"We'll be tracking:" Officials keep a close eye on area sex offenders during Halloween trick-or-treat

Officials keep a close eye on area sex offenders during Halloween trick-or-treat

Officials keep a close eye on area sex offenders during Halloween trick-or-treat

MILWAUKEE COUNTY -- Local law enforcers are teaming up with probation and parole agents to keep the streets safe for kids this Halloween.

As the littlest trick-or-treaters make the rounds, so do local law enforcers -- but these groups aren't looking for candy.

Sheriff David Clarke

"It's a target-rich environment for kids so we'll be tracking sex offenders -- especially pedophiles, child sex offenders," said Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke.

The teams are going door-to-door, checking on registered sex offenders and making sure they're not doing anything to entice kids to visit.

"No candy, no porch lights on, no children present, no signs of any activity involving trick-or-treat," said Jacob Leannais, probation and parole agent.

Leannais says statewide about 5,700 registered sex offenders who are currently on active supervision are subject to the visits.

Probation and parole agents

"The expectation is that they are in from 12-noon until 5p.m., which is an hour before and an hour after the event," said Leannais.

In Milwaukee County, they conducted close to 250 total visits; nine offenders were taken into custody.

"Our department takes...the safety of our community very seriously. We want to do our part in ensuring that safety for the members of our community including all the children that are, you know, partaking in trick-or-treat," said Leannais.

Leannais says there are homeless sex offenders that they have to check up on as part of this effort. He says those people are all given specific locations to go to.

Not all of the state's registered sex offenders are part of this check. Leannais says it does not include the nearly 12,000 sex offenders who are not currently on active supervision.