Following a high-profile murder case involving two Orange County parolees, state lawmakers are again considering more time behind bars for sex offenders who tamper with GPS monitoring devices. Offenders currently face a mandatory six months in jail for removing or disabling GPS bracelets. But under a bill introduced this year by state Sen. Pat Bates of Laguna Niguel, they could face up to three years in prison. …
Bates called the state’s current penalties for tampering with GPS monitoring devices a “slap on the wrist” and argued that elevating the offense to a felony would help prevent future crimes. Full Article
Updated: Sex offender GPS monitoring bills sail through state committees (4/28)
This shows just how ridiculous politicians get trying to exploit registrants to the public on these things. Anyone who has followed this case knows that tampering with the two accused murderers are not accused of tampering with the GPS device during the murders.
Yeah what bs the guys were actually wearing their gps when they committed their offenses lot of good gps did huh
Just proves the arguments that registration, GPS and presence and residence restrictions do not stop crime.
That dude bates motel .. I mean from niguel ..Ooooh tampering..you mean like tampering with evidence after its presented ..? ..tampering like huddled in a back hallway conference removing evidence from record..??..tampering is an equal opportunity crime..even for some orange county court personnel wouldn’t you say bates..?..what are you going to do about tampering with evidence in your orange county courtroom bates..?….hypocrite coward cover-up tampering policy…?????…..make sure you put in that proposal that the state and local are to handle the device with costs, charging, and maintenance fully on state and local departments.
I notice its another newbie with another pointless law or amendment to a law against registrants. This time its Pat Bates, fresh into office in Dec 2014. I also notice Chris Kelly is CEO of the New Leaders Council. Why is Chris Kelly so concerned with new leaders when it seems like the only thing on his mind when not pushing for internet identifer reporting for SO’s is other laws to maliciously hurt SO’s and their familes?
Maybe he preys on new leaders and tries to bribe them. Letting Chris Kelly sink his nazi cyber-fascist, anti-‘human rights’ tentacles into you, as a new leader only shows potential for corruption and lack of backbone that a new leader should have to help, rather than hurt the populace and shows that as a new leader, you’ve already failed and should resign immediately.
WTF is this?!???!!!
” Orange County murder case demonstrated the need for tighter penalties.”
You would think it’s pretty obvious that the Orange County murder case demonstrated the uselessness of GPS monitoring! But then again I would suppose that in a for profit justice system getting rid of GPS monitoring (no matter how obviously useless it is) would mean a loss of revenue; and by golly, nobody working off of the for profit justice system wants that!!!!!
each time I think I have seen the epitomy of stupid someone always steps up with something even more way out there than the previous mental insult!
I’m afraid that after every day passes, I am losing hope that this will at some time be resolved. As I served my almost 10 year sentence, I watched in silent horror as the legislators and other powers that be, removed bits and pieces of my Constitution. I believe, the real damage began when the ca Supreme Court decided that a plea bargain in open court is no longer a contract. How convenient!
How can people ever think that what is happening right now, the daily, if not hourly destruction of more lives under the guise of public safety, is an acceptable human practice?
This is just heart-breaking.
I’m a sex offender and I hate the GPS just as much as anyone. That said, everyone claiming the OC case shows how useless GPS is are making a false point. The men were discovered in large part by their GPS tracks. Granted, it did not stop the murders, but the GPS isn’t solely for the purpose of stopping crime. Everyone, including law enforcement, knows that GPS cannot stop someone who wants to commit a crime (other than serve as a deterrent). However, it can be used in aiding policing, which is exactly what happened here.
We don’t help ourselves at all when we make poor arguments.
I don’t really mind harsher penalties for tampering with GPS, but if there is a point to be made here, it is that this case doesn’t involve tampering at all. This is fear-mongering at its finest.
this is how megans law got started. some idiot wants to go kidnap, rape, and murder a little girl, and now EVERY other sex offender has to suffer.
I do not know much about parole. Can someone please enlighten me?
I am under the impression that GPS supervision while on parole is part of the sentence for a criminal conviction. As such cutting off a GPS monitor is a parole violation which I would think would result in consequences for the violator. How can it be a new and separate crime – a felony, no less.
Thanks in advance.
It did not take freshman Senator Bates long to jump on the RSO Bandwagon. Nothing like kicking off one’s political career in a new place with a slam dunk issue. A few years ago she was front and center as an Orange County Supervisor when the OCDA was lobbying for the since then invalidated parks ban.
Ironically she made the news after that as her desire to protect the children from roaming bands of dangerous sex fiends was somewhat tempered when it benefited her personally, or her personal friends.
http://www.ocregister.com/taxdollars/strong-478868-county-waiver.html
Is it possible she has forgotten?
Joe said “would result in consequences for the violator. How can it be a new and separate crime – a felony, no less.”
I also wonder how it is possible to get a 3 year sentence for a parole violation of a crime with parole for a sentence that could have been initially less than 3 years.
Joe said in a different post “GPS clearly did not prevent the murders. If it truly aided in solving crime the second, …”
It did not aid in the solving of any of the ALLEGED crimes. What purportedly solved these crimes was the finding of the last body and the DNA on file of every felon/SO in the DNA data. Police already had their DNA on file, thanks to prop 67. To make it look like GPS played a role in the solving of the crime, the police alleged they had to collect Cano’s discarded chewing gum, a newspaper article said. The initial buzz around this case was more accurate that the system needs to be looked at. Darryl Steinberg, then Assembly Speaker, I think was on to some similar points about a failure of the system and registrants being homeless and what that could lead to in rare cases. This analysis makes more sense than the recent buzz which is giving GPS credit for crime-solving it does not deserve and appears to be pork for tech entrpreneurs like Lifelock/ID Analytics, LexisNexis or FaceBook/Chris Kelly.
Eric Knight, that was the most accurate well written posting I possibly have ever seen.
GPS has been ruled by SCOTUS as a search and requires a warrant.
Well, no one should be able to tamper or cut off their GPS. First, I’m not aware of the current laws regarding the use of GPS ankle braclets, but I’ve heard of paroles cutting them off. How could you get a job? Shower? Cycle? What if you where an avid swimmer? So, if not mistaken, I believe they should bd investigating those who where supposed to be monitoring these individuals/I believe their braclets where intact? So, why make harsher penalties? I believe that those in charge of paroles had a big meeting and realized they where overwhelmed with paroles/large case loads and this is also one of the reasons a tiered system needs to be instituted. Stop complaining and take action.