Does the Megan’s Law website actually hurt some homeowners or renters? A La Puente woman says it does and that she has become the target of vandals. CBS2’s Randy Paige investigated and discovered a loophole in the law that could put future homeowners and renters at risk. Full Article
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IN: Homeless sex offender living on jail property Sheriff hopes to monitor, motivate future offenders with new plan
A unique plan hatched by the Boone County Sheriff’s Office has lead to five homeless registered sex offenders moving to permanent residences, and one to live in a tent on Boone County Jail property. Last week, a resident saw online that a registered sex offender had used the Whitestown Meijer store address as his own. The man was living in a car in the grocery store parking lot. The issue came to the attention of the Boone County Sheriff’s Office, the only law enforcement agency in the county charged with…
Read MoreMA: Senate passes sweeping criminal justice bill after emotional debate
The Massachusetts Senate early Friday passed a sweeping bill that would upend state laws on crime and punishment, aiming to reduce the number of people ensnared in the thicket of the criminal justice system and ease the tough-on-crime approach of decades past. The vote was 27-10. Full Article
Read MoreState Department Press Release Reveals “Unique Identifier” for Passports
The U.S. State Department issued a press release on Friday, October 27, that revealed both the wording and placement of a “unique identifier” to be added to the passports of some, but not all, registrants. According to that press release, the language “The bearer was convicted of a sex offense against a minor, and is a covered sex offender pursuant to 22 United States Code Section 212b(c)(1)” will be printed on the inside back cover of new passports issued to those convicted of a sex offense involving a minor and currently required to register as a sex offender…
Read MoreCO: The flaws in Colorado’s sex offender registry
The state’s sex offender registry informs me of an allegedly dangerous man living within a mile of my house who was born in 1927. That’s right: This 90-year-old who committed his crime in the last century is still required to tell the state of his whereabouts on the theory that the information will assist local police in identifying suspects for sex offenses and allow nearby residents to take precautions. But of course the rate of sex offenses among nonagenarians is virtually zero, even when they have a felony in their…
Read MorePA: Legal questions swirl around Megan’s Law in Pennsylvania
Since 1995, Pennsylvania has had Megan’s Law, which seeks to protect communities by requiring sex offenders to register with the state police, or face arrest if they fail to do so. But a July decision by the state Supreme Court has undermined that once bedrock certainty, and cases like Davies’s are now testing the law’s reach, under which offenders have their photos, addresses and other identifying information published on a state-run website. http://www.mcall.com/news/police/mc-nws-pennsylvania-megans-law-sex-offender-registry-unconsitutional-20171024-story.html
Read MoreCDCR Motion Denied in Prop. 57 Case; New Hearing Date Set
A Superior Court judge has denied the demurrer filed by the CA Dept. of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) and canceled the hearing on that topic which was scheduled for October 27, 2017. In addition, the judge scheduled a hearing on the merits of the case for February 9, 2018. “Because the judge did not grant CDCR’s demurrer, we will have the opportunity early next year to present legal arguments regarding how and why CDCR’s emergency regulations implementing Proposition 57 are both invalid and unconstitutional,” stated ACSOL Executive Director Janice Bellucci. “The public is encouraged to attend that…
Read MoreSex offender registries endanger the lives they’re meant to protect
Our communities deserve effective public-safety measures that are based on facts and sound research, not wasteful and counterproductive measures born of fear. We all want to be safe. We have to demand our legislators pass laws that work and actually keep us safe. That’s especially true when it comes to sexual offenses. http://thehill.com/opinion/criminal-justice/357096-sex-offender-registries-endanger-the-lives-theyre-meant-to-protect?amp
Read MoreThe Sex Offender Registry Leaves Female Sex Offenders Open to Abuse
The plight of registered female sex offenders could be a hard sell to some. Like males who offend, they can and do cause extreme physical and emotional damage to their victims. In addition to prison time, they can also be subject to a long list of lifetime restrictions such as where they can live and work as well as being listed, often publicly, on their state’s sex offender registry. The reason for these post-sentence restrictions come under the guise of public safety, but a growing number of critics are disputing…
Read MoreMA: ‘Change of culture and mindset’ needed at Sex Offender Registry Board after probe finds no current addresses for 1,769 sex offenders, state auditor says
Massachusetts Auditor Suzanne Bump on Tuesday criticized the Sex Offender Registry Board for what she described as a culture of passivity in tracking sex offenders, after an audit found the board did not have a current address for more than 1,700 offenders. Full Article
Read MoreVA: Gillespie ad blasting McAuliffe rights restoration policy as soft on sex offenders draws outrage from Democrats
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 the case…
Read MoreSenate passes Schumer-backed bill to open FBI sex offender database
WASHINGTON — The operators of summer camps, daycare centers and volunteer groups that work with children are a step closer to gaining access to an FBI sex offender database that could be used for background checks on prospective employees and volunteers. The U.S. Senate passed a bill backed by U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer that would close a loophole in the background check system and authorize the FBI to provide the information to organizations that work with children. Full Article
Read MoreKS: Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office oversees nearly 900 registered offenders in community
Shawnee County sheriff’s detective Dustin Carlat leads the offender registration unit that oversees nearly 900 people in the community who are registered as violent, sex or drug offenders. Full Article
Read MoreCT: Panel mulls changes to sex offender registry
Parents who check the state sex offender registry prior to allowing their children to knock on strangers’ doors and ask for candy this Halloween may be under the misconception that every person listed on the registry poses a grave danger to public safety. Full Article
Read MoreCA: Simi Valley links to Megan’s Law site to safeguard kids from sex offenders on Halloween
Simi Valley on Thursday unveiled a new strategy to safeguard trick-or-treating children from the city’s registered sex offenders. It used its Nixle.com account to link to the state’s Megan’s Law website, which lists the names, photos and addresses of 97 of the city’s 165 registered sex offenders. Full Article
Read MoreKY: Judge strikes down Kentucky’s social media ban for sex offenders
UPDATED – Kentucky’s registered sex offenders have the constitutional right to use Facebook, Twitter and other online social media, a federal judge ruled Friday. Full Article Related Plaintiff’s discussion on reddit.com (added 10/21) Opinion
Read MoreMO: Sex offender laws in effect for Halloween
Halloween is just around the corner, and parents may be wondering what laws are in effect in order to keep your kids safe when it comes to sex offenders. Full Article
Read MoreOK: Legislation that updates, streamlines sex offender registration signed into law
Legislation that would update and streamline sex offender registration has been signed into law. This week, Governor Mary Fallin signed legislation improving Oklahoma’s sex offender registry. … “The purpose of the sex offender registry continues to be public safety—to make sure law enforcement knows where registered sex offenders are living, and making that information available to our citizens,” said Griffin, R-Guthrie. “This legislation streamlines the notification process, ensures greater consistency in assigning levels for registration, and adds an additional requirement for informing DHS when a sex offender returns to a…
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