Sex offender's lobbyist job leads to arrest

4-3-2013 Iowa:

DES MOINES, Iowa -- Michael Byars' effort to modify the state's sex offender laws was a case study for effective citizen activism at the Iowa Legislature -- right up until last week, when he was arrested and fired from his job. Byars, 24, of Davenport has been the driving force behind legislation allowing sex offenders to have their lifetime parole sentences lifted under certain circumstances.

But now Byars, himself a registered sex offender, faces up to two years in prison. The reason: He didn't update the state sex offender registry to reflect his voluntary, unpaid and, so far, largely successful attempt to convince lawmakers to change the law -- something his attorney calls a big misunderstanding.

It's a deeply personal issue to Byars, who was convicted in 2008 of lascivious acts with a child following what he describes as a short, consensual relationship with a 13-year-old high school freshman while he was an 18-year-old high school senior. The conviction landed him on the state's sex offender registry and saddled him with a lifetime parole sentence that requires him to check in regularly with a parole officer and stringently limits his interaction with children, including his own son.

The bill he's pushing would allow individuals in so-called Romeo-and-Juliet cases to seek an early discharge from lifetime parole sentences and has won what some Capitol insiders describe as a stunning series of legislative victories.

Bill targets Missouri lobbyist with sex offender conviction

4-2-2014 Missouri:

JEFFERSON CITY — A registered sex offender who works as a lobbyist said Tuesday that, to keep working, he will comply with any new reporting requirements lawmakers might choose to impose.

The House General Laws Committee yesterday held a short hearing on a bill to require lobbyists to disclose whether they are registered sex offenders on forms filed annually with the Missouri Ethics Commission. Rep. Genise Montecillo, D-St. Louis, said she filed the bill in response to a notice from House Chief Clerk Adam Crumbliss about restrictions on the activities of Parker Bena, a lobbyist since 2007.

"Most people view this building as a safe building, and sometimes folks let their guard down," Montecillo said during the hearing. "I think people should at least be aware that there is one in the building."

The committee, chaired by Rep. Caleb Jones, R-Columbia, did not vote on the bill.

In a telephone interview after the hearing, which he did not attend, Bena said he had no objections to the new reporting requirement. "I know it is a matter of procedure, and I am fine with that," he said. "I will do what the law requires of me."