During the five years in which this organization has existed, we have often heard a wish expressed – that registrants in California be treated differently, not the same. That wish was expressed in many variations including that registrants should be treated differently according to their current risk or that registrants should be treated differently according to the offense for which they were convicted.
Those wishes are now nearing reality in the form of a tiered registry bill expected to be introduced in the state legislature early next year. As drafted, the bill would treat registrants differently based upon both their current risk and the offense for which they were convicted by assigning them to tiers that would allow some registrants to automatically be removed from the registry while others could petition for removal after 10 or 20 years. A final group would continue to remain on the registry for their lifetime.
If the proposed tiered registry bill becomes law, more than 10,000 registrants would “immediately” stop registering and about 60,000 registrants would “ultimately” stop registering.
The organization therefore is faced with a “Sophie’s choice”. Do we agree to the “immediate” liberation of more than 10,000 registrants from the punishments inflicted by the registry and the “ultimate” liberation of about 60,000 registrants from the same punishments? Or do we oppose the tiered registry because those who remain on the registry could be viewed as posing a greater risk than they actually do? And if that latter choice is selected, all registrants will continue to suffer from the punishments inflicted by the registry for their lifetime.
The board of directors discussed this topic in depth a week ago during its annual face-to-face meeting. No consensus was reached, however, in part because a copy of the bill was not yet available. Now that the bill has become available, the choice the board must make is even more stark.
The board of directors will meet again on December 8 and in the interim, the opinions of registrants and their families about the bill are being gathered. All opinions expressed prior to the meeting will be considered. The board of directors may or may not make a final decision regarding the bill on December 8, however, to ensure that your opinion is heard by the board of directors, please add your comment to this article before that date.
Thank you.
— by Janice Bellucci
Guide to Tiers on Tiered Registry Bill
(added on 11/21)
TIER 1 (10 years)
Misdemeanors
Indecent exposure (Pen. Code, § 314(1), (2)); sexual battery (Pen. Code, § 243.4(e)); inveigling/enticing a minor to have sex (Pen. Code, § 266); contacting a minor with intent to expose oneself or engage in lewd or lascivious behavior (Pen. Code, § 288.4(a)); possession of child pornography with intent to distribute, etc. (Pen. Code, § 311, 311.2); hiring a minor to perform prohibited acts (Pen. Code, § 311.4(a)); advertising for sale obscene matter depicting a minor (Pen. Code, § 311.10(a)); trafficking of a minor (Pen. Code, § 236.1(b), (c); possession of child pornography (Pen. Code, § 311.11(a)); annoy/molest a child under 18 (Pen. Code, § 647.6); contributing to the delinquency of a minor (Pen. Code, § 272).
Felonies
Inveigling/enticing a minor to have sex (Pen. Code, § 266); sending harmful matter to a minor (Pen. Code, § 288.2); contacting a minor with intent to commit a specified sexual offense (Pen. Code, § 288.3); contacting a minor with intent to expose oneself or engage in lewd or lascivious behavior (Pen. Code, § 288.4(a)); possession of child pornography with intent to distribute, etc. (Pen. Code, § 311, 311.2); hiring a minor to perform prohibited acts (Pen. Code, § 311.4(a)); advertising for sale obscene matter depicting a minor (Pen. Code, § 311.10(a)); trafficking of a minor (Pen. Code, § 236.1(b), (c); possession of child pornography (Pen. Code, § 311.11(a).)
TIER 2 (20 years)
The following offenses, most of which are serious or violent described in subdivision (c) of section 667.5 or subdivision (c) of section 1192.7:
Assault with intent to commit described sex crimes (Pen. Code, § 220); rape (Pen. Code, § 261); spousal rape with force or violence ((Pen. Code, § 262); rape in concert (Pen. Code, § 264.1); abduction for purposes of prostitution (Pen. Code, § 267); incest (Pen. Code, § 285); forcible sodomy or sodomy of a minor under 14 (Pen. Code, § 286); lewd or lascivious acts with a child under 14 (Pen. Code, § 288); continuous sexual abuse of a child (Pen. Code, § 288.5); forcible oral copulation or oral copulation of a minor under 14 (Pen. Code, § 288a); forcible foreign object penetration or foreign object penetration of a minor under 14 (Pen. Code, § 289, subds. (b), (d), (e)); sexual battery (Pen. Code, § 243.4(a), (d)); solicitation of rape (Pen. Code, § 653f, subd. (c)); trafficking a minor (Pen. Code, § 236.1, subds. (b), (c); out-of-state sex offenders required to register in California whose offense is not equivalent to a California registrable offense (Pen. Code, § 290.005).
TIER 3 (Lifetime)
Murder with intent to commit a specified sex offense (Pen. Code, § 187)
Kidnap with intent to commit a specified sex offense (Pen. Code, § 207, 209)
Sexually violent predators (Welf. & Inst. Code, § 6600 et seq.)
Sex offenders sentenced to life term (Pen. Code, § 667.71)
Repeat felony child molestation (Pen. Code, § 288(a))
Forcible lewd or lascivious act on a child under 14 (Pen. Code, § 288(b))
Aggravated child molestation (Pen. Code, § 269)
Sex crimes with child age 10 or younger (Pen. Code, § 288.7)
Registered sex offenders who are convicted of a second and violent sex offense
Assault with intent to commit a specified sex offense in the commission of a first degree burglary (Pen. Code, § 220(b))
Offenders with well above average risk level (formerly denominated high risk) on the state static risk assessment instrument (Pen. Code, § 290.04)
Habitual sexual offenders (Pen. Code, § 667.71)
Out-of-state sex offenders in California who have been assessed with well above average risk level on the state static risk assessment instrument (Pen. Code, § 290.04)
Out-of-state sex offenders in California who have ever been civilly committed to a mental hospital in a proceeding equivalent to California’s sexually violent predator proceedings (Welf. & Inst. Code, § 6600 et seq.)
Offenders sentenced to 15 or 25 years to life for an offense listed in Section 667.61
Note: All described registrable offenses include any attempt or conspiracy to commit these crimes.
Related
Los Angeles DA to Co-Sponsor Tiered Registry Bill
Read all Janice’s Journals
Bill or no bill, I can’t help but think that the scum-politicians will simply do a work-around and change the wording of existing laws from “registered sex offender” to “convicted sex offender”, so there would be no relief whether one remains on the Registry of not – all laws, regulations and restrictions would still apply. Still subject to IML and Angel Watch bullshit. Still no visiting your kid’s school for PTA, softball game or holiday play performance. I’m sorry, but I have no trust in pandering polititicians – while they shake with their right hand, they’re stabbing you in the back with their left. Besides, speaking from a strictly selfish perspective, I have no idea what tier/assessed risk level I am, but I don’t imagine this will change my life in any way. However….. the simple act of introducing this bill and the discussion (and possibly public interest) it might encourage, could benefit all of us if the public looks at the reasons the bill is being introduced, the facts, the research, etc. …. and the unconstitutional travesty of neverending punishment.
I have never been scored for the Static 99, so I was wondering at what point in the process a convicted offender is scored, and is that score updated when the actuarial test is later changed? It looks like the Static. 99 has gone through continuous mutation since its inception, with varying accuracy results.
http://forensicpsychologist.blogspot.com/2015/04/static-99-yet-more-bumps-on-rocky.html
Someone could be put in a high risk catagory one year, to maybe be rescored and have a lower risk when the test is updated. So it looks like with this bill you are stuck with the score from whatever incarnation of the test they had at the time.
lets clear this up since this organization is either incompetent or they left out the most common offense on the registry in their assesment of the tiers purposely for some unknown reason..
a simple 288.(a) lewd and lascivious acts with a minor under 14 is a tier two offense….that means if you have this offense and have never reoffended or if you attempted or conspired to commit this offense you will be a tier two…Jesus people the bill is incredibly straight forward and even this organization cant explain it correctly…wowww
Regarding: Guide to Tiers on Tiered Registry Bill
Can someone please advise. I read through the Guide to the Tiers that was added to this article. Does Tier 1 include all misdemeanors? I didn’t see 288 (C) (1) listed anywhere up there. 288 (C) (1) is a wobbler, and I had it reduced to a misdemeanor. So, I’m wondering if that would also be under Tier 1?
Thank you for all of your hard work with all of this!!!
For the same reason I would have fought this if it didn’t go my way, my family, is the same reason I’m going to have to support it. My wife and kids have suffered way to much and deserve a shot at relief. It’s all we got right now and I’m willing to taking a chance in front of a judge. That’s what I’ve been asking for for 20 years. I’m hopeful this will eventually help everyone down the line. It’s not perfect by any means but what in life is. God bless everyone in this mess.
One thing I need to know about this bill. What about those who were entrapped by Perverted Justice on “To Catch a Predator”? Where will they stand? No, I wasn’t one of them, but I hate that!
You know what’s going to be “fun”? Let’s say this passes, you’ve worked hard to be removed and finally you’re off only to find 50+ internet sites that still say you’re on the registry and they could care less if it’s correct info or not.
This statute listed under tier 3 is confusing, as no mention of a single conviction is listed any where that I can see:
” Repeat felony child molestation (Pen. Code, § 288(a))”
what tier is one conviction?
My son was convicted 261.5c and 261.5d and scored 2 on static 99. Anyone have any clue what tier he would be? Thank you in advance.
Obviously, asking for opinions on such a confusing, ambiguous and incomplete proposal raises more questions than answers.
I would prefer to see strategies to eliminate the registry (as it stands) entirely and respectful arguments why they would or would not work.
For instance: In my sentence, I was required to register for life. At the time of my sentence registering entailed only specific requirements and hardships which the judge was aware of.
Those have been changed dramatically without due process which has in effect changed the sentence the judge levied on me and all those like me?
The judges sentenced most of us to a simple notification process to keep law enforcement aware of our location for apprehension or questioning (in case a sexual crime was committed) and consistent with the foundation of the origin of the law.
For the state to arbitrarily increase our sentence with reckless disregard for the consequences to us and our families is clearly a breach of our right to a fair hearing before another court of law; Furthermore, to require us to seek relief from registering by proving we are no longer a threat places the burden of proof upon us instead of the court.
Is it any wonder that most people are wary of the state and their intentions, with this proposed tiered bill?
After reading the proposed bill and the comments, I really think this should not be supported. The name of this organization has the word CONSTITUTIONAL in it. A registry is unconstitutional no matter if it has tiers or not. It is still a registry. Whatever happened to the 17 year assessment CASOMB had in their report? I think everyone that was convicted in the last century should be dropped from the list. I really think that they should practice what they preach, and so should this organization. I donate, but if this is passed, I will not donate again as I will not support and fund my own demise.
a tiered registry is still a unconstitutional registry..a ducks a duck no matter what color or species of duck it is it’s still a duck…this and Mos organizations have already conceded defeat….they are either to incompetent or are simply unwilling to attempt a real strike against the government…bottom line…
miker, thanks for your insite and sharing clarity to this bill. But did you have to insult people doing there best to help. We all know legislation is written by lawyers for lawerys so its not always easy for the everyday Joe to understand the language as written.
We all feel frustrated from time to time as its difficult to deal with the consquinces of our actions and the pain we caused others because of them. Unfortunately society looks at us with destrust because they belive we have no control of our actions, and to be honest there is a small percent that trully are a danger to society and should be locked up for life. We all know this to be fact. Unforgently we all pay for this irrational fear of soicity’s bogeyman (RSO).
As its said many times here, we need to educate people too the fact we’re not all the same and the odds of the bogeyman taking our children is one in ten million, and registration does not keep them safe.
A tier registration is a start in that direction in my humble openion.
Keep up the hard work, I do look forward to your input and view on the fight to protect the constitutional rights of all RSO and continue to educate people on actual facts about sexual offence crimes and the likelihood to reoffend.
What happens if you are a level 2 or 3 and have already been granted a certificate of rehabilitation ? Do you get off or does the cor mean nothing ?
Janice et al didn’t write the legislation, some of the comments here make it sound like she can add and subtract certain provisions. I think you guys should support it. Is it perfect? No. Is the registry constitutional? Debatable. But it is not going away any time soon, and like you said before, baby steps, little victories. Once the law is in place, it will be easier to amend and change, but to get this even to be voted on is a milestone. More attention to our situation. Personally, I love the idea of being able to petition to get off in 2 years time, and that is a heck of a lot better than the prospect of never getting off. So, do we LOVE the bill? No. Is it livable? People, we have not a leg to stand on, so any relief or potential for relief has to be seen as a godsend.
The proposed bill is unjust in a number of ways. Why treat attempts just as harshly as completed crimes? Why is tier 3 for life? Why isn’t data the basis of the policy?
But if we object, what options do we have?
Do we have a seat at the table?
I doubt it.
What leverage would we have over the drafters or those voting on the bill?
I think we have to start asking ourselves, What would Karl Rove do if he were in tier 3? What would Saul Alinsky do? There are many ways to influence policymakers.
Wouldn’t the abolishment of the registry happen on a federal level? I still don’t understand how this bill affects the goal of abolishing the registry. I was under the impression that at some point the constitutionality of the registry will be fought at the Supreme Court where all the new evidence and restrictions that didn’t exist 13 years ago wil be presented. Won’t this happen with or without a tiered registry in CA?
I dont mean to demean or insult anyone but damn I’m frustrated as hellllll with all the bs like go get your lawyers do it yourself and be realistic we don’t have a leg to stand on or a chance in helll of winning a real victory for a complete overhaul of the registry simply because it’s too big to much money and to many entities suckling off the teet of the scheme…just think about what your saying…if everyone in our countries history conceded defeat with or without ever fighting sometimes to the death for causes others believed would never prevail where do you think our country would be as far as rights are concerned..we would still have slavery,interment camps,segregation of all the races,no womens rights, still under kings rule, etc etc….think hard about what I said…we are Americans just like our predecessors at least I am and I will fight tooth and nail to the death for my god giving rights and it bothers the hellllll out of me hearing all you people including these organizations conceding defeat and refusing to fight for us….their the civil rights leaders,their the ones with the organizations who are supposed to be representing us….screw it I’m done pissing in the wind on here,at least for awhile… I cant stand to read some of these post…some of you people are so pessimistic and so defeated willing to throw in the towel before even putting up a real fight on the real issues… its depressing…go do it yourself then, build your own site then, blah blah blah…pethetic….
There something I do not understand. Why is anyone suing the governances for perpetrations of lies? We have supported facts that RC are far less dangerous than the government is claiming. This tiered registry bill, IML, AWA and just about all RC laws are based on lies. All governing bodies NEED to be HELD ACCOUNTABLE and cut the tree down and dig out roots and stop, just trimming the limbs.
Isn’t anyone concerned that these tiers will start a new wave of anti-sex offender legislation aimed mostly at Tier 3?
They will then have the advantage of calling the laws “narrowly tailored” and even Janice won’t be able to stop them, and may not even commit the resources to do so.
Yep…the DA knows what he is doing.
He knows that statistically from Texas numbers that judges will only approve of 1/3 of the requests to be removed from the registry (no matter how much any deserve to get off) and that by splitting everyone up into tiers you’ve divided up the offenders into smaller groups that won’t help each other.
Doesn’t sound like moving forward, but may get a select few out of their nightmare until they change the rules again.
Harry you’re exactly right..ill repeat what I’ve said before I’m dumbfounded and it’s beyond comprehension that no one has or will challenge the Courts and the government on the exact issue you stated..they conceded defeat without even putting up a real fight…and yes Chris I myself am extreemly worried that when this bill passed,and I say when because it’s going to in some form, it’s going to open the door and bring a flood of old and new legislation im afraid is going to be aimed at tier two and three offenders and that that legislation will blow thru the process without any chance of being stopped outside of the courts…it will also make it that much harder to prevail in court also because like I’ve said the government will say it’s narrowly tailored only to those still on the registry who by their junk science and false or misrepresented data must pose a significant threat to the public or they wouldn’t be on the registry . we will once again become targets for legislators to pass laws with impunity…hate to be pessimistic and cynical but that’s reality….
Would like to review the..”BILL” in detail to see how they come to their conclusions and hope Janice and team will get to revisit the DOCS before it goes into SAC’s Senate/House/Gov. Before drafting completes. GOOD LUCK TEAM. Not all clear. Most comments in over some time here.
Based on the nearly 300 comments so far, it appears that a majority of respondents are against this draft in its present form. If the Board decided to go ahead and support this and it became law, it is probably safe to assume that among those whose lives would be negatively impacted, many would feel that ACSOL sold them out and they would have a difficult time justifying further contributions to ACSOL. I’m not sure to what extent ACSOL depends on contributions to operate and fund their legal challenges, but I’m assuming it is probably significant. Supporting this draft could become a “cutting the nose to spite the face” kind of situation for the Board, which would not bode well for the future of the organization if it wants to continue fighting the fight. ACSOL is an organization we simply CANNOT afford to lose.
Janice what’s your opinion on the issues being discussed here? we’ve heard very little from your organization about our responses and concerns….please respond to our concerns and really take the time to explain exactly what you and your team really want to happen with the registry and why hasn’t anyone challenged the government justification for these laws that were only able to pass their original scrutiny because of misrepresentations of facts…you could actually help us know if we agree or disagree with your policies…these are big questions for me and a lot of others on this site..
Two counts 288(a) from same situation.. I don’t see that listed here. Definitely non-violent classification.
Now I am thoroughly confused. Mine doesn’t seem to fit into Lifetime, but it’s also not listed in 20 year status. If by any luck i’m in 20 year status, then it means I would be off registry in just 3 more years.