[michiganradio.org – 7/14/18] The American Civil Liberties Union is challenging the state of Michigan over its handling of the state’s sex offender registry. In 2016, the 6th Circuit Court ruled that aspects of Michigan’s Sex Offender Registry Act, SORA, were unconstitutional. The court’s opinion specifically noted portions of the act which allowed the state to retroactively impose punishments on individuals without due process. The state of Michigan appealed the circuit court’s ruling, sending Does vs Snyder to the U.S. Supreme Court. In October 2017, the Supreme Court decided not to…
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Janice’s Journal: Three Courts Issue Three Harmful Decisions
In the span of just one week, three courts have issued decisions that significantly harm registrants. Those decisions affect registrants’ marriages, homes and overseas travel. It’s a lot to absorb in a short amount of time. It’s too much to fight at this time. But fight we must in the near future. In the first of those decisions, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals validated a provision of the Adam Walsh Act that makes it difficult, if not impossible, for an individual convicted of a sex offense to sponsor his…
Read MoreFamilies for Justice Reform Rally Tuesday
[womenagainstregistry.org 7/12/18] The Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM) ‘Families Rally for Justice Reform’ event began Tuesday at 9 AM with breakfast at the FAMM office in Washington, D.C.. Kevin Ring – President and the other officers are very dedicated to justice reform and sentencing reform while continuing to make the communities safe. Some of the family members who had traveled from various states for the rally shared their stories. They were emotional and the pain was visible. They listened to stories about our WAR families and the challenges faced every…
Read MoreCA: Child molester slain by fellow inmate at California prison
[abc7.com – 7/11/18] WASCO, Calif. — Authorities say a convicted child molester was beaten to death by another inmate just days after arriving at a California prison. Wasco State Prison officials said Wednesday that 19-year-old Andres Ayon began striking 66-year-old Agustin Duran in the face and chest with his fists Saturday night. Guards broke up the assault with a pepper spray grenade. Duran was airlifted to an outside hospital, where he died Sunday afternoon. He arrived in prison July 2 to serve a life sentence after he was convicted in…
Read MoreThird Circuit Upholds Denial of Registrant’s Right to Sponsor Wife for Citizenship
[ACSOL 7/9/18] The Third Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s ruling that an individual convicted of a sex offense does not have the right to sponsor his foreign born wife for citizenship in the United States in a decision published on July 5. The court’s decision was based upon its interpretation of language in the Adam Walsh Act (AWA) which allows the Department of Homeland Security to approve such citizenship only if the individual can prove he poses “no risk” to his spouse. According to the court’s decision,…
Read MoreMO: Coroner: Dexter man was stabbed
[standard-democrat.com – 7/6/18] DEXTER, Mo. — A man found dead in his Dexter home last week was stabbed, according to the Stoddard County coroner. Law enforcement began investigating the homicide of Jimmy Lynn Casey, 66, after a home-health worker found his body June 28. “Mr. Casey was stabbed,” said coroner Kenny Pope. “We do know from the wounds he had, one of the wounds was not superficial. It was life threatening. … Casey lived in the 1100 block of Mulberry Street and was a compliant sex offender … Read full…
Read MoreFL: Pinellas County man jailed for registry violation assaulted and on feeding tube
[wdtn.com – 7/9/18] PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) – An inmate suspected of killing a pregnant mother in Clearwater last year is accused of beating another inmate so badly, the man now relies on a feeding tube and is unable to speak, deputies said. According to an affidavit, Charles Groucho Allen and James Sutcliff Mills were housed in the same pod at the Pinellas County Jail on June 17. Officers said the two men started arguing over a remote control and things quickly escalated. Allen punched Mills in the face, causing…
Read MoreKY: Local police department’s new tool reads license plates automatically
[wpsdlocal6.com – 7/7/18] PADUCAH, KY – Another set of eyes are looking out for you, but these ones are electronic. We told you on Tuesday about an under-staffing problem at the Paducah Police Department. They need to hire about six more officers. But in the meantime, the department is getting some help from this pretty cool tool. John Smith is a patrol officer. He’s got a new partner that sits on the top of his car. “It doesn’t change my duties a lot. The license plate reader kind of does…
Read MoreThomas Jefferson: America’s most esteemed child predator
[narsol.org – 7/4/18] By Robin Vander Wall . . . July 4th. A sex offender died today. Well, not precisely. But, on this day 192 years ago, a sex offender passed away. This was no common sex offender. In fact, he was more remarkable than most men who’ve ever lived. Governor of Virginia. Minister to France. First Secretary of State. Second Vice President. Third President of the United States. And, perhaps most importantly of all, the person responsible for writing the Declaration of Independence. Yes, Thomas Jefferson was a sex…
Read MoreCA: In ‘Sex, Crime and Culture’ Class, Students Scrutinize Policies, Practices
[fullerton.edu – 7/3/18] Summer Young, a student working toward a career as a prosecutor, was intrigued by the title of a criminal justice class at Cal State Fullerton: “Sex, Crime and Culture.” “This is a topic that many tend to shy away from,” said Young, who took the course over the summer. “There are too many stereotypes that cloud our judgment of what a person who sexually perpetrates looks and acts like.” The course is led by Alissa Ackerman, an assistant professor of criminal justice and sex crimes researcher who…
Read MoreScammers Targeting Registrants
[blog.womenagainstregistry.org – 7/4/18] Scammers- They come in all shapes and sizes and use any means possible first to scare and intimidate you and then to separate you from your hard earned money. There are email scams that inform you that you’ve won big prizes or that you’ve come into a gazillion dollar inheritance, all you have to do is send some money to cover the taxes. There are phone scammers claiming to be from MicroSoft, the IRS, Medical Device Companies, you name it, they are endless. The phone ID’s are…
Read MoreTitle: Evaluation of the Implementation of the Sex Offender Treatment Intervention and Progress Scale (SOTIPS) [paper on assessing risk]
[nij.gov – 5/2018] This report that details findings from a study designed to follow sex offenders on probation over time in two geographically diverse settings to assess recidivism and the predictive accuracy of Evaluation of the Implementation of the Sex Offender Treatment Intervention and Progress Scale (SOTIPS). Results indicate that SOTIPS is a promising instrument for assessing dynamic risk factors in sex offenders on probation. Download the paper
Read MoreCollateral Consequences in Occupational Licensing Act
[http://ccresourcecenter.org – 6/29/18] We’ve noted in recent posts the numerous states that, just in the past three or four months, have enacted broad occupational licensing reforms affecting people with a criminal record. Many of these new laws have been influenced by a model developed by the Institute for Justice (IJ), a libertarian public interest law firm that has been litigating and lobbying to reduce barriers to work for more than two decades. In turn, states like Indiana, Kansas, Tennessee and Wisconsin have built upon IJ’s model to enact even more…
Read MoreMO: Letters: Readers discuss Luke Heimlich
[amp.kansascity.com – 7/2/19] It seems as if every time the name Jason Kander appears in any newspaper, it is qualified with “rising star” or some similar phrase that provides Kander with more credibility than just using his name would. Are reporters allowing publicity managers to direct their writing, or are all reporters just really taken with him? The last Missouri candidate with an ego similar to Kander’s had to quit his office. Allow Kander to earn his respect. Don’t anoint him. Read more
Read MoreFor formerly incarcerated, little room in Airbnb’s sharing economy
[usatoday.com – 6/28/18] Airbnb doesn’t care about people like me. I learned this the hard way a few months ago when I tried to find accommodation in Washington, D.C. After chaperoning two busloads of youth from New York City for the March for Our Lives, I decided to stay a couple more days. The other chaperones agreed to ride the bus back to New York City with the kids, and I logged into my new Airbnb account for the first time to find a place to spend the night. Soon…
Read MoreNY: Ruling Appears To Give Sex Offenders A Pass On Facebook
[wwnytv.com – 6/29/18] It’s a case out of Essex County called the People v. Ellis. “Their decision was that Facebook accounts did not have to be registered if you are a sex offender,” said Leanne Moser, Lewis County District Attorney. New York state law requires sex offenders to register their Internet providers and any Internet identifiers that they use, but the court in Essex County decided Facebook is not either of those. Right now, courts in the north country have to follow the ruling, unless there is another contrary ruling…
Read MoreNE: Nebraska FEARLESS the subject of newly-published article: creation and how it helps registered citizens and their families
[nebfacts.blogspot.com – 6/26/18] Nebraskans Unafraid’s FEARLESS is the subject of a newly-published research paper. The paper, written by Lisa Sample, Brooke Cooley, and Tusty ten Bensel, looks at the creation of FEARLESS and how it helps registered citizens and their families. Here is the abstract from the article. The term sex offender carries expectations that include a continuous level of sexual criminal risk and untreatable mental health conditions that govern sex offending behaviors. These role expectations by the public can socially isolate individuals who have been convicted of a crime…
Read MoreVA: Longer sentences for violent sex predators
[fredericksburg.com – 7/2/18] THE Commonwealth of Virginia recently announced plans to expand a facility that treats convicted sex offenders who have served their prison sentences, but are considered too dangerous to release back into the community. It is alarming that the center has already exceeded its initial residency projections just 10 years after opening in 2008. The Virginia Center for Behavioral Rehabilitation in Burkeville will increase its current capacity from 258 to 450 beds to make room for former inmates classified as sexually violent predators (SVPs). The $110 million project…
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