By Alabama Public Radio
Montgomery, AL – Alabama's Department of Homeland Security is getting some criticism because it has ordered criminal background checks on Hurricane Katrina evacuees who are temporarily living in Alabama's state parks. Department Director Jim Walker is defending the practice, saying Alabamians have a right to know who is living in their parks. Jeff Emerson, a spokesman for Governor Bob Riley, says the checks will help protect children from registered sex offenders who might be among the evacuees. So far, the police agencies that have requested the information have not announced if any fugitives or sex-offenders have been discovered. Evacuees' names are being sent through the F-B-I's National Crime Information Center. As of this week, more than 12-hundred hurricane evacuees are still living in one of Alabama's 13 state parks.