An Ames school board official said she doesn’t think anything will change in Ames as a result of an Iowa Supreme Court decision striking down a law prohibiting sex offenders from living near schools.

Jane Acker, president of the Ames Community School District board of directors, said she was unaware of any incidents involving sex offenders living near Ames schools.

“It doesn’t lessen our burden,” she said.

The law, which prohibited sex offenders from living within 2,000 feet of a school or child care facility was struck down Monday by Judge Robert Pratt.

Acker said she believed the law would be more of a problem in small communities where finding housing outside the 2,000-foot limit would be difficult.

A statement from the office of Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller said an appeal is under consideration and a decision will be made in the next 30 days.

“We also expect to consult with legislative leaders and the governor in crafting such legislation,” Miller said in the statement.

In the meantime, parole and probation officers will continue to make individual decisions about where offenders can live, as they have since July 25 when Pratt first nullified the law, Miller said in the statement.

Rep. Jane Greimann, D-Ames, said she expected the ruling.

“This violates the rights of people who have already served their time,” she said.

Greimann said some people fear those convicted of sex crimes, and the law was a response to that. She said she expects more comparable laws to be written because she believes fear of sex offenders will continue to be an issue.

Acker said she believed the law was difficult to enforce.

“[The law] wasn’t working to protect children the way it was intended to,” she said.

Teachers work hard to know how children are expected to get home and who they should go with, Acker said.

Ben Stone, executive director of the Iowa Civil Liberties Union, said although he was happy with the ruling, Pratt’s ruling did not effectively deal with the real issue, which is the impracticality of the law.

“You can’t just go into court and say, ‘Your Honor, this law is dumb,'” Stone said.