Colorado’s sex-offender registry, already under legal siege, just took another hit.
On June 20, the Colorado Court of Appeals determined that the lifetime registration requirement for Coloradans found guilty of two or more sex offenses when they were juveniles qualifies as punishment under the Eighth Amendment. The 2-1 decision means that a lower court can now consider whether that rule is unconstitutional — and such a finding would strike another blow against a law-enforcement concept that’s become increasingly controversial. Full Article
The decision by this appellate court in Colorado is a big step in the right direction. Although the court did not grant the registrant the relief he was seeking, but instead sent the case back to the trial court, the court communicated clearly that lifetime registration for juveniles constitutes punishment. In doing so, the court acknowledged that its decision on this issue was different than decisions made by other appellate courts and did it anyway. Kudos to this court for its courage!
The Decision link requires signing up for or into a (free) service. For those who wish not to do so, I’ve uploaded it here: https://ufile.io/q2oh57b9
Now I just need to read it!
Since we’re talking about CO and court cases, I decided to check in on the Millard one. I was excited to see there was finally some sort of progress on the docket. My hopes of a decision dashed. The RCs’ attorneys today filed supplemental authorities, citing the recent AK SC case and this CO CoA case. If anyone wants to see the filings (there’s not much to them), let me know and I’ll get them onto ufile.
Though SCOTUS is winding down for summer, the 10th CCoA keeps plodding along with no decision in sight. Note: the original case was filed in 2013, the appeal in 2017. Talk about slow justice!