caught taking photographs of children at a popular swimming hole. Police found that he had not registered with the local police as a sex offender, even though he had been in the area for at least three weeks.

Current Maine law requires sex offenders to register with local authorities within two weeks of arriving in Maine. I believe this puts our children at risk and allows potential predators to operate without any supervision for far too long. As a deputy sheriff, I know that the sex-offender registry allows law enforcement professionals, as well as concerned members of the community, to keep an extra vigilant eye on these convicted criminals.

I would propose that the law be changed so that convicted sex offenders are required to register with local police upon arriving in Maine and before leaving their home state, whether moving here permanently or vacationing for a short time. Registration can be done at the local police or sheriff’s office, or a state police location, and takes only a few minutes.

Maine is a wonderful place to raise a family. Allowing convicted child abusers and pedophile predators two weeks without notification of authorities provides too much opportunity to harm our children. It was a tip from concerned parents that led to this man’s arrest; we need to give parents and law enforcement the tools to prevent crimes against children.

Sgt. Donnie Smith

Lubec