ST. LOUIS – The Missouri Attorney General’s Office says it plans to appeal a federal judge’s ruling that struck down a state requirement for registered sex offenders to display “No candy” warning signs outside of their homes on Halloween.
A spokesperson with the Attorney General Andrew Bailey’s Office tells FOX 2 that the appeal is currently in the works. Bailey hopes to reverse the judge’s decision and reinstate a former Missouri Halloween sign law through the appeal.
“I want Missouri to be the safest state in the nation for children. That includes on Halloween,” said Bailey via social media platform X on his intent to appeal.
Since 2008, a Missouri state statute has banned registered sex offenders from going outside to interact with children and turning on outside lights on Halloween night. Registered sex offenders have also been required to post a sign stating “no candy or treats” are available at their home on Halloween night.
U.S. District Judge John Ross struck down that provision on signs last Wednesday and ruled officials were “permanently enjoined statewide” from enforcing the sign requirement. He deemed the sign law as unconstitutional. Without a successful appeal, the sign requirement would no longer be enforced under Missouri law.
The ruling follows a legal challenge involving Hazelwood resident Thomas Sanderson and Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey. Sanderson filed a lawsuit last year arguing that the sign requirement violated his First Amendment free speech rights. He alleged it forced him to make a statement to which he didn’t agree.
Police arrested Thomas Sanderson just days after Halloween in 2022, noting that Sanderson had set up a large Halloween display and handed out candy to children. Sanderson is listed in the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s sex offender registry list as a Tier Level II offender.
Sanderson has been listed on the Missouri sex offender registry list since 2006, and a Tier II designation means he is required to complete a 25-year registration requirement. Missouri’s statute for Halloween laws took effect in 2008, after he was registered as a sex offender.
The lawsuit alleged that, prior to 2022, authorities informed Sanderson on two separate occasions—2008 and 2012—that the statute didn’t apply to him because his conviction came before Missouri adopted its current Halloween statute. Sanderson has held Halloween festivities every year since 2008 and never received a “written or verbal notice that the statute applied to him,” according to the original petition.
Sanderson pleaded guilty to one charge of “failure to comply with Halloween-related restrictions for sex offenders” in April 2023, according to Missouri court records.
As last week’s federal court ruling currently stands, registered sex offenders in Missouri are no longer required to display a warning sign on Halloween, though they must follow the other provisions about staying inside and turning off lights.
The Attorney General’s Office is pushing to overturn it, claiming the planned appeal comes in an effort to protect Missouri’s children. It’s unclear how soon an appeal may be filed and if a resolution comes before the upcoming Halloween holiday, which is 23 days away.
