Canada: Police link suicide of 12-year-old Prince George, B.C., boy to online sexual extortion

Source: cbc.ca 11/27/23 Police in Prince George, B.C., are warning about the dangers of sexual extortion after the suicide of a 12-year-old boy in their community. The preteen took his own life on Oct. 12 and investigators have since determined his actions were in response to online sextortion, according to an RCMP news release. Police are still working to identify a suspect. “We are calling for parents and caregivers to be honest with their youth about the dangers of online activity, especially if they are engaging in chats with people they don’t…

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NJ: Governor, in veto, recommends barring sex offenders from mental health diversion programs

Source: newjerseymonitor.com 11/29/23 Gov. Phil Murphy this week conditionally vetoed a bill that would expand an intervention program to divert some nonviolent criminal defendants to mental health programs, with Murphy recommending lawmakers bar people arrested for sex offenses subject to Megan’s Law. Lawmakers narrowly passed the bill in June along party lines, with Republicans warning it would push violent offenders onto the street. Murphy issued a statement on Monday supporting the spirit of the bill, saying: “Mental health issues should not be unnecessarily criminalized.” “This bill ensures that individuals whose criminal behaviors…

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TN: Class action lawsuit challenges retroactive placement on Tennessee’s sex offender registry

Source: tennessean.com 11/29/23 Eight people on Tennessee’s legally troubled sex offender registry filed a federal class action lawsuit last week asking that thousands of people with decades-old convictions be removed from the registry. The eight plaintiffs, who are using pseudonyms in the lawsuit, all have convictions from before or shortly after 2004, when the state’s current sex offender registry law, the Tennessee Sexual Offender and Violent Sexual Offender Registration, Verification, and Tracking Act, was passed. They are seeking class status for people on Tennessee’s sex offender registry whose convictions predate the law…

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