Source: usnews.com 1/23/24 A proposal advancing in the Tennessee legislature would stop requiring lifetime registration as a violent sex offender for anyone convicted of engaging in sex work while living with HIV NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee would no longer be the only U.S. state to impose a lifetime registration as a “violent sex offender” on anyone convicted of engaging in sex work while living with HIV under a proposal that advanced Tuesday in the legislature. The controversial statute still on the books is being challenged in federal court by…
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TN: HB1617 Legislation Filed For Upcoming Session Will Push For Extension On Time Sex Offenders Are Included On Sex Offender Registry In Tennessee
Source: tennesseeconservativenews.com 12/13/24 [see HB1617 for update] The Tennessee Conservative [By Kelly M. Jackson] – The new General Session is just a few weeks away, and already a flurry of bills are being filed for introduction and consideration in what will be the 114th General Assembly. One of those bills, House Bill 1617 (HB1617), sponsored by Representative Bryan Richey (R-D20-Maryville), if signed into law will extend the amount of time a person who has been convicted of a sexual offense and obligated to register as a sex offender must remain on…
Read MoreID: Idaho bill to extend death penalty unconstitutional, aims for US Supreme Court review
Source: idahostatesman.com 2/13/24 The Idaho House overwhelmingly passed a bill that would allow the death penalty for anyone convicted of certain sex crimes against preteen children Tuesday, even as its sponsor acknowledged that such a law would be unconstitutional. House Bill 515 is designed to challenge decades of U.S. Supreme Court precedent that limited death sentences to defendants who commit murder, said Rep. Bruce Skaug, R-Nampa, who co-sponsored the bill with Rep. Josh Tanner, R-Eagle. With the current supermajority of conservative-leaning justices on the nation’s highest court, the hope is…
Read MoreDoctors question use of ‘excited delirium’ to explain deaths of suspects in police custody
Source: abajournal.com 2/13/24 [ACSOL note: We are posting this since this concept could be used to excuse hatred towards registrants] In October 2023, three Tacoma, Washington, police officers went on trial for the 2020 death of Manuel Ellis, a Black man who died after he was punched, put in a chokehold and tased during a confrontation with police. In December, a jury acquitted the officers of second-degree murder and manslaughter. One detail in the defense’s case may have influenced the jury: A paramedic at the scene testified that he believed…
Read MoreHow Mandatory Minimums Perpetuate Mass Incarceration and What to Do About It
Source: sentencingproject.org 2/14/24 Eliminating mandatory minimum sentencing laws is essential to creating a more just and equitable criminal justice system. Eliminating mandatory minimum sentencing laws is essential to creating a more just and equitable criminal justice system. Widespread evidence shows that mandatory minimum sentences produce substantial harm with no overall benefit to crime control.1 Determined by lawmakers rather than judges, these sentences represent a uniquely American approach to sentencing that has accelerated prison growth. They constrain judicial discretion, deepen racial disparities in the criminal legal system, and cause far-reaching harm…
Read MoreThe problem with criminal records: Discrepancies between state reports and private-sector background checks
Source: onlinelibrary.wiley 7/23/23 Abstract of paper: Criminal records are routinely used by employers and other institutional decision-makers who rely on their presumed fidelity to evaluate applicants. We analyze criminal records for a sample of 101 people, comparing official state reports, two sources of private-sector background checks (one regulated and one unregulated by federal law), and qualitative interviews. Based on our analysis, private-sector background checks are laden with false-positive and false-negative errors:60 percent and 50 percent of participants had at least one false-positive error on their regulated and unregulated background checks,…
Read MoreEditorial: Providing criminal defense is not a crime. So why do some demonize lawyers for it?
Source: latimes.com 2/13/24 Shortly after Claudine Gay stepped down as president of Harvard University last month, an interesting sidelight to her years as a university administrator emerged: As dean of the faculty of arts and sciences a few years earlier, Gay was involved in removing a law professor from his secondary role as the dean of a campus dormitory. The professor, Ronald S. Sullivan Jr., had caused an uproar on campus in 2019 when he joined the legal defense team of Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, who was accused of rape…
Read MoreArkansas Court Sets Hearing Date for Halloween Sign Challenge
Source: ACSOL The federal district court in Arkansas where a lawsuit has been filed challenging a Halloween sign requirement set a hearing in the case for May 2 at 1:30 p.m. in the fifth floor courtroom in Fayetteville. The purpose of that hearing is “to assess the pretrial needs of the case.” According to the court document, the trial date for the case will also be set during that hearing. Prior to the May 2 hearing, both parties are required to file several documents, including an important document that is…
Read MoreHungary’s president Katalin Novák stepped down after pardoning a man convicted of helping cover up sex abuse
Source: theguardian.com 2/10/24 The Hungarian president has announced her resignation over her decision to pardon a man convicted of helping cover up a sex abuse case at a children’s home as the controversy posed a challenge for Hungary’s prime minister, Viktor Orbán. The pardon decision was made last year but only caught the public’s attention over the past days after a report by the local news site 444.hu, which was met with outrage, leading Hungary’s opposition to call for Katalin Novák to step down. “I made a mistake,” Novák said…
Read MoreNC: Warning about scam involving NC sex offender registry
Source: wsoctv.com 10/11/23 CALDWELL COUNTY, N.C. — The Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office is warning residents about a new scam that involves someone impersonating a police officer and people on the North Carolina sex offender registry. According to the sheriff’s office, several people have reported that they were contacted by someone saying they were with the Lenoir Police Department. The person said that some sex offenders were violating their requirements and that if they brought the offender into the Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office, they would receive a check for $5,000. The…
Read MoreVA: Alleged Predator Granny: A Life Ensnared By Virginia Sex Offender Registry
Source: legal-eagles.org 2/9/24 Recent Denial of Appeal: Tammy Lawson’s Ongoing Struggle for Justice In the realm of legal battles, few narratives are as poignant as that of Tammy Lawson, whose life has been ensnared in the complexities of the justice system. Despite her unwavering innocence, Tammy’s journey has been fraught with unjust consequences, the most recent being the denial of her appeal. see our previous May 31, 2023 Blog Tammy’s saga dates back to a series of unfortunate events, where she found herself wrongly implicated in a legal quagmire. Accused…
Read MoreIN: Indiana HB 1307 would mean register for life if moving to Indiana
Source: thestatehousefile.com 1/18/24 The Indiana House Courts and Criminal Code Committee discussed several bills Wednesday, including HB 1203 and HB 1307, both of which were held for … … HB 1307 was authored by Rep. Ben Smaltz, R-Auburn. “The first thing that 1307 does is if a sex offender moves from another state to Indiana, they would be required to register for the entire time they are in Indiana and in effect for life. Second, it prevents a serious sex offender from being in a park when they can reasonably…
Read MoreTX: Texas vigilante tricked sex offender into meeting him at park – then murdered him: police
Source: foxnews.com 2/6/24 [ACSOL is posting this as a warning to members of our community] A Houston man allegedly lured a convicted sex offender to his death in what is being described as a possible case of vigilante justice. James Lewis Spencer III, 24, is charged with murder in connection with the shooting death of Sean Connery Showers, 37, who was found unresponsive, lying in a ditch near a park on Northwood Street, in the early morning hours of May 29, 2023, according to the Houston Police Department. Spencer allegedly…
Read MoreJanice’s Journal: Glimmers of Hope
There are glimmers of hope on the horizon for registrants and their families. Most of that hope is based upon recent court decisions. However, one piece of hope comes in the form of a recently published newspaper article. Both will be discussed below. One form of hope comes from a recently published newspaper article about a person charged with shooting and killing another person. The headline of that article identified the suspect in that killing as a parolee. It was only upon reading the full article that the suspect was also identified as a person…
Read MoreAppellate Court Reverses Denial of Petition (Good News!)
Source: ACSOL The Second Appellate District Court today issued a decision reversing a trial judge’s decision to deny a petition filed on behalf of a California person required to register. As a result of this decision, the trial court judge must grant that petition which will in turn terminate the person’s requirement to register. “Today’s decision is the third appellate court decision reversing a trial court judge’s decision to deny a petition,” stated ACSOL Executive Director Janice Bellucci. “In all three decisions, the appellate court found that the District Attorney…
Read MoreAction Alert for all states: Sign petition to reinstate voting rights for returning citizens
Source: Rita Finley at change.org Why this petition matters: As an American citizen, I firmly believe in the principle that every individual should have an equal right to vote. This belief is not just personal but also echoes the words of Lyndon B. Johnson who once said, “Every American citizen must have an equal right to vote. There is no reason which can excuse the denial of that right.” The issue at hand concerns returning citizens – individuals who have served their sentences and are now striving to reintegrate into…
Read MoreNY: Poverty and Mass Incarceration in New York: An Agenda for Change
Source: brennancenter.org 2/23/21 SUMMARY: Criminal justice reform can save New York State money and reduce the racial wealth gap. The past year has been a reckoning. As a nation, we were finally forced to confront the reality and interconnectedness of racism, inequality, and injustice, which have permeated our institutions and systems for centuries. When the protests that began in Minneapolis made their way to New York, we marched not just for George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Eric Garner, or Freddie Gray but for all the lives that have been stolen and devalued…
Read MoreCA: People With Criminal Records Should Not Have to Hire a Lawyer Just to Get a Job
Source: truthout.org 2/4/24 State laws are restricting people with convictions from working as nurses, counselors and janitors. Finding work can be difficult for anyone, but Fernando Herrera faces an extra challenge. California has banned him for life from his dream job as a firefighter because of two felonies he committed as a teenager. Herrera went to prison for assaults he committed at ages 14 and 15. But he took responsibility for his actions and turned his life around. He worked as an unpaid firefighter while in prison and found his…
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