[New related links added] [ACSOL] A federal district court determined today that San Diego’s residency restrictions are void. As a result, the city cannot restrict where a registrant who is not on parole may reside. “The court’s decision today settles plaintiffs’ Motion for Partial Summary Judgment, but does not settle the entire case,” explained civil rights attorney Janice Bellucci. “We will continue the case in order to protect the rights of all registrants who choose to reside in San Diego.” Plaintiffs filed their motion on June 27…
Read MoreAuthor: R H
FL: Miami-Dade County closing down homeless camp while promoting homeless awareness week
[local10.com – 11/18/19] MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – A group of people living in a Miami homeless camp is being told to leave. This is happening in the middle of Homeless Awareness Week. … It’s now so large that the county is deeming it a sanitary nuisance and a safety issue, sending cease and desist notices to dozens who call the street home. The order comes into effect as the county is promoting its hunger and homelessness awareness week, asking the public to be more considerate of residents without roofs over…
Read MoreCivil Rights Attorney Adele Nicholas Joins ACSOL Board of Directors
[ACSOL] Civil rights attorney Adele Nicholas, whose office is located in Chicago, has joined the board of directors of ACSOL, a nationwide non-profit organization. Nicholas’ legal practice is devoted to fighting systemic abuses in the criminal justice systems as well as combatting police misconduct. “We are delighted that Ms. Nicholas has agreed to join the leadership of ACSOL,” stated ACSOL Executive Director Janice Bellucci. “She is a zealous advocate for rational evidence-based sex offense laws and has devoted a substantial part of her practice to successfully challenging the constitutionality of residency restrictions, presence restrictions…
Read MoreNJ: Registered Forever: NJ Offenders Fight for Reprieve
[courthousenews.com – 11/18/19] TRENTON, N.J. (CN) — A lawyer for New Jersey urged the state Supreme Court on Monday for a strict reading of a law that lets registered sex offenders off the registry so long as they keep a clean record for 15 years. “Conviction means what we say it does, and that’s the conviction that triggers Megan’s Law,” said Special Deputy Attorney General Frank DuCoat, referencing the 1994 law enacted after 7-year-old Megan Kanka was raped and murdered by a neighbor who had already been convicted twice for…
Read MoreOH: First emergency homeless shelter opens in Fremont
[nbc24.com – 11/18/19] FREMONT, Ohio (WNWO) — More than a year of dedication has led to the first emergency homeless shelter in Sandusky County. … The facility holds up to eight people per night, and will take anyone that is not a sex offender. Read the full article
Read MoreFL: Inmate gets wish, sentenced to death for third Florida murder
[newsherald.com – 11/18/19] Rocky Ali Beamon, a three-time killer who publicly professed his hatred for sex offenders, had his wish granted Friday when he was sentenced to death for the 2017 murder of 27-year-old Nicholas Anderson. Beamon had been previously sentenced to die on Jan. 28 for killing a fellow inmate in 2012 at Apalachee Correctional Institution in Jackson County. He had pleaded guilty to the crime and waived his right to trial. … In May of 2018, Beamon wrote a letter to 14th District Judicial Circuit Judge Christopher Patterson…
Read MoreTX: ‘Wept like babies that day’: Man recalls family’s reaction after child sex abuse conviction overturned
[kvue.com – 11/15/19] GEORGETOWN, Texas — For more than 20 years, Troy Mansfield was branded a “registered sex offender,” a shameful asterisk by his name that followed him everywhere. “I took my stepdad’s name and I wanted it to be a good name,” Mansfield said. “And I felt like somehow or another it got trashed by me, and I didn’t mean for it to.” The father of two sons struggled to support his family from a cleaning business, purposely in his wife’s name, Amy Mansfield. “We lived between $16,000 and…
Read MoreNY: Sex offender rules an inconsistent maze
[timesunion.com – 11/9/19] ALBANY — A New York law that is intended to protect children from convicted sex offenders has created a maze of contradictory policies and regulations, leading to inconsistent enforcement and confusing online tracking systems. The disparities have also resulted in sharply different residency requirements for offenders convicted of similar crimes and an increasingly perplexing system that makes it difficult for the public to confirm whether offenders in their area are in compliance, according to a Times Union review of public databases, court records, an internal state memorandum…
Read MoreSurvey of Veterans on the Registry
[Approved by Janice] To: military veterans who are on the sex offense registry Emily Horowitz, Ph.D. Professor & Chair, Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice Co-Director, Post-Prison Education Program St. Francis College 180 Remsen Street Brooklyn, NY 11201 | 718-489-5446 | [email protected] November 15, 2019 Dear Veterans, First, we want to thank you for serving our country. We are seeking military veterans who are on the sex offense registry to participate in a research project titled: Veterans with Sex Offense Convictions: A Preliminary Investigation. The research is being conducted by…
Read MoreKat’s Blog: Future Risk
We hear a lot of talk about the “unfairness” of the registry, how everyone on it is “treated the same” no matter what their offense. Lumping all registrants under the “sex offender” label is wrong, especially when there’s so many offenses under the umbrella, high risk, low risk and even no risk offenses that may be at opposite ends of the spectrum. Released from incarceration, many registrants are mandated to attend one-size-fits-all “sex offender” treatment groups. There they are continuously reminded of their “sex offender” label and the need for…
Read MoreInvitation to participate in study on adults and youth with sex offenses
Note by Janice: This is a legitimate study being conducted by a legitimate organization in Los Angeles county. While some of the language used in the request may be overly sensitive it is up to each individual to make a decision whether to participate. [LBCplus.org] My name is Luis and I am a researcher and the purpose of this is to inform you about a research project focused on “Improving Workforce Development Outcomes for Adults and Youth with Sex Offenses.” As part of California’s Workforce Accelerator Fund (WAF), Friends Outside in Los Angeles…
Read MoreFL: Florida Sheriff’s Association says Halloween initiative targeting sex offenders was a success
[wtsp.com – 11/12/19] LARGO, Fla. — The Florida Sheriff’s Association is happy with the Halloween initiative to keep kids safe during trick or treating and related events. The operation involved 18 counties that targeted sexual offenders and predators to ensure that they followed the law. This involved a three-day operation that included physical checks on every sexual offender/predator to ensure they are properly registered and in compliance. … Hours dedicated to this operation: 774 hours Read how they were successful [in huge overtime pay]
Read MoreCanada: Calls for public sex offender registry in Canada [video]
[ctvnews.ca – 11/11/19] Why isn’t Canada’s sex offender registry viewable by the public like in the U.S.? Watch the video
Read MoreCA: Sex crimes by cops an outgrowth of their ‘power and coercive authority,’ expert says
[ocregister.com – 11/12/19] LAPD officers who took advantage of their power imbalance to commit sexual assaults fit national trends, says prominent criminologist. LAPD officers Luis Valenzuela and James C. Nichols sexually assaulted a woman at this McDonald’s parking lot, located at 405 N Alvarado St. at W. Temple St. in Los Angeles. They were on duty using a black Jetta. Photographed on Monday, Sept. 23, 2019. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG) By Olga Grigoryants | [email protected] and Sarah Favot | Los Angeles Daily News PUBLISHED: November 12, 2019 at…
Read MoreNM: Sex offenders say New Mexico depriving them of due process
[lcsun-news.com – 11/11/19] The question of whether sex offenders must register in New Mexico for crimes they committed in other states is making its way through the courts again. Eight plaintiffs, each listed as “John Doe,” have filed a petition in U.S. District Court in New Mexico, alleging the state Department of Public Safety and five county sheriffs failed to provide them due process in determining whether their out-of-state offense is “equivalent” to a New Mexico crime that would require them to register in this state. Albuquerque-based lawyers Susan Burgess-Farrell…
Read MoreVA: Convicted Sex Offender Elected to Virginia Senate
[theohiostar.com – 11/11/19] One of the many Democrats elected to the Virginia Senate on Tuesday is a convicted sex offender and disbarred lawyer, according to Breitbart. Joe Morrissey was jailed and lost his license to practice law after being convicted of having sex with his 17-year-old secretary. He pled guilty to a misdemeanor in the ensuing court case and served for only three months in a “work-release term.” He was also forced to resign from his seat in the Virginia House of Delegates, but then ran again in the special…
Read MoreNJ: New Jersey could soon compensate those wrongfully put on sex offender list
[nj.com – 11/7/19] Dion Harrell spent two decades on New Jersey’s sex offender registry. He had trouble finding a job. He couldn’t be alone with his kids. For a time, he was homeless. But when a DNA test finally proved his innocence, the state had nothing to offer him for those years. “I was surprised I wouldn’t get compensation,” Harrell said at a hearing in Trenton Thursday. If you can prove that you were wrongfully imprisoned in New Jersey, you can receive up to $50,000 for every year spent behind…
Read MoreKat’s Blog: Will Vagueness Take Down the Registry?
It’s well known, nothing is clear cut when it comes to the registry. The rules and regulations may vary slightly from state to state, but the vagueness with which these regulations were conceived and are enforced, is the same all over. Take Halloween for instance. In my neck of the woods, every year registrants were given letters by their P.O.’s or sent letters from the registry office outlining the do’s and don’ts of Halloween. Some years there were curfews and restrictions on outside Fall Decorations. There were warnings to keep…
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