Today the New York Times published an editorial, “The Pointless Banishment of Sex Offenders”, which questions the adoption by some states, counties and cities of residency restrictions which prohibit where a registered citizen may live. The editorial notes that such restrictions have resulted in sending “tens of thousands of people to the fringes of society, forcing them to live in motels, out of cars or under bridges” and that “there is not a single piece of evidence” that these restrictions protect children. The editorial also notes that “judges have been…
Read MoreMonth: September 2015
GROVER BEACH REPEALS RESIDENCY RESTRICTIONS FOLLOWING LAWSUIT CHALLENGE
The City Council of Grover Beach, in a vote of 5 to 0, voted on September 8 to repeal a city ordinance that prohibited California sex offenders (“registrants”) from living within 2,000 feet of any school, park, or day care center. The action follows a lawsuit filed on June 17 by California Reform Sex Offender Laws President and attorney Janice Bellucci on behalf of registrant Frank Lindsay who has resided in Grover Beach for 18 years. “This decision is important because it recognizes that residency restrictions do not increase public…
Read MoreEDITORIAL The Pointless Banishment of Sex Offenders (Editorial)
It’s a chilling image: the sex predator skulking in the shadows of a swing set, waiting to snatch a vulnerable child. Over the past two decades, that scenario has led to a wave of laws around the country restricting where people convicted of sex offenses may live — in many cases, no closer than 2,500 feet from schools, playgrounds, parks or other areas where children gather. In some places, these “predator-free zones” put an entire town or county off limits, sometimes for life, even for those whose offenses had nothing…
Read MoreMD: Study of Balto. Co. – Fewer sex offenses reported in neighborhoods with more registered sex offenders
Amid a growing national debate over sex offender registries, researchers who studied years of crime data from Baltimore County have released a new finding: Neighborhoods with more registered sex offenders experienced fewer reported sex offenses. The researchers from Princeton University and the University of Michigan, who chose Baltimore County because it was the first place they found where they could get all the data they sought, say the finding underscores misconceptions about where and how sex crimes are most likely to occur. Full Article
Read MoreAL: Sex offender statutes turn productive citizens into homeless pariahs
The Constitution’s ex post facto clause prohibits passing a law that retroactively increases the punishment for a criminal act that an offender committed before the law was passed. But in an ingenious 2003 Supreme Court ruling, a 6-3 conservative majority held that retroactive placement on a state sex offender registry–being put on a registry that was created after an offender committed his crime–doesn’t violate ex post facto because registration isn’t punishment. Full Article
Read MoreKenya: Sex offenders’ register to help curb the vice
The catalogue of heartbreaking reports on defilement that continue to pour in from across the counties make for depressing reading. …It’s time Parliament seriously considered establishing a sex offenders registry for all accused and convicted sex offenders to brand the accusers who currently easily get away with the crime. Full Opinion Piece
Read MoreNC: Teen Boy Will Be Charged As Adult For Having Naked Pics of a Minor: Himself
A North Carolina 17-year-old caught in a sexting scandal faces charges of sexually exploiting a minor that could land him in jail for up to 10 years, since the law considers him an adult. But one of the minors he supposedly exploited is himself—which raises an obvious question: how can a teen be old enough to face adult felony charges, but not old enough to keep a nude picture of himself on his phone? Full Article
Read MoreA new name and a new law claiming to fight child sex abuse, and guess what? THIS one will work!
We could say the names in our sleep—Megan’s Law; the Adam Walsh Act; Polly Klass; Jessica’s Law; Lauren Book; Chelsea’s Law; Laura Ahearn; and so many others. They all mark milestones for laws and policies and mandates and programs that claim to fight child sexual abuse. More than one has launched the major participant to fame, fortune, or a political stepping-stone. They all claim to be pro-victim—but they aren’t. They are pro-registry. They are pro-public notification. They are pro-lifetime punishment for those who have committed any one of over 200…
Read MoreGuam: Sex offenders to get chemical castration
HAGATNA, Guam — The Guam Legislature Thursday narrowly passed a bill for the creation of a pilot program to chemically castrate convicted sex offenders. The Chemical Castration for Sex Offenders Act passed 8-7, according to a release from the legislature. Full Article Related Guam Passes Legislation To Chemically Castrate Convicted Sex Offenders
Read MoreThe fishy claim that ‘100,000 children’ in the United States are in the sex trade
This is a commonly cited statistic in the media and among politicians when discussing the sex trade involving children under the age of 18. Frequently, it is provided without any source, though ECPAT’s Web site attributed it to 2010 congressional testimony by Ernie Allen, at the time president of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). Full Article
Read MoreSenate Passes Internet Identifier Bill (SB 448)
By a vote of 39 to 0, the Senate passed internet identifier bill SB 448 on September 2. The bill is now eligible for consideration by the Assembly. “We must continue to assert pressure upon the Assembly to stop this bill,” stated CA RSOL president Janice Bellucci. “This bill has been rushed through the legislative process and needs more careful consideration.” The legislature is scheduled to end its deliberations for the calendar year on September 11. In order for SB 448 to be passed by the Assembly, the bill would…
Read MoreNH: Sex registry questioned after prep school grad’s conviction
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) – A graduate of an elite prep school who was convicted of having sexual contact with a 15-year-old classmate as part of a game of sexual conquest will be required to register as a sex offender for life, a punishment his lawyer likens to being branded and legal experts and reform advocates say exceeds the crime. Full Article
Read MoreGeneral Comments September 2015
Comments that are not specific to a certain post should go here, for the month of September 2015. Contributions should relate to the cause and goals of this organization and please, keep it courteous and civil.
Read MoreNM: Farmington therapist’s practice offers juvenile sex offenders a second chance
FARMINGTON — A Farmington therapist stands by her belief that young people who commit sex offenses are worthy of a second chance at a healthy, normal life. Full Article
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