Faulty GPS tracking devices and overworked state parole officers led to the death of a young mother whose mangled body was found at an Anaheim trash recycling center, according to a lawsuit filed by the victim’s mother. Full Article
Read MoreYear: 2015
WI: Bill would crack down on homeless sex offenders
MADISON (WITI) — They are tough to track and they’re roaming the streets. The number of homeless sex offenders are on the rise, and there’s a new plan to fix the problem. Full Article
Read MoreIs It Time to Revisit Sex Offender Supervision for Life?
In the mid-1990s, Americans were shocked by several high-profile child victim sex offenses. In New Jersey, the abduction, rape and murder of seven-year-old Megan Kanka by a paroled sex offender who lived across the street horrified the state and spurred action by elected officials and state agencies. Full Article
Read MoreInmate Claims Jailers Encouraged Beating
FRESNO, Calif. (CN) – Sheriff’s deputies in California’s Central Valley opened a cell door to let inmates join in the beating of an alleged child molester, the man claims in court. ____ ____ sued Tulare County on May 13, alleging assault and battery, failure to intervene and constitutional violations. ____, who had no prior criminal record, was arrested by Exeter police in 2014 on a warrant from Los Angeles County stemming from an alleged incident of inappropriate contact with a minor 12 years ago. The accuser was in her late…
Read MoreSC: Columbia lawmaker pushes for juvenile sex offender registry reform
COLUMBIA — A South Carolina lawmaker is on a mission to change the way the state treats juvenile sex offenders. House Minority Leader Rep. Todd Rutherford, D-Columbia, has introduced a bill that would allow teens who have been convicted of any sex offense and have been placed on the offenders registry to petition the courts to remove their names once they turn 21. … “By branding them that early, we have destroyed their lives,” he said. “We’ve got to figure out how to make it better.” He isn’t alone in…
Read MoreNC: Freedom Christian principal ‘exploded’ when told to keep sex offender off campus, documents say
When Joan Dayton, head of Freedom Christian Academy, was told she could not allow a registered sex offender on campus and keep it quiet, a former staff member said she “exploded,” according to court documents. Full Article
Read MoreNY: State Senate Enacts ‘Brittany’s Law’
New York State Senator Mike Nozzolio today announced that the State Senate has taken significant and important action in adopting a tougher stance against violent crime by enacting the “Domestic Violence Prevention Act-Brittany’s Law.” This legislation, Senate Bill 513, sponsored by Nozzolio, will create a publically accessible registry of convicted violent felons. Full Article
Read MoreIL: Granite City to begin collecting $100 fee from sex offenders
Sex offenders in Granite City will soon have to start paying a $100 fee to register with police, as required by law. In 2010, the state increased the annual fee for sex offender registration from $10 to $100 a year. But even before that action, the fee largely wasn’t being collected in the majority of Illinois municipalities, according to news reports, because most of the convicted sex offenders could not afford it. Full Article
Read MoreThe Disappearing Sex Offender (Opinion)
As a legislator, one of the biggest concerns I have is public safety. Keeping the public safe from the many dangers that are prevalent in today’s society is a challenge. One area of work I have spent a great deal of time on is keeping children safe from sex abuse. And unfortunately, I have found that there are too many things that are a false sense of security. One I have a big problem with is the sex offender registry. The research shows that sex offender registries don’t reduce recidivism.…
Read MoreRSOL Conference in Dallas – June 25-27
We are excited to announce that our seventh annual conference will be held in Dallas Texas, June 25-27. Cost of the conference is $100. You can get a discounted rate of $80 if you sign up before June 1. Texas residents also get a discounted rate of $75, and RSOL members can sign up for $70. So don’t delay – Sign up TODAY! Seasoned advocates and professionals are aware of the enormous obstacles we face as we seek more rational sentencing for those convicted of sexual related offenses and restoration of…
Read MoreOUR OPINION: Restricting where sex offenders can live will not stop abuse
Maine – It’s hard to fault the Biddeford City Council for wanting to do something, anything, to help assuage the fears and frustrations related to the sexual abuse allegations that have come to light in recent months. The stories of abuse and the subsequent shame, anger and depression are enough to make your heart ache and blood boil, and to compel you to do whatever you can to make sure it doesn’t happen again. Restricting where child sex offenders can live, as Biddeford councilors did on Tuesday, is the most…
Read MoreMinnesota TV reporter asks tough questions about sex offender laws
As we’ve noted before at The Watch, local news tends to sensationalize and fearmonger, especially when it comes to issues involving crime, sex, kids, drugs or some combination of the four. So it’s worth pointing out when a local news reporter does great work. Here’s some praise for Dan Hanger, a reporter for Fox 21 in Duluth, Minn., for his recent provocative and challenging series on sex offender laws. Full Article Related Preview: Sex Offender Stigma Sex Offender Stigma: Should One Label Fit All? Sex Offender Stigma 2: Does Treatment…
Read MoreYou may be a sex offender and not ever know it
Because I walk around the house naked way more than my wife would prefer, she recently played a joke on me. As I sometimes like to do, I donned only flip-flops to enter our garage and get something from my tool shelf. I was a full 20 feet inside when I heard the garage door rumble open. Full Article
Read MoreMD: Lawsuit – Sex offender requirements applied retroactively
BALTIMORE — A class-action lawsuit claims the rights of at least 800 people listed on the Maryland Sex Offender Registry have been violated. The lawsuit, filed Friday in Baltimore City Circuit Court, says the state retroactively increased the length of time certain sex offenders had to remain on the registry. The Maryland Declaration of Rights prohibits laws that retroactively criminalize an act or impose a more severe penalty than was set when the act was committed. Full Article
Read MoreDo Sex Offender Registration Laws Do Any Good?
Last month a federal judge ruled that certain aspects of Michigan’s Sex Offenders Registration Act (SORA) are unconstitutionally vague. Sex offenders, for example, are forbidden to live, work, or “loiter” within 1,000 feet of “school property.” U.S. District Judge Robert Cleland noted that such “school safety zones” are not clearly defined, making it difficult to comply with the law. He said the term loiter is vague as well: Does it apply, say, to people attending their children’s parent-teacher conferences or their grandchildren’s school plays? Cleland said two other rules—requiring registrants…
Read MoreMyths and research on sex offender registries
Studies show that while public sex offender registries sound like a good way to keep a community safe, the numbers tell a different story. And widely held beliefs turn out to be myths — among the more prevalent is that most sex offenders are pedophiles who might snatch a child from a park or bus stop. Here are the myths, and the research that debunks them. Full Article Related from the Detroit Free Press MI: Does Michigan’s sex offender registry keep us safer?
Read MoreNE: Omaha Church Hires a Formerly Registered Citizen
Here’s a day-brightener: Omaha’s Lifegate Church hired as a pastor a man who used to be on the Iowa sex offender registry. [The pastor] didn’t serve any jail time and his name has been removed from Iowa’s sex offender registry after 10 years. In a news release, Lifegate Church said, “In considering Mike and Sharla for our Lifegate team, we fully informed ourselves through an exhaustive research, interview, prayer and consulting process that lasted several months.” Full Article From Nebraskans Unafraid
Read MoreThe most prestigious legal body in America is considering changing the Model Penal Code to criminalize holding your girlfriend’s hand on a date
The American Law Institute is the most important and most prestigious organization of legal scholars and prominent attorneys in the United States. The ALI drafts model laws that become statutes and Restatements of the Law that are widely cited as authority in judicial opinions. Full Article
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