LAKE FOREST – Three members of the City Council voted Tuesday to undo a law passed a year ago banning registered sex offenders from city parks. Mayor Kathryn McCullough, Mayor Pro Tem Scott Voigts and Councilman Peter Herzog voted to remove the ban from the city’s books in light of a court ruling that a similar ordinance elsewhere is trumped by state law, and in the face of a federal lawsuit challenging the ban’s constitutionality. Full Article
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CA RSOL CHALLENGES LANCASTER SEX OFFENDER ORDINANCE IN FEDERAL COURT
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 18, 2012 California Reform Sex Offender Laws (RSOL) today filed a lawsuit in federal district court challenging the sex offender ordinance adopted by the City of Lancaster. The ordinance prohibits all sex offenders from entering both public and private areas, including the city’s library, museum, and parks as well as privately owned arcades and movie theaters. The bases for the challenge are violations of the First, Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. constitution as well as Article XI of the California constitution. The ordinance was…
Read MoreCity of Lake Forest Take Final Action to Repeal Sex Offender Ordinance
The City Council of Lake Forest voted 3 to 2 to finally approve the repeal of the sex offender ordinance they adopted unanimously about a year ago. The Council preliminarily approved repeal of the ordinance at its meeting on December 4. “California RSOL thanks the Mayor and the City Council of Lake Forest for repealing a law that violated the civil rights of more than 100,000 law abiding citizens in the state of California and that did not increase public safety,” stated Janice Bellucci, President, California Reform Sex Offender Laws.…
Read MoreWhy We Fight to Keep Registered Sex Offenders Online
Believing that human trafficking is worsened by the internet’s anonymity, the sponsors of California’s Proposition 35 thought they had a simple solution to combating the problem: require convicted traffickers to register as sex offenders. Then require all individuals on California’s sex offender registry to disclose their online identities and service providers. The measure passed in the November election with 81 percent voter approval. This isn’t surprising, since Prop. 35 also increases criminal penalties for trafficking, uses criminal fines to fund victim services organizations, and mandates more law-enforcement training on human trafficking. But…
Read MoreCity of Lake Forest – Parks Ban Repeal, Second Reading 12/18
At the regular meeting of the City Council on December 4, 2012, the City Council considered and conducted the first reading of Ordinance No. 248. This Ordinance repeals Lake Forest Municipal Code Chapter 13.12 relating to registered sex offenders in City Parks. The second reading will take place on December 18 at 7 pm. Lake Forest City Hall, Council Chambers25550 Commercentre DriveLake Forest, California 92630 http://agenda2009.city-lakeforest.com/SIREPub/mtgviewer.aspx?meetid=482&doctype=AGENDA
Read MoreCity of Lake Forest Repeals Sex Offender Ordinance
The City Council of Lake Forest voted 4 to 0 to preliminarily approve the repeal of the sex offender ordinance they adopted unanimously a year ago. Final approval of the appeal is expected at the Council’s next meeting on December 18. “The Mayor and City Council of Lake Forest are to be commended for their courage in correcting a mistake they made one year ago,” stated Janice Bellucci, President, California Reform Sex Offender Laws. “Part of that mistake was reliance upon representations made by the Orange County District Attorney (DA)…
Read MoreJudges challenge O.C. ban on sex offenders
A panel of Superior Court judges has challenged a controversial 2011 Orange County law that bans sex offenders from parks, beaches and even some roadways and asked the state Court of Appeal to review the measure. On Friday, the district attorney’s office, which has pushed cities across the county to join in adopting a version of the sex offender ban, vowed to continue enforcing it. “I believe that protecting children from sex offenders is one of the highest priorities in law enforcement,” Dist. Atty. Tony Rackauckas said in a statement.…
Read MoreLake Forest Parks Ban Repeal – Dec 04
The City of Lake Forest is expected on December 4 to repeal its existing “sex offender” ordinance which prohibits all registrants from entering the city’s parks. City staff have recommended that the City Council repeal that ordinance in an 11-page report from the city manager which states several reasons for its recommendation, including (1) no supporting evidence that the ordinance has had a measurable effect on public safety, (2) no violations of the ordinance since its passage a year ago, and (3) recent court rulings stating that “this type of…
Read MoreOrange County Pervs-in-Parks Ban Violates State Constitution: Judicial Panel
[UPDATED with OCDA Reaction:] See the update at the end of this post with the district attorney’s reaction to the judicial panel’s decision and vow to continue fighting for the ordinance. The County of Orange ordinance that bars registered sex offenders from entering county parks and recreational areas has been ruled unlawful, according to a decision issued Nov. 15 by a panel of three Superior Court judges. The unanimous ruling does not apply to the ordinances several Orange County cities adopted at the urging of county Supervisor Shawn Nelson and…
Read MoreCOURT DETERMINES ORANGE COUNTY SEX OFFENDER ORDINANCE UNLAWFUL
The ordinance passed by Orange County which prohibits all registrants from entering public parks, beaches, harbors and other recreational areas is unlawful, according to a panel of three Superior Court judges. The unanimous decision was issued on November 15. According to this decision, the county ordinance violates the constitution of the State of California because it preempts existing state law which prohibits registrants from entering public parks but only if the registrant is on parole and offended against a child who is less than 14 years old. That law is…
Read MoreCalifornia Law Isn’t Unfair to Sex Offenders, AG Says
A new California law that imposes harsh penalties on human trafficking is not unconstitutional toward sex offenders, the state attorney general told a federal judge. Californians Against Sexual Exploitation Act, or CASE, enacted by voters on Nov. 6, will require sex offenders to give police a complete list of their user names, screen names, email addresses and Internet service providers. Noting that sex offenders will be reluctant to participate in Internet forums if their identities will not remain anonymous, the American Civil Liberties Union and Electronic Frontier Foundation say the…
Read MoreUpdate: Simi Valley Halloween Ordinance Law Suit
California RSOL scored two victories this week in federal district court when Judge Anderson both granted a motion to protect the identities of the plaintiffs in the Simi Valley case and denied the city’s motion to dismiss the entire case. As a result of the motion being granted, the identities of the plaintiffs will not be revealed and they will continue to be referred to us as either John or Jane Doe. The judge’s denial of the city’s motion to dismiss means that the challenge to the lawsuit can continue. The…
Read MoreCA RSOL Meeting in Bakersfield Feb 9, 2013
California RSOL will hold its first meeting in Bakersfield on February 9th, 2013. The meeting will focus upon issues of importance to registrants, such as residency restrictions and conditions of parole/probation, as well as family members. The meeting will be held at 925 17th Street, Bakersfield (please note address change on Nov 27) beginning at 10 a.m. There will be no media or government officials at the meeting. Attendance at the meeting is free. Hope to see you there!
Read MoreSuit Contests Limits on Online Activities of Sex Offenders
The ACLU and EFF argue that new law’s requirements violate the First Amendment. California’s sex offender registry, the nation’s oldest and largest, lists more than 74,000 living Californians convicted of sex crimes since 1947. Like sex offenders elsewhere in the nation, they have been increasingly restricted in recent years as communities have barred them from not only schoolyards and playgrounds but also beaches, libraries, harbors and other public places. Now, under a ballot initiative that California endorsed on Election Day, sex offenders’ movements will also be monitored in the digital…
Read MoreUPDATE: Prop 35 / TRO against collection of internet identifiers & providers
Registrants are not required to disclose their online identities to law enforcement for an extended period of time, according to a decision made by federal district court judge Thelton Henderson on November 14. As a result of this decision, law enforcement is blocked from requiring this information until at least January 11, 2013. Additional details regarding the judge’s decision can be found on the Court Order. The judge will conduct a hearing in San Francisco on December 17 on a different issue. California RSOL is a plaintiff and an active…
Read MoreCA RSOL Meeting in LA January 19 [UPDATED]
Attorney Alex Landon will join California RSOL at its January 19 meeting in Los Angeles. Landon is a distinguished author as well as professor at the University of San Diego School of Law. He is a recognized expert on sex offender laws as is reflected in the book, “A Parallel Universe”, which he co-authored with noted journalist Elaine Halleck. Landon will make a short presentation during the meeting regarding current legal issues that challenge registrants and members of their families as well as describe why he wrote a book about…
Read MoreCritics raise specter of police state in challenge to new California law
California voters yesterday approved a new law billed as curbing human trafficking. A lesser-known section of Proposition 35, however, requires residents convicted of indecent exposure and other sex-related crimes to register their social-networking profiles and e-mail addresses with police. That violates the First Amendment’s guarantee of freedom of speech, including anonymous speech, the ACLU and the Electronic Frontier Foundation said in a lawsuit (PDF) filed today. Full Article
Read MoreTemporary Restraining Order granted by the court to stop enforcement of Proposition 35
California registrants won a major victory today! Federal district court judge Thelton Henderson granted a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) late Wednesday that prevents enforcement of requirements in Proposition 35 that require registrants to identify their online identities and activities. The TRO will stay in effect for 14 days. A hearing on whether to extend the TRO is scheduled for November 20 in San Franciso. ACLU and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) filed the lawsuit, which includes California RSOL as a plaintiff, earlier today. Court Decision Update 9:30 pm: More on the ACLU web site
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