[bigthink.com] One of the objectives of the criminal justice system is to protect the innocent and discourage would-be perpetrators from harming them. Whether it does this in reality or not is another matter. But who among us is more innocent or vulnerable than our pets? They rely on us for so much. Most of us consider our pet a member of the family. The question is, how far should the law go to protect them? This debate has blossomed recently, due to the number of US jurisdictions passing laws creating…
Read MoreDay: October 8, 2017
MN: After Supreme Court Passes, What’s Next for Sex Offenders?
[U.S. News] When the U.S. Supreme Court last week declined to hear a challenge to the constitutionality of Minnesota‘s sex offender program, it relieved the pressure for major near-term change in a program that confines over 700 people who’ve finished their prison sentences. Only rarely is anyone released. Here’s a look at a program that is often opaque to the public, and at the handful of people who — at least on paper — may have a shot at release sometime soon: Read more
Read MoreCO: U.S. court ruling sparks debate over Colorado’s sex offender registry
When David sifted through the mail the morning of his 18th birthday, he hoped to find cards with money. Instead, he received a warrant for his arrest. The charge: statutory rape. It was 2007, and the 17-year-old junior basketball star had recently moved to a small Missouri town, population less than 500, and almost immediately started dating a girl who was one month shy of her 14th birthday. They were intimately involved for nearly three months before David ended the relationship. Full Article
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