KEY POINTS:
NEW YORK - New York state placed nearly 2000 paroled sex offenders under a Halloween curfew on Tuesday and banned them from dressing in costume or opening their doors to trick-or-treating children.
The New York State Division of Parole said that from 3pm, or following work or community service, the state's 1983 paroled sex offenders are required to remain in their homes until 6am on Wednesday.
Anthony Ellis, executive director of the division, also said officers would visit or call each of the paroled sex offenders and would check their DVD collections for child pornography.
"There is nothing more frightening than the prospect of someone preying on a child," Ellis said in a statement.
Sex offenders under parole supervision make up 8 per cent of the 23,812 registered sex offenders across the state, a spokesman for parole division said.
Millions of children in the United States dress in costume and go door-to-door asking for candy every Oct. 31 for Halloween, which is believed to have originated as a Celtic agricultural festival before becoming associated with the night before the Christian festival of All Saints Day on November 1.
- REUTERS
