As repeatedly reported in Prison Legal News, for over a decade registered sex offenders have been targeted by vigilantes and assaulted, robbed and murdered due to their past crimes. And as noted in this issue’s cover story, that is part of the dark side of sex offender registries, which allow public access to offenders’ residential addresses and other personal information. Such information not only endangers registered sex offenders but also those who live with them and, in at least one case in Dallas, Texas, an innocent victim. That Dallas man, who was beaten with a baseball bat, had simply moved into an apartment recently vacated by a sex offender. Full Article
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General Comments May 2024
Comments that are not specific to a certain post should go here, for the month of... -
We need to reframe how we think about juvenile sex offenders
Source: salon.com 4/24/24 Most youth who exhibit problematic sexual behavior don’t need punishment. They need help... -
IL: DOC can’t outright ban parents convicted of sex offenses from speaking on the phone to their children while they are on supervised release
Source: courthousenews.com 4/19/24 CHICAGO — The Seventh Circuit ruled that the Illinois Department of Corrections may...
But if it saves just one child……
Can anyone cite a single instance where the registry actually prevent crime?
Vigilantes that committed crimes against registrants for being one and claiming that what they are doing is justifiable are no less evil and dangerous.
Let’s see, no evidence that the registry ever prevented a crime. However, overwhelming evidence of people being assaulted and killed because they’re on the registry. This is something so blatantly obvious that even SCOTUS would agree..
Wow!
So these are actual instances that have occurred. Why isn’t this brought up as a lawsuit considering how many incidences have occurred solely because of the registry?
What scared me the most was a the incident of a co-worker finding out someone is a sex offender. Crazy right?
This is a good compilation of sex offenders being targetted over the years since the registry was made public.
This should be included in any court exhibits to show the horrible negative aspects of the registry and how it does more than simply take away privacy.
Has anyone requested the outtakes and hidden files of the “To Catch a Predator” entrapment series under the Freedom of Information Act.
You know, the “Have a Seat” guy.
Vigilantes that engage in crimes against registrants for the things they’ve done and claim what they are doing is justifiable and reasonable are no less evil, and dangerous people. Vigilantes are criminals who engage in violent criminal acts against registrants that have paid their debts to society while living their lives normal and keeping out of trouble.
This is the stuff of futuristic dystopian novels. I didn`t know that , THAT many people have met their demise because they were mistaken for, or were a registrant. Un-freaking-believable.
Two wrongs, e.g. a public registry and a vigilante using it for their purposes, don’t make it right, e.g. accosting a registered person. This is what the courts and politicians have failed to see or don’t care about when they do see it.
Would love to see the court justices be told by an atty during oral arguments or in a brief that the court registry decisions have killed registered people, people with families too, and what their reactions would be. Would the justices understand that and change things or just say it was a consequence of the registered person’s actions, much like the registry is a consequence and not a punishment; therefore, oh well? If the latter, would that be like the court giving a license to kill, hurt, or maim with a lassie faire attitude despite the fine print saying you cannot use the registry for negative things like vigilantism?
Maybe an editorial is a better way to address that so the atty does not antagonize the court during the hearing. Of course, if it is in the court record…
Actions, reactions, consequences….
This is why I believe the state and federal governments should be held complicit as an accessory to these crimes since it is their laws enabling this behavior. I don’t know if this is possible, but it is a direct, as the evidence points to here, relation to the registry being public.
I got jumped by five guys right here on my front yard a few years ago. One guy rang the doorbell, I answered the door and went out on the front porch, because my Dog was raising all kinds of hell. He wanted to know what kind of cable service I had, next thing I know is I get sucker punched, fell backwards and tripped over my wife’s flower pot. The other four came out from behind my truck in the drive way, and it was all over, feet and fist coming from every direction. I don’t care how well you can hold your own in a fight, if there are five against one, you don’t stand a chance. My Wife, 16 year old son heard all the ruckus, and came to the door, that’s when they took off running. My Wife and Son should not have had to wittiness these Fuckers using my head for a football ! Anyway someone called the cops, they took a report and said they would do everything they could to catch these guys, and left, never heard anything more about it ( some how that doesn’t surprise me). I’ll bet there are thousands of registered citizens out there that have been assaulted and haven’t come forward. How can we get an accurate account of how many of us there are, and what happened to them? This is a story that should be told, to make people understand how wrong, and what it means to be on this hit list! Btw, we should get behind Mike r and donate to his go fund me account. Just look at what Bernie Sanders did in the 2016 Presidential race, with just 27 dollars from each contributor!
Curious, if a person does something to cause the death of someone the law will convict the person because what they did inderectly cause there death , so why does government not get charged Everytime someone kills, beats up, burns there house down, does anything else like that are not being charged and sued when this happens to sex offender because someone looked them up on Megan’s law gets there address and does this to them, so inderectly the states & government are at fault for there death n assaults an property damage lands in there lap and be prosecuted after all nobody is above the law NOBODY is above the law, so this needs to be presented to them and lawyers, and most lawyers need to be brought up on charges because they will not do there all to get you off because they fear losing there business and lawyers blackballing them because in there mind the other lawyers think there siding with sex offenders, how wrong and people believe there (lawyers, legislation,judges,ECT) are up standing people? Are they crazy, what’s wrong with this country.
Hey everyone I’m a paralegal and just curious as to what vigilante groups in CA are sex offender orientated or types of groups that try and catch sex offenders.