Charleston sex offender sentenced to nearly 20 years in federal prison after sting arrest

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD)- A Charleston man has been sentenced to nearly 20 years in prison following a fall 2020 arrest for explicit conservations with an undercover police officer he thought was a teenage boy. Therence Jamison, 58, was sentenced after pleading guilty to attempted coercion and enticement of a minor. According to prosecutors, Jamison — who is a registered sex offender — exchanged sexually explicit messages with whom he believed to be a 14-year-old boy on an online dating app. In November 2020, Jamison arranged to meet the boy at…

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ACSOL Protests County’s Attempt to Block Release of Registrant

ACSOL today protested the attempts of Placer County to block release of registrant William Stephenson, who has been designated a sexually violent predator (SVP) in that county.  The protest took place outside Placer County Superior Court about an hour before a hearing was held regarding the registrant’s release.  ACSOL leaders Sherri Harlow and Janice Bellucci were interviewed by local media including KCRA3, CBS13 and Fox News.  Roger Hunnicutt, a member of the Family Safety Foundation board of directors, also joined the protest.   “We showed up, stood up and spoke…

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How the Supreme Court has promoted myths about sex offense registries

Twenty years ago, the justices deemed registration preventive rather than punitive. By  Jacob Sullum   Mar 1, 2023, 12:30pm CDT This Sunday, March 5, marks the 20th anniversary of Smith v. Doe, a U.S. Supreme Court decision that approved retroactive application of Alaska’s sex offense registry, deeming it preventive rather than punitive. That ruling helped propagate several pernicious myths underlying a policy that every state has adopted without regard to its justice or effectiveness. Writing for the majority in Smith, Justice Anthony Kennedy took it for granted that collecting and disseminating information…

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International Travel 2023

This post is intended as a place for discussions about International Travel ONLY. We added a new post for this year in order to keep the discussion manageable.  For more information and previous discussions on the topic, please see the pages in the International Travel menu named International Travel [year number]  Click here for the latest International Travel Information and Resources  

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US cannot disarm people convicted of non-violent crimes – federal appeals court ruled

(Reuters) -The U.S. government cannot ban people convicted of non-violent crimes from possessing guns, a federal appeals court ruled on Tuesday. The 11-4 ruling from the Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is the latest defeat for gun control laws in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last year expanding gun rights nationwide. The decision stems from a 2020 lawsuit by a Pennsylvania man, Bryan Range, who was barred under federal law from possessing a gun after pleading guilty to welfare fraud. He claimed the prohibition violated…

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New California Appellate Court Ruling Could Have Deadly Consequences

A San Francisco Appellate Court recently ruled that parole agents do not have to comply with the knock-notice rule under Penal Code section 1531 when making routine parole-compliance checks. They are now permitted to barge into a parolee’s residence without first knocking and announcing their presence. This shocking new decision runs counter to previous court rulings that held that parole agents must comply with the knock-notice law for parole and even probation searches. Unfortunately, this new ruling could have deadly consequences. On March 13, 2020, while executing a “no-knock” search warrant at…

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Exposure to HIV Removed from Offenses Requiring Sex Offender Registration in Tennessee 

People living with HIV convicted of criminal exposure can request to terminate registration requirements with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (NEW YORK) – On May 17, 2023, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed Senate Bill 0807/House Bill 832 into law after it passed the House and Senate in April. The law removes criminal exposure to HIV from the list of violent sexual offenses where a conviction required an individual to register as a sex offender for life. The law will go into effect on July 1, 2023.  Tennessee is one of 30 states that have…

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PARSOL Responds to May 23, 2023 SCOPA Hearing

HARRISBURG, PA – The Pennsylvania Association for Rational Sexual Offense Laws (PARSOL) strongly urges the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania to uphold Chester County Judge Allison Bell Royer’s finding in the case of Comm. v. George Torsilieri that Pennsylvania’s Megan’s Law Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA) is unconstitutional.  Royer found that “SORNA is unconstitutional both facially and as applied to this Defendant on the bases that it employs an irrebuttable presumption that is not universally applicable and because its punitive nature offends Alleyne and Apprendi; results in a criminal…

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ACSOL Seeking Information Regarding Parolees Required to Repeat Treatment Programs

ACSOL is seeking information regarding registrants on parole who have been required to complete more than one treatment program.  CDCR recently admitted in court that they require registrants on parole to continue treatment programs the entire time while on parole.  One California court has ruled that this policy is contrary to state law.   According to statistics from CA Department of Justice, there are more than 7,000 registrants currently on parole.  The parole period for most registrants is 5 to 10 years, however, some registrants are on parole for up to…

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SORNA Case Update: Hearing Set For June 5

There is an update in the pending case challenging the SORNA regulations.  The federal government has withdrawn its appeal of the Preliminary Injunction, however, the federal government is continuing to pursue a motion to dismiss the case.   Although both the federal government and the plaintiffs have waived oral argument regarding that motion, the judge has scheduled a hearing on that motion during which oral argument may be required for June 5 at 9 a.m.  Plaintiffs are required to file their brief opposing the motion to dismiss no later than April…

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Janice’s Journal: Are California Judges Getting Smarter?

There are two recent court decisions, one from an appellate court and the other from a trial court, that may be evidence that California judges are getting smarter on issues of importance to the registrant community. In the appellate court decision, three judges decided that the District Attorney must prove that a person required to register poses a current risk before a court can require continued registration beyond the minimum amount of time required under the Tiered Registry Law. In doing so, the appellate court overturned a trial court decision…

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CA Sex Offender Management Board Discusses Further Improvements to Tiered Registry Law

The California Sex Offender Management Board (CASOMB) continued today its discussions of improvements to the Tiered Registry Law during its regularly scheduled monthly meeting.  During those discussions, CASOMB identified three improvements to that law as their top priorities — removal of CP offenses from Tier 3, creating an off-ramp for those assigned to Tier 3 and allowing registrants to access their profiles on the Megan’s Law website.   Also during those discussions, CASOMB determined that “deeper study” is required before they can make a recommendation regarding either the reduction of PC…

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