IN: RSOs and Social Media Prohibition

A recent Indiana statute prohibits most registered sex offenders from using social networking websites, instant messaging services, and chat programs. John Doe, on behalf of a class of similarly situated sex offenders, challenges this law on First Amendment grounds. We reverse the district court and hold that the law as drafted is unconstitutional. Though content neutral, we conclude that the Indiana law is not narrowly tailored to serve the state’s interest. It broadly prohibits substantial protected speech rather than specifically targeting the evil of improper communications to minors. * *…

Read More

WY: Committee defeats banning sex offenders near child care sites

CHEYENNE — A Wyoming legislative committee on Monday defeated a bill that would have banned sex offenders from living within 1,000 feet of child care facilities. The House Judiciary Committee voted 7-2 against the bill sponsored by Rep. John Eklund, R-Cheyenne. “The intention of this bill is to have the same protection for under school aged children that we do for school children,” Eklund said. He said there have been instances were sex offenders have moved in next to established day care facilities. Steve Corsi, director of the Wyoming Department…

Read More

The Science of Sex Abuse

On a Saturday night in the summer of 1998, an undercover officer logged in to a child-pornography chat room using the screen name Indy-Girl. Within minutes, a user named John introduced himself and asked her, “Are you into real life or just fantasy?” Indy-Girl said that because of the “legality of it” she had never acted on her fantasies. But she soon revealed an adventurous spirit. She was a bisexual college sophomore, she said, and had learned about sex at an early age. “My mother is very European,” she explained.…

Read More

Pornography and Contact Offending

Many people have grave concerns about the potential for a relationship between pornography and inappropriate sexual behavior. For obvious reasons, there are apprehensions about the sexual behaviors of those who have sexually abused. As a result, it is not uncommon for persons who have sexually abused to be restricted from certain activities that would have remained available to them had they not sexually offended. However, questions remain as to whether we are using our professional energy and resources wisely in trying to prevent persons convicted of sexual crimes from being…

Read More

TX: Proposed law would force sex offenders to list crimes on social media profiles

SAN ANTONIO — Texas Voices, a group dedicated to supporting registered sex offenders and their families, estimates 111 new names hit the sex offenders registry every week in the Lone Star State. “We’ve already put their names and their faces and all of their information on the public registry for the world to see,” said Mary Sue Molnar, who serves as president of Texas Voices. Full Article

Read More

International Travel 2013

In an effort to keep this site organized and the comments on the topic of each post, comments, questions and suggestions regarding International Travel will be moved to this post. Please use this for all further immigration / emigration / customs related contributions. NEW: International Megan’s Law – International Travel Action Group Also see: International Travel – Mexico Living with 290: Traveling to Cabo San Lucas Resources for International Travel DHS Traveler Redress Inquiry Program (DHS TRIP) The Department of Homeland Security Traveler Redress Inquiry Program (DHS TRIP) is a…

Read More

TX: Former Ellis County Observer Publisher Gets Three Ten-Year Sentences For Sexual Assault and Indecency With a Child

Two years ago, Joey Dauben was full-time small-town muckraker, publishing the Ellis County Observer and a string of other small papers, blending investigative stories with vicious gossip and baseless speculation at a rate of speed that thrilled and enraged his target audience. He focused intensely on child pornography and child sex abuse, alleging that child porn rings were rampant on Facebook, which he called “the breeding ground of a massive, global, inter-connected, sick and sadistic, electronic child porn, child-sex trafficking ring.” But in December 2011, Dauben, now 32, became the…

Read More

OK: Sex offender law changes may be coming to Oklahoma

OKLAHOMA CITY – A stunning change involving sex offender laws could be making its way to Oklahoma. “I think it can open up an opportunity but being in prison around other sex offenders, if they want to reoffend, they’re going to find a way,” sex offender _____  _____ said. “If a person want [sic] to do something, they’re going to find it, if it’s the daycare down the street or church or a kid walking home from school.” _____ is a registered sex offender. It is labeled on his driver’s license,…

Read More

NH: Ex-convicts complain of treatment after their release from jail at legislative hearings

CONCORD – Supporters of the rights of criminal offenders turned out at legislative hearings on procedural matters Tuesday to complain about the way they are treated after serving their time. The House Criminal Justice Committee heard testimony on bills to study the state’s use of the sex offender registry and to add another means of notifying victims that an offender is up for parole. Offenders complained that the sex offender registry overstates offenses in some instances, while parole advocates said that hearings sometimes amount to a new trial on the…

Read More

CT: Montville rescinds sex offender ordinances

Montville — The town avoided a potential civil rights lawsuit when it rescinded two ordinances Monday that placed restrictions on where registered sex offenders would be allowed in town. The Town Council voted to repeal the ordinances that created so-called child and senior safety zones. Marked by signs, these zones were designed to keep registered sex offenders from town-owned and town-leased property such as the senior center, senior buses, parks, playgrounds, beaches and sports fields. Since the ordinance was introduced, Councilors Rosetta Jones and Dana McFee have voiced their concerns…

Read More

CYPRESS ORDINANCE CHALLENGED IN FEDERAL COURT

A registrant and his fiancée filed a lawsuit today in federal district court challenging the ordinance passed by the City of Cypress that prohibits most registrants from residing in the city as well as visiting public places such as parks, libraries and senior centers.  The ordinance was passed unanimously by the City Council on March 12, 2012. “The ordinance passed by the City of Cypress is egregious in that it prevents the owners of single-family homes, apartment buildings and hotels from renting to most registrants even on a temporary basis,”…

Read More

European courts spare accused pedophile, hacker from American justice

_____ _____ is a fugitive and accused pedophile, and to some, he’s also a poster child for a European judicial system that often would rather let criminals roam their streets freely than see them subjected to American justice. Nearly 20 years ago, _____, who is now 43, fled to Ireland after being charged with raping a 14-year-old girl and molesting two boys in Minnesota. _____, who had dual citizenship, was accused of assaulting two girls in Ireland in 1997, but fled to London, where police finally caught up with him…

Read More

New Mexico mulls Facebook ban on SOs as Texas ponders law forcing them to reveal their crime in profiles

New Mexico lawmakers are now mulling a ban against registered sex offenders on Facebook and other social networking sites, while states, like Texas, are considering forcing them to identify their crimes in their profiles.  The Texas bill would reportedly force certain sex offenders to embed in their profile the type of their offence, the location where it occurred, their full name, date of birth, sex, race, height, weight, and eye and hair color. Full Article

Read More

Ban repeal sparks applause, frustration

On Dec. 18, Lake Forest repealed a year-old ordinance banning registered sex offenders from its public parks. The city was one of more than a dozen in Orange County to add such a ban to their books since April 2011. Last month, in the face of a lawsuit challenging the ban’s constitutionality, Lake Forest became the first of those cities to reverse course. Proponents say the ban is needed to protect children from predators – critics argue the ban violates the civil rights of registered sex offenders. Here is a…

Read More

UT: No more online mug shots, SL County sheriff says

SOUTH SALT LAKE — Using words such as “bullies,” “extortionists” and “trash,” Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder on Thursday blasted tabloid magazines and websites that post mug shots from his jail and then demand money for the pictures to be removed. “In my opinion, what we’re seeing today is nothing short of extortion in our county,” Winder said. “This practice must be stopped.” Because of the recent booming practice of some private companies publishing all mug shots in a single publication, Winder announced that as of Thursday, mug shots…

Read More

Prop 35: Preliminary Injunction granted

Late Friday, a federal judge granted a preliminary injunction in the lawsuit EFF filed with the ACLU of Northern California (ACLU-NC) that challenges the unconstitutional provisions in Proposition 35, a ballot measure passed by California voters in November that restricts the legal and constitutionally protected speech of all registered sex offenders in California. EFF and the ACLU-NC filed the lawsuit the morning after Election Day, noting that although Prop 35 is ostensibly about increasing punishment for human traffickers, it’s beset with problems. The biggest was its requirement that registrants turn…

Read More

Penalties sought for parolees cutting GPS monitors

SACRAMENTO (KGO) — Those GPS ankle bracelets that monitor some California parolees are not as effective as they could be. And that’s because some convicted sex offenders and gang members are cutting off the devices and getting away with it. Authorities say 48-year-old repeat sex offender _____ ______ cut off his GPS ankle bracelet in November and days later he was charged with the sexual battery of a Fresno State student at the campus library. “What I care about is that we get these criminals back behind bars,” Assm. Jim…

Read More

San Jose: Ruling finds DA’s right-hand man committed misconduct

SAN JOSE — In a scathing opinion published Thursday, a state appellate court reversed a judgment against a felon accused of being a sexually violent predator, saying the prosecutor handling the case — now District Attorney Jeff Rosen’s right-hand man — engaged in a “pervasive pattern” of misconduct. The misconduct finding against Chief Assistant District Attorney Jay Boyarsky is the first black mark against Rosen’s administration since he took office two years ago on an ethics platform and appointed Boyarsky as his top assistant. Full Article Also:  SF Chronicle Article,…

Read More