FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — Fresno County could crack down on what critics call an oversaturation of sex offenders with a newly proposed ordinance.
Supervisors Garry Bredefeld and Brian Pacheco announced the measure on Monday. It would limit the number of sex offenders and beds in a single-family home to six, enforcing current state law.
“The initial violation will carry a $10,000 fine and continued violations will reach $20,000, up to $50,000 per violation,” Bredefeld explained.
Bredefeld says one home on Gettysburg and Palm avenues is causing problems for Old Fig Garden residents, who are housing multiple sex offenders.
The home operates under Centers for Living, a transitional housing non-profit.
The county says right next door is another Centers for Living house, creating a bigger sex offender population in that area and frustrating residents.
“All our properties are going to be less,” Old Fig Garden resident George Aguilar said. “Who wants to live there with these guys running around like that?”
“At night you hear all sorts of things going on and it has been traced back to these residences,” Old Fig Garden resident, Beverly Raine, said.
Back in August, in that same neighborhood, investigators say Jennifer Cedano shot and injured a 64-year-old bystander.
“The female who was the suspect believed that an individual who was there was involved in a molestation of a relative of hers,” Fresno County Sheriff John Zanoni said.
The incident alarmed residents.
“What’s going on here in the neighborhood that we thought was a really peaceful place to live,” Aguilar stated. “It’s like we’re being invaded.”
Over near Kerman, Pacheco says there are two neighboring Centers for Living homes that comply with state law, but he claims they’re operating through a loophole.
“If these two were on the same parcel, it would be an overconcentration,” Pacheco explained. “I am told by the sheriff’s office that there are 11 registered sex offenders in these two homes: 6 in one and 5 in the other.”
Under the county ordinance, violators could also face jail time on top of the tens of thousands of dollars in fines.
If the ordinance is passed on Tuesday, it will go into effect 30 days later.
Action News reached out to the CEO of Centers for Living for comment. He sent the following statement:
“For seven years, we have operated in Fresno County, providing faith-based housing for more than 1,200 adults without a single occupancy or parole-related violation, and the proposed ordinance simply duplicates regulations already enforced by Fresno County Parole, with whom we remain fully compliant. It is unfortunate that newer, less experienced elected officials publicly described our ministry inaccurately, because when statements made in authority are not grounded in fact, fear fills the gap and public safety is not served. Our structured homes provide curfews, accountability, and support-offering stability for individuals who might otherwise be homeless or unsupervised and this model has produced some of the lowest recidivism outcomes in Fresno County’s transitional housing history.”
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