Curley: Keep Operation Boo out of Seattle

A program to keep children safe during Halloween may be doing the exact opposite.

KIRO Radio’s John Curley believes that “Operation Boo,” a 22-year-old program in California, is actually increasing the chance of children being sexually assaulted.

Children are most safe during Halloween, because there are more people out at night to protect them. Plus, they’re walking around with giant sacks of candy they can use as weapons.

Operation Boo gives registered sex offenders a curfew of 5 p.m. to 5 a.m. on Halloween. All lights of their homes must be turned off, to make it look like nobody is home, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. They cannot offer candy or have Halloween decorations on their homes.

Is it legal? Well, a lawsuit was filed recently in San Diego federal court Wednesday to challenge it. The lawsuit includes a sex offender alleging that he was told to post a sign on his front door, warning of who resides there, the Times of San Diego reports. That alone violates the First Amendment, the lawsuit states.

Legal or not, Curley doesn’t want to see Operation Boo find its way to the Pacific Northwest and Seattle.

Tom Tangney: They think our little trick-or-treaters are susceptible to sex offenders.

John Curley: I assume they don’t have data to back that up … You’re drawing a conclusion that Halloween is a prime time for pedophiles. It’s crazy.

Curley believes the only reason Operation Boo exists is because a handful of people voiced their concerns. Instead of using actual data, they just assumed bad things happen during Halloween.

JC: You are most safe [during Halloween]. You have a bag full of stuff you can hit people with. It’s probably the safest day of the week. My biggest concern is some of these hot-head ideas will make their way [to Seattle] from California with some weird flow of air.