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 required to register.
I take hope from this article because I have read many articles in the past identifying the suspect in a case as a “sex offender” even when the crime in question did not involve a sex offense. The most egregious example of that was an article about a person who burned trash in his backyard in violation of a city ordinance.
The headline for that article identified the person who burned the trash as a “sex offender.” What difference did it make that this person had previously been convicted of a sex offense? If a person convicted of murder had burned trash in his back yard, would the headline have been written to read “murderer burns trash in back yard?” Of course not.
The fact that the recent article did not identify the suspect in a shooting as a “sex offender” is a huge step in the right direction. That is because the newspaper realized that use of the term “sex offender” was not appropriate. Perhaps they also realized that use of the term “sex offender” would not help them sell more newspapers.
I also take hope from recent court decisions that have ruled in favor of registrants. For example, in a series of cases involving petitions for removal from the California registry appellate courts have ruled unanimously that District Attorneys must prove that a registrant is likely to re-offend, not that the registrant must prove that he is unlikely to re-offend. The shifting of this burden is significant as so far no District Attorney has been able to meet it.
Two additional court decisions that offer hope are decisions issued a few months ago by a federal district court in Missouri as well as the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals. In those decisions, both courts upheld the First Amendment rights of registrants who were required to place themselves and their families at significant risk by placing a sign on their home on Halloween which identified them as persons required to register.
Are all challenges facing registrants and their families overcome? The answer is no. However, we now have momentum in the courts and in the media. And it is this momentum that could eventually overcome those challenges.
Your words give me hope, Janice. I remember what life was like before ACSOL got rid of presence restrictions, residency restrictions, Halloween restrictions, and many bad laws and bills. Thanks to you and the rest of ACSOL for making our lives better. We have a long way to go, but we have come a long way
My fellow registrants, I encourage you to do whatever your can to come to our lobby day. I will lose money from not doing my business then, but I consider it an investment in the future.
No people group has ever gained significant civil rights and justice by just staying home.
The term “sex offender” used to be so inflammatory, media and politicians used it incessantly to gain attention and revenue. It appears they over-saturated their marketplace while society’s primary concerns have shifted. Make no mistake. It still raises ire and fear, but I the worst is behind us. On a personal level, the mere mention of my presence on Twitter/X a few years ago would create a bandwagon of attacks. Today, similar posts by a select few obsessed individuals get a few likes but not much more. The big question: are we simply in a lull period between similar panics or is society finally starting to understand the difference between artificially generated mass hysteria and the combination of truth, logic and reason? Time will tell, but there is indeed reason to be hopeful.
Hope is a very important commodity. Unfortunately, it has been scarce one for many of us affected by the registry and the multitude of laws that have come from it. Thank you for sharing this hope with us Janice and let us hope and pray that the momentum continues.
Thank you, Janice, for bringing a ray of light into such a dystopian world. For some reason, Harrison Bergeron came to my mind.
John Q. Public remind me so much of Mr. and Mrs. Bergeron – blinded and manacled and weighted down.
Diana Moon Glampers? – I recall Janet Reno snatching Elian with the aid of a SWAT team, not too long ago. It seems like it started there and has just continued to do what slippery slopes do – apply gravity and deny any grip on anything.
Ho Hum
Thank-you so much for sharing this journal entry with all of us. You are such an amazing woman and I can’t say enough about how grateful I am for you. xoxo
Several years ago I, as President of WAR and our webmaster, Chuck implemented a ‘Moratorium’ against derogatory words and more importantly ‘person first’ language. Many journalists, editors, and professionals, as well as newsrooms have been educated and referred to Why call someone by what we don’t want them to be and Promoting Accurate and Respectful Language to Describe Individuals and Groups by Gwenda Willis and Elizabeth Letourneau.
When responding to calls on the support line the guy would always begin with “I’m a sex offender” and that is where I would rudely interrupt him and say we don’t use those words we use a person required to register. There would be silence and I would hear a shaky voice say ‘thank you’! I have even corrected legislators to their surprise.
Stand and stand tall!
Vicki Henry
I appreciate the “Glimmers” of hope, but sadly it’s not enough. There is no recourse for people who plaster posters of your picture and information all over town, even when you know who did it. The judge refuses to sign the restraining orders.
Thank you, bless you.