The California Sex Offender Management Board (CASOMB) is moving slowly toward recommending that the state legislature make three significant changes to the Tiered Registry Law. If the legislature adopts those changes, tens of thousands of individuals required to register in California will become eligible to petition for removal from the state registry.
It is sometimes difficult to watch CASOMB’s slow progress. After all, these changes were originally posed by ACSOL in January 2023, more than five months ago. And during the intervening months, ACSOL has provided CASOMB with a lot of additional information both in writing and verbally.
So what is the problem?
Fundamentally, the problem is that CASOMB is a government driven organization. Most of its members represent government agencies and therefore are not used to moving quickly especially on a topic that is considered sensitive, if not career limiting, by most government employees.
CASOMB is moving too slowly from my point of view. As an attorney who listens to individuals precluded from petitioning for removal it is often heartbreaking.
For example, many individuals who were convicted 20 years ago or longer had a decision to make when they were presented with a plea agreement. Should they plead guilty to Penal Code Section 288(a), lewd or lascivious acts with a person under the age of 14 or Penal Code Section 288(c), lewd or lascivious acts with a person 14 or 15?
Due to a quirk in state law, individuals can sometimes plead guilty to an act they did not commit. Therefore, the age of their victim did not necessarily determine their plea or subsequent conviction.
Given that choice, many individuals chose to plead guilty to Penal Code Section 288(c) because the sentence for that offense was much shorter. That decision, however, is now preventing them from filing a petition whereas if they had chosen to plead guilty to Penal Code Section 288(a), they would have received a longer sentence but would now be eligible to petition for removal.
What a mess! Fortunately, CASOMB appears to be determined to clean up that mess albeit on a time line that should be significantly shorter.
In addition to correcting this tiering problem under the Tiered Registry Law, CASOMB is also working toward the creation of an “off ramp” for those assigned to Tier 3 provided that the individual has not re-offended for at least 30 years. CASOMB is also working toward a tier reduction for those convicted of a felony offense involving child pornography. The final answer regarding the ultimate tier assignment for those convicted of a felony CP offense has yet to be made as CASOMB members continue to discuss whether those individuals should be assigned to Tier 1 or to Tier 2.
CASOMB will continue its discussion of the three proposed changes in a committee meeting in July and then during a full board meeting in September. We can only hope that CASOMB will finish its deliberations in September and send its recommendations to the legislature the following month. When that happens, it will be time for all of us to pursue a Hail Mary pass, that is, to find a legislator willing to gut and amend an existing bill and advocate for passage of a bill that includes the three proposed changes to the Tiered Registry Law.
Thank you Janice for all your hard work!
In my 1st year of registration for felony 311. Following everything closely, hoping they make the decision for tier 1.
I still can’t believe that CASOMB isn’t also recommending that anyone who was convicted of a wobbler AND had their conviction reduced to a misdemeanor should automatically be on Tier 1 like all other misdemeanors. So much for it becoming a misdemeanor for ALL PURPOSES!
How much is governed by CASOMB and how much is governed by CA legislature? Bureaucracy always follows the administrative’s position. So if they’re dragging their feet it is because there is no pressure from above. Administrative branch is governed by the people, who would generally never push to removed offenders from this list. The pressure to shrink to numbers is coming from other pressures (likely from within!).
If we look back to Smith V Doe the very point was made by the minority. To paraphrase.. likely sweeping thousands of individuals into a system who factually pose no additional risk of recidivism…( meaning those who were deterred by the present system of management regime processes) OR the actually innocent and guilty but wrongfully convicted in the pre-act system.
The idea of including pre-act offenders without due process highlights the industrial impetus upon unfettered use or application of the database on broad scope upon the people and without due process protections normally afforded. Our constitution wasn’t ratified to protect machine liberty. It was as ratified to protect human liberty from unreasonable government intrusions and or infringement.
ACSOL needs to ask if the South drug it’s feet in the pre civil war period. The advent of the sex offender registry was very much about cementing the people’s trust in government database regime and the DDI in whole. That experiment has failed. AND Gov knows it! Cyber Attacks abound according to deep state intelligence officials. Corporate espionage and tax dollars.
Illinois has settled with FB(META)@$397.00per. and soon a repeat with G, $amount TBA. Zippity doodaa in WI, hmmmm.
I am wondering how this applies to someone who was involved in a sting operation and had NO contact with a minor but ultimately plead guilty out of fear due to being mislead by an attorney?
Each and every member of CASOMB is in conflict of interest.
Thank you for the update. Your Hail Mary pass scenario would be great.
ACSOL, please begin to question the CASOMB, DOJ, CDCR, County Sheriffs, et al about the protections they have in place to manage databases of personal identifiable information. As more and more hacks and leaks of PI happen, OR DMV being the latest, but see also CDCR press release there is concern regarding the ability of state agencies to safeguard the data and then in the case of any leaks/hacks to remediate the dangerous effects of such hacks/leaks. In the case of registrants, a hack/leak of PI from a governmental agency does not just merely present the risk of stolen credit or identity but a very real risk to their public safety both domestically and abroad. I feel strongly we should begin to confront the tiered registry here. I believe we should demand public officials safeguard our data and once we prove, ultimately, that they can’t; to demand abolishment of the registry once and for all.
There will be alien disclosure before this is finalized…..
@Janice has there been any further consideration for those convicted of an attempted offense, even if not through CASOMB?
Now that there is a requirement for a certain number of years – as opposed to everyone for life – depending on the offense, can the argument be made as it was with 288(c) that the term for registration should be lesser than that of a committed offense?
What about those with a certificate of rehabilitation still required to register?
@Janice
Is CASOMB going to have public comment in September when it meets in Santa Clara?
While nothing involving the law is ever this streamlined, I hope to God the Tier 3 offramp is as simple as 30 years clean and not loaded with gotchas.
Thank you, so much, Janice, for your amazing hard work and dedication. You should be nominated and confirmed for sainthood. I just made a donation toward this effort and encourage others to do same.
N O W they know (CASOMB & Legislature members Dem or Repub Senate or ) MARKED WITH HELPING US THAT ARE BRANDED like our Passports POR VIDA
but they don’t wanna be marked or known for helping us at bottom of the pit. Lepars, lesionsed.
The Worse
THANKS JANICE
THey will take after re voted in office and take years alike The TIERED REG.
NOT fast enough for us, but
RED TAPE
Governmental CAOS
they don’t wanna be LABELED like the scarlet letter nor Pink TRIANGLE JB!
THANK YOU for lettin gus ALL KNOW and updating us but yes
MOVING FORWARD
BEING PATIENT
and waiting for response
poor scott wiener got a taste of hell here in RC land
YOU are still OUR Saviour J>B> and chance too and your board and fam safety comm.
I am grateful for you Janice. Oh so grateful! Thank you for sharing our stories & supporting us every step of the way. 33 years now
Divide and conquer! That’s why they are even willing to move forward (albeit, slowly).
They know that if they can remove thousands of people off the registry, then they get to effectively mute our ever-growing voice.
This is both politically expedient AND it helps them to perpetuate a system of government-sponsored hate, replete with public-shaming blacklists, exclusion laws and political muzzling!
They are (quietly) using the old Divide-and-conquer tactic to achieve their political aims, and the “Romeo and Juliet” cases and the youthful and the public urinators are so very “grateful” for their largesse!!
Meanwhile the feeble voice of those of us left over will be drown in the shouts of the torch-welding mob.)
…And the constitution continues to get trampled by the hatred-crazed mob.
Maybe we should send her another letter i’m pretty sure they’re feeling helpless right now
This law is way overboard it yells unconstitutional.. However giving the public out cry during an Era of child abduction the law was created to slice the crys of the people.It showed that the government was hard on cry and would not tolerate such criminal behavior ( Noted and understandable).. Instead of fixing the sentencing law they added a Jim crow law. Disregarding the rights of the criminal. To this day sex offenders have no 5th 14th or any other Rights. Actually Smith v. Due was one law in peticular then Selector general presented an article from a non qualified certified psychiatrists ( behavior counselor)Wrote an article in psychology Today claiming all sex offenders are recidative.in hopes of boasting more client’s and Judge Kennedy ran with it. Not considering a DAUBERT REVIEW. TIPICAL OF OUR SYSTEM!!