An arrest is worth a thousand words of legislative testimony

In case anyone wonders how and why state legislators get extra concerned about sex offenders, check out this notable story from my backyard:

What began as testimony on a bill requiring jail sentences for those who solicit sex from minors over the Internet ended in a Statehouse sting for Lt. Jeff Braley of the Warren County Cybercrimes Task Force. 

Though Braley came to Columbus yesterday as a star witness supporting Senate Bill 183, he portrayed himself as a 14-year-old girl on a field trip to the Statehouse in e-mails to Barry Mentser, a local lawyer who police said was trying to have sexual relations with the “girl” he met online. Braley went by the online name “ohiosoccergirl14.”  And after Braley testified yesterday, he quickly went to assist Columbus officers in Mentser’s arrest….

Braley said he had alerted Columbus police that Mentser likely would be there. Braley said that Mentser had sent him several pictures over the past year — dressed and undressed — so State Patrol troopers in the building were able to identify him soon after he entered the building….

Braley said the Statehouse, a busy public building with a host of security cameras and plenty of State Highway Patrol troopers patrolling the halls, is the most public place he’s ever made a bust.  “If this guy is going to go to this level, come to the Statehouse where police and everyone are, why would you want him right back out on the street?” he said. “We have to have mandatory jail time for these kind of individuals.”  Sen. Tim Schaffer, R-Lancaster, the sponsor of Senate Bill 183, agreed.  “I hope this demonstrates the importance of this issue,” he said.