ORANGE – City officials have sent letters to 73 registered sex offenders in Orange reminding them of a law prohibiting them from answering their doors to trick-or-treating children on Halloween.

The law is the first of its kind in Orange County.

Enacted by the City Council in February, the law also:

• Requires sex offenders to post a sign at their home stating that no candy or treats are available on Halloween.

• Makes sex offenders leave off all exterior lights of their homes during the Halloween evening.

• Keeps sex offenders from decorating their residences with Halloween decorations.

City Attorney David DeBerry said only the registered sex offenders who committed crimes against minors would be affected by the law. Councilman Jon Dumitru, who helped get the law on the books in the city, said three offenders objected to the new law, calling the City Attorney’s Office.

“I’m sure they are going to be in compliance with the law,” Dumitru said.

Violators face a $1,000 fine and/or up to six months in jail.

DeBerry would not say how the law would be enforced on Halloween night. “If somebody violates this ordinance, we will be very aggressive in prosecution,” he said.

The number of registered sex offenders the Halloween law affects has risen by seven since it was passed in February.

Dumitru said the new law is a companion to one that the Orange council passed in 2008. That law restricts how many registered sex offenders can live in a hotel and bans them from loitering near places where children gather.

“We enacted these two ordinances to protect children,” he said. “Imagine how many would have been placed here if we had not enacted them.”

Dumitru said the law is the first of its kind in the county.

Contact the writer: 714-704-3704 or efields@ocregister.com