KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- There is no law on the books in Kansas that prohibits sexual offenders from living next schools.

KMBC's Maria Antonia reported that four registered sex offenders live a couple of block from Central Middle School in Kansas City, Kan.

"The sexual addiction is probably my problem," a sex offender told Johnson County probation officer Lisa Fleming.

Fleming monitors 70 sexual offenders.

"I didn't have any sexual feeling towards the kids, but I had a tremendous sex drive," said the man, who was caught with child pornography.

Authorities said the man was also chatting online with a 13-year-old girl, who turned out to be an undercover detective.

"I just had to learn the hard way," the man said.

Fleming said that she is making sure that the man's contact with kids is completely restricted.

"I've got to find a way to keep from re-offending. So if that means they need me to stay away from kids, I'll stay away from kids," the man said.

"If they look out their back yard and a see a child playing in the park or see kids going into a school, I don't think that's safe for our children," Fleming said.

Fleming took her concerns to the Kansas Legislature. But in Senate bill 506, a section requiring that offenders live at least 2,000 feet away from places like schools and day cares was crossed out.

"If you're going to err on any side at all, we have to err on the protection of the community," Fleming said.

But what passed was a measure that actually delays residential restrictions on sex offenders for a couple of years. The Department of Corrections made the request because it wants time to study the issue.

Antonia reported that there is research out of places like Iowa indicating no correlation between residency restrictions and reducing sex offenses against children, and that up to 90 percent of crimes against children are committed by a relative or acquaintance with access to the child not impeded by residency restrictions.

Experts in Minnesota are concerned that restrictions could force sexual offenders to move to rural areas and be even more isolated with fewer job and treatment options.

But Fleming said that there are tools to track them.

"There's GPS technology out there that I would like to see us using. I think we have the technology where we could supervise these people wherever they go," Fleming said.

Missouri is one of more that a dozens states with residency restrictions for sexual offenders. They must live at least 1,000 feet from a school.

More Information:

To find out if a sexual offender is living in your neighborhood, visit the Family Watchdog Web site.