Sex offender law tweaked

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. An investigation by the Belleville News-Democrat revealed that a law passed in 2006 to keep sex offenders away from children used the wrong definition to define a day care operated in a home. That definition applied only to in-home day cares with nine or more children.

None of the state's more than 10,000 in-home day cares were covered because all of them were licensed for less than nine children.

The legislation adopted Wednesday would make it illegal for child sex offenders to offer services such as music lessons to persons under 18 in their homes. The bill now goes to the Senate.