About 150 people in Philadelphia are in state prison and 150 more are on probation or parole for neglecting to fill out address-change notifications or missing a required reporting date — all failures to comply with a sex-offender-registration law the state Supreme Court found unconstitutional last July. Now, the fates of those people — along with as many as 17,000 others statewide who were required, under that law, to remain on a registry for decades or life — hinge in large part on the state legislature. On Monday, the Senate…
Read MoreMonth: February 2018
ID: Idaho Senate panel introduces bill to broaden sex crime laws
[idahostatesman.com] An Idaho Senate committee has introduced two bills that would broaden the definition of some sex crimes to include crimes committed with the intent of degrading or humiliating someone. Idaho Deputy Attorney General Paul Panther told the Senate Judiciary and Rules committee on Monday that both the state’s current statute on sexual battery and the statue on forcible penetration with a foreign object define the crimes as having been done with the intent of sexual gratification or arousal. But Panther said those statutes currently don’t cover situations like severe…
Read MoreFL: Man accused of killing cellmate: ‘There’s one less child molester’
[kcra.com] Florida authorities say an inmate who killed his cellmate last month while awaiting trial for killing another cellmate in 2015 is now in solitary confinement. The Panama City News Herald reports 21-year-old Frederick Patterson III said he killed his 82-year-old cellmate Arthur Williams on Jan. 15, and told correctional officers that “there’s one less child molester on the streets.” Advertisement Patterson, a convicted burglar, was sentenced Thursday to life in prison for killing 45-year-old Scott Collinsworth, a convicted robber, in the Apalachee Correctional Institution. Patterson now faces a first-degree…
Read MoreFL: According to Homeless Trust, over 45% of Homeless in Miami-Dade County are Sex Offenders
[floridaactioncommittee.org] Last month, Ron Book was out with his “Homeless Trust” to count the homeless in Miami-Dade. Yes, literally, to manually count the homeless. According to this article, the Miami-Dade Homeless Trust counts the homeless twice a year in January and in August, but “tonight’s count is the one that counts for federal funding.” Counts for “federal funding”… no wonder Ron Book is on hand for that one. If it means more money for him, you can be sure he’ll be hands-on. But what about the stats? The article states,…
Read MoreHow to prevent child sexual abuse: Know the myths and realities
[salon.com] How would you describe a sex offender? In all likelihood, you would describe a monster — someone who lurks behind bushes and rapes unsuspecting women or abuses children. And that is how sex offenders are portrayed in the media. For most of us, much of what we know about sex offenders comes from movies, TV shows and news stories. However, those stories are often sensationalized portrayals — or cases that are the exception to the rule — rather than the norm. While cases like these do exist, they remain…
Read MoreFL: Four years after being called out on poor public policy, Florida is STILL putting children at risk
[sosen.org] On April 14, 2014, A national coalition of members of CURE, CURE-SORT, FAC, USA Fair and WAR members joined together to ask Florida legislators, “Why are the many children and families of former offenders being placed in danger from missed opportunities of effective legislation?” “Are the children of citizens on the sex offender registry less valuable to law makers?” Nearly four full years later, we are still awaiting a satisfactory answer. As of May 24, 2017, there were 69,917 people listed on the Florida state sex offender registry and…
Read MorePA: State to consider overhaul to sex offender registration law again
[buckscountycouriertimes.com] The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on a bill Monday. Nearly eight years ago, Bucks County resident Steve Gordon left state prison after completing a 10-year sentence for sexually assaulting a woman, but he was not quite a free man. His conviction for aggravated indecent sexual assault meant that Pennsylvania State Police would be keeping tabs on him for another decade. A little more than five years ago, though, Gordon, now 71, suddenly had state police monitoring him for the rest of his life, after state lawmakers…
Read MoreOK: Oklahoma lawmaker pushes bill for ‘chemical castration’ of sex offenders
[theguardian.com] A Republican lawmaker is pushing to add Oklahoma to the list of states in which so-called chemical castration is an option for certain sex offenders. State representative Rick West, a first-term lawmaker from Heavener, said he filed the bill at the request of a constituent and that he fully intends to push for its passage. It is likely to face strong opposition, even in a conservative state. If approved, Oklahoma would join at least seven other states that have laws allowing courts to order chemical treatments that reduce male…
Read MoreIA: Iowa court: offensive text photos aren’t indecent exposure
[thestate.com] DES MOINES, Iowa The Iowa Supreme Court ruled Friday that text messaging a photo of one’s genitals to another person is not indecent exposure under state law. The court ruled found that to meet the definition of the Iowa law as written, such an offensive display must be done in the physical presence of the offended person. “While we acknowledge that one can be offended by a sexually explicit image transmitted via text message, it is much easier to ‘look away’ from that image than it is to avoid…
Read MoreLifeTimes Magazine: A positive magazine for registrants
[lifeonlist.org] When it comes to America’s sex-offense registry regime, there’s a lot to get outraged about. Indignation over its everyday cruelties serves a function when it moves us to action. But bad news isn’t everything. There’s a lot of good to point to among those living under the system. I learn that every time I meet a registrant or one of their family members who’s running a thriving business, started a support group, or spending every week visiting legislators. Last month the first issue of a new magazine came out…
Read MoreProf. Janus establishes center devoted to sex-offender litigation, policy
[mitchellhamline.edu] Mitchell Hamline School of Law is pleased to announce the creation of a center devoted to tracking litigation and encouraging effective public policy related to sexual offenders. Directed by Professor Eric Janus, a leading national expert on sexual violence law and policy, the Sex Offense Litigation and Policy Resource Center collects and disseminates information about cases related to sex-offender policy and laws. Supported by a grant from the Vital Projects Fund, the center seeks to facilitate communication, sharing, and the development of strategies among lawyers, advocates, and academics who…
Read MoreGeneral Comments February 2018
Comments that are not specific to a certain post should go here, for the month of February 2018. Contributions should relate to the cause and goals of this organization and please, keep it courteous and civil.
Read MoreIL: Illinois Appellate Court Rules Lifetime Sex Offender Registration “Grossly Disproportionate Punishment” for 21 Year Old
[floridaactioncommittee.org] The opinion in People v. Tetter, which came out a couple days ago, is another great decision to add to our growing list of cases where courts have found the registry to be “punishment” and conditions of the registry have crossed the line into irrational. Kyle Tetter was 21 when he met a girl on an online social media app. Her profile said she was 18. Even though he later learned she was 16, they continued the consensual relationship and eventually she became pregnant and her mother reported him…
Read MoreNJ: The disappeared defy good Megan’s Law record | Editorial
The alliterative term “active absconders” has a nice ring to it, but those to whom the State of New Jersey applies the term are likely to be anything but nice. They’re serious sex offenders who have disappeared without a trace after initial registration under New Jersey’s first-in-the-nation Megan’s Law, based on classifications that are supposed to follow them for life. Full Article Related http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2018/01/have_you_seen_these_registered_sex_offenders_polic.html
Read MoreKY: Bill would create annual fee for people on state’s sex offender registry
A bill filed by Muhlenberg County state Rep. Melinda Gibbons Prunty would, if approved, create an annual fee that would be paid by people required to register with the state sex offender registry. Full Article
Read MoreWA: Bill to Protect Minor-Aged College Students From Sex Offenders Considered in State House
A bill under consideration by the state House of Representatives has been introduced in an effort to protect minor-aged college students, such as those in Running Start, from level three sex offenders. Full Article
Read MoreIN: Bill would limit sex offenders’ time at church schools
When Boone County law enforcement officials sent a letter telling registered sex offenders they couldn’t go to church where there were children’s programs, three of the letter recipients filed a lawsuit. The men claimed they couldn’t exercise their religion for fear of being arrested. They won their case with the Indiana Court of Appeals. Now, a state senator is trying to set a time limit under which sex offenders can attend churches when children are present. Full Article
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