Putting Trump’s Travel Ban and IML into Perspective

It’s been just over one week since Trump’s Travel Ban targeted certain immigrants and global citizens.  For those who followed this act day by day, it was very tumultuous week.  During the first few days, foreign green card holders and visa holders were instantly deported back to the country where their flight came from.  Some were detained for questioning by DHS and released.  The US government revoked between 60,000 and 100,000 visas that it previously approved for travel.   Civil rights and immigration attorneys quickly filed lawsuits.  One week later,…

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Lawsuits target California cities for residential restrictions on sex offenders

The City of Fullerton will consider repealing residency restrictions on sex offenders at its Tuesday City Council meeting. The city currently prohibits registered sex offenders from residing within 2,000 ft. of any school, park or day care center. But a 2015 California Supreme Court decision struck down similar restrictions in San Diego County, and the decision has been widely interpreted as a rollback of statewide residency restrictions established by voters in 2006 through Proposition 83, known as Jessica’s Law. Full Article

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WI: Perfectly legal – Sex offenders living inside child safety zones the norm in Wisconsin, otherwise, they’d be homeless

Municipalities have ordinances restricting where sex offenders can live. Most people support the idea because it helps us feel safe, but what the politicians who passed the rules probably didn’t tell you is that sex offenders who lived near a school, park, playground, daycare or other protected place before the ordinance, can stay there. In fact, they almost have to. Full Article

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NV: Attorney General Wants Tougher Lifetime Rules for Sex Offenders

Attorney General Adam Laxalt said Thursday he has requested legislation to allow the state’s parole system to impose additional lifetime conditions on sex offenders. Assembly Bill 59, drafted by Laxalt’s office, comes because of the McNeill v. State Nevada Supreme Court ruling in which the state Board of Parole Commissioners was found to not have the authority to put certain conditions on sex offenders. Proposed conditions in the legislation include warrantless searches of an offender’s residence and property, curfew requirements and requirements to participate in programs. Full Article

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Janice’s Journal: We Have Spoken!  We Have Been Heard!  We Will Return!       

We have spoken!  We have been heard!  We will return! Those three statements were uttered this week by 36 registrants, family members and supporters who met with elected officials and staffers in the State Capitol in Sacramento. It was the largest group EVER to lobby in support of registrant issues.  It was the largest group EVER to describe the challenges faced by registrants and their families. They spoke about how hard it is to find a place to live.  Landlords don’t want to rent an apartment to a family because…

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Say no to restorative justice for sex offenders (Opinion)

The debate around the Senate’s possible confirmation of Betsy DeVos, President-elect Trump’s nominee for Education Secretary, should kick start a national discussion on how colleges and universities handle sexual assault. Recently, much of that conversation has revolved around “restorative justice,” programs that aim to respond to misconduct or crime by redressing the harm inflicted on victims and the community, rather than simply punishing offenders. As a victim of childhood sexual abuse myself and an attorney who now represents sexual assault survivors every day, I can say without doubt that restorative…

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President Trump Nominates Judge Neil Gorsuch to the US Supreme Court

Today, President Donald J. Trump nominated Judge Neil Gorsuch of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit to fill the Supreme Court vacancy created by the passing of Justice Antonin Scalia. The nomination of Judge Gorsuch comes after a selection process marked by an unprecedented level of transparency and involvement by the American voters. White House News Release

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