Author: R H

[New York Times] The passports of Americans convicted of sex offenses against a child will soon bear a mark of their crimes. The State Department announced this week that a sentence noting their conviction would be added to the back inside cover of offenders’ passports. Once the State Department receives their names from the Department of Homeland Security, it will begin notifying affected sex offenders that their passports were being revoked and reissued with the new language. Smaller passport cards, which can be used only for very limited international travel,…

[Albuquerque Journal] The spookiest time of the year is fast approaching, and you have likely already heard about local law enforcement officers preparing to keep your area free of danger on Halloween night. They may be visiting schools to counsel kids on safe practices, they may be warning drivers about watching out for children on Halloween night, and in communities across America officers are fanning out to knock on the doors of registered sex offenders. The idea behind police visits to local S.O.s (as sex offenders are referred to) is…

[theintercept.com] On September 28, attorney Michael David filed notice of a claim against the New York Police Department, the City of New York, and two unnamed police officers, referred to as John and Jim Doe. These plainclothes cops, alleged the claim, “brutally sexually assaulted and raped” his 18-year-old female client. David told me that within a day, he needed to amend the claim: The officers had been identified by police in the press as Brooklyn South narcotics detectives Richard Hall and Edward Martins. “What was strange,” said David, “was that…

[The Florida Times-Union] The city has finally taken a giant step toward protecting all its residents by considering a ordinance that will amend the strict sexual offender housing requirements that have put the community at risk. The ordinance in question decreases the distance sexual predators must reside from places, such as schools, day care centers and parks or playgrounds, from 2,500 feet to 1,500 feet. Sound contradictory? How does reducing the distance an ex-felon must live from places children frequent make the public safer? It’s simple. It makes the public…

[Richmond Times-Dispatch] A marquee policy initiative of Gov. Terry McAuliffe took center stage in the Virginia governor’s race Monday as Republican Ed Gillespie attacked McAuliffe’s approach to felon rights restoration as charitable to the point of being dangerous and Democrat Ralph Northam pushed back by saying Gillespie should be “ashamed” over his “fearmongering campaign.” The Gillespie campaign rolled out an ad Monday highlighting the case of a sex offender whose rights were restored late last year, months after he was arrested for having a massive child pornography stash. Gillespie said…

[theindianalawyer.com] Three convicted Boone County sex offenders can return to their church congregations after the Indiana Court of Appeals determined that churches are not considered “school property,” so state statute cannot prohibit the offenders from going to church, even when children are present. The appellate court handed down that decision Tuesday in John Doe 1, et al., v. The Boone County Prosecutor, in his official capacity, et al., 06A01-1612-PL-2741. The case dates to 2015, when the Indiana General Assembly passed the “unlawful entry by a serious sex offender” statute, Indiana…