COLUMBUS, Ohio -- A story that outraged many Central Ohioans is now raising serious questions about penalties and the law.
Convicted sex offender Alan Patton has been caught numerous times collecting the urine of boys from bathrooms, NBC 4's Marcus Thorpe reported.
Investigators said Patton would drink the urine he collected. He has been convicted of crimes before, but there is no law for the urine fetish.
The fist time, Patton was sentenced to probation. But in his most recent case, he served 60 days in jail.
A new law has been introduced at the statehouse, making it illegal to collect bodily fluids without permission.
The man who said he caught Patton in the act testified at a hearing for the proposed law on Wednesday.
Two people came face-to-face with Patton, including an officer who tracked his every move.
"We were left wondering what we could charge Alan Patton with," said Officer Ken Coontz, of Columbus police.
The other person was Shawn Koser, a Columbus firefighter and dad who was taking his daughter to the movies.
"He saw me come in the room (and) retreated to the stall, pulled the door closed," Koser said.
In 2006, Koser said, he saw Patton lurking.
"I thought he was a pedophile, didn't know his intentions -- to collect urine and drink it," Koser said.
Police had an eye on Patton for years, including a trip to the Ohio State Fair.
"We followed him for six hours to the restroom for kids. He became so fixated on collecting urine, he didn't notice the same six people following him all day," Coontz said.
Senate Bill 58 passed the committee unanimously on Wednesday and is now on its way to the Senate.
Koser said he hopes the bill gets the fast track. As a sexual abuse victim, he worries about the tough answers parents have to come up with to explain the actions of a man like Patton.
"It has psychological impact with the kids. The restroom shouldn't be a place not safe to go and use in public," Koser said.
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