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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CA: Santa Clara County jail inmate dies by suicide
Source: ktvu.com 3/11/23 SAN JOSE, Calif. – A man arrested for alleged sex crimes has died by suicide in a Santa Clara County jail, authorities said. The 44-year-old was found unresponsive in his cell during a welfare check shortly before 8:20 a.m. Saturday, county officials said. Deputies and medical staff of the Santa Clara County Main Jail administered Narcan and performed CPR to revive the man. Paramedics pronounced the man to be dead a few minutes after their arrival. Authorities said there were no signs of foul play and that…
Read MoreCA Zoom Summit: Re-Entry Against the Odds, March 28, 30
Source: Friends Outside of Los Angeles County Reentry Against the Odds is a two-day online Zoom summit for service providers, government officials, elected officials, registrants, and community members which will focus on better understanding of this reentry population to better address the needs of these individuals, both for their and society’s benefit. An educational opportunity and conversation about registrants (often referred to as “290’s” or “Sex Offenders”). Often maligned, their recidivism rates are very low. This population experiences increased negative public opinion and lack of systemic supports Registrants experience increased…
Read MoreCA: New Bill To Prevent The Covert Release Of Sexually Violent Predators Into Communities
Source: californiaglobe.com 2/28/23 A bill to help prevent the covert releasing of Sexually Violent Predators (SVPs) into communities across the state was formally introduced into the Senate on Monday. Senate Bill 832, authored by Senator Brian Jones (R-San Diego) would aim to make the highest criteria of any potential placement of an SVP be that of public safety. The bill, also known as the Sexually Violent Predator Accountability, Fairness, and Enforcement Act (SAFE Act), would also require the Department of State Hospitals (DSH) to take ownership in the placement process…
Read MoreCA Sex Offender Management Board Reaches “General Consensus” on Changes to Tiered Registry Law
Source: ACSOL The CA Sex Offender Management Board today reached a “general consensus” regarding 5 of 7 proposed changes to the Tiered Registry Law during its monthly meeting. All of the changes considered today were included in a presentation to the board made by ACSOL during the board’s meeting last month. Specifically, CASOMB members today gave preliminary approval to the following proposed changes: (1) remove felony child pornography offenses from Tier 3, (2) remove convictions for PC 288(c) from Tier 3, (3) remove attempted offenses from Tier 3, (4) allow…
Read MoreCA: Government Files Motion to Dismiss SORNA Complaint
Source: ACSOL The federal government filed on February 13, 2023, a motion to dismiss the pending lawsuit which challenges SORNA regulations that became effective in January 2022. The motion alleges that the complaint fails to state a claim and that one of the plaintiffs lacks standing. A hearing regarding this motion is scheduled for April 5, 2023, in federal district court in Riverside, California. While the motion is pending, the preliminary injunction granted by the court on January 13, 2023, will continue. That injunction prevents the federal government from enforcing…
Read MoreCA: Armie Hammer breaks silence on sexual abuse allegations: ‘I used people’
Source: theguardian.com 2/4/23 Armie Hammer gave his first interview since the beginning of 2021, when multiple sexual misconduct and abuse allegations were made against the actor, saying all the encounters involved were consensual while acknowledging he was emotionally abusive in his relationships. “I had a very intense and extreme lifestyle,” Hammer told Air Mail, a digital newsletter. “I would scoop up these women, bring them into it – into this whirlwind of travel and sex and drugs and big emotions flying around – and then as soon as I was…
Read MoreACSOL Survey: Was your California Governor’s pardon application or tiered registry petition denied after you paid an attorney to file it?
ASCOL wants to hear from registrants in California who have paid or considered paying attorneys for: Application for a gubernatorial (Governor’s) pardon; Petition for termination from the sex offender registry when you are assigned to Tier 3 or otherwise ineligible for removal; or Evaluating your eligibility for a pardon application or tiered registry petition when you are assigned to Tier 3 or otherwise ineligible for removal. It appears that California attorneys sometimes advertise and/or charge large amounts for these services when there is little or no chance for success. ACSOL…
Read MoreAction Alert for CA: Time to Sign Up for Lobby Day in Sacramento on March 21
3/19/2023 UPDATE: Due to high turnout, it is no longer possible to sign up for Lobby Day. Please do not show up if you have not signed up since our orientation and training room will be full.
Read MoreCA Registrants Lacking Tier Assignment Can Get Help
During this week’s meeting of the CA Sex Offender Management Board, it was announced that any person who currently lacks a tier assignment can obtain information about their tier assignment or lack of a tier assignment from the CA Department of Justice. According to that announcement, registrants seeking this information should send an email to the CA Department of Justice to this address: SB384@doj.ca.gov
Read MoreACSOL Presents to CASOMB Proposed Changes to CA Tiered Registry Law
ACSOL made a presentation today to the CA Sex Offender Management Board regarding proposed changes to the CA Tiered Registry Law. The presentation included seven proposed changes and was made by ACSOL Executive Director Janice Bellucci. The proposed changes are (1) reduce from Tier 3 to Tier 1 individuals convicted of a non-production felony child pornography offense, (2) clarify that courts may consider a petition for removal from the registry even if the individual does not have a tier assignment, (3) reduce from Tier 3 to Tier 2 individuals convicted…
Read MoreCA: A Federal Judge Says the DOJ’s Sex Offender SORNA Registration Rules Violate Due Process by Requiring the Impossible
Source: reason.com 1/19/23 Justice Department regulations threaten people with prosecution for failing to register even when their state no longer requires it. A rule that Attorney General Merrick Garland issued in 2021 notionally requires people to do things that are plainly impossible. If they have been convicted of a sex offense, they must register with their state, even when the state neither requires nor allows them to do so. They also must supply the state with all the information required by federal law, even when the state does not collect…
Read MoreCA Court Blocks DOJ’s new SORNA Rule Because it Violated Due Process and First Amendment
Los Angeles: A California court last week blocked the Department of Justice’s new Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act rule because it violated due process and the First Amendment. “The DOJ almost never loses these cases. That they lost here goes to show just how far out on a limb the DOJ is with this rule,” said Caleb Kruckenberg, an attorney at Pacific Legal Foundation. “The rule clearly violated due process and free speech protections. And while the court felt bound by precedent to conclude that the rule didn’t violate the…
Read MoreCA: Release of Sex Offender Into Community Is Blocked
Source: metnews.com 1/10/23 The release of a sexually violent offender into a community following an involuntary hospital confinement after he served his prison sentence can be blocked by setting up the home schooling of children within close proximity to where the former inmate is scheduled to reside, the Sixth District Court of Appeal has declared, over a dissent. At issue is Welfare & Institutions Code §6608.5(f) which provides that “a person released under this section shall not be placed within one-quarter mile of any public or private school providing instruction…
Read MoreACSOL Files Lawsuit Due to CA DOJ Failure to Provide Tier Assignments
ACSOL filed a lawsuit in Sacramento Superior Court today alleging that the California Department of Justice (CA DOJ) has failed to provide tier assignments to thousands of California registrants and thus violated a state law that required all registrants to receive a tier assignment by December 31, 2022. As a result of the agency’s failure, there are thousands of registrants who are being prohibited from petitioning for removal from the registry. According to the lawsuit, CA DOJ failed to provide tier assignments to 12,438 registrants as of November 2022. This…
Read MoreACSOL to Lead CA Lobby Day on March 21
ACSOL will lead the California Lobby Day on March 21 in Sacramento. The primary focus of Lobby Day is to advocate for changes to the CA Tiered Registry Law that could significantly increase the number of registrants eligible to petition for removal from the registry. More than half of all CA registrants (48,631) have been assigned to Tier 3, the highest tier, which makes them ineligible to petition for removal. In addition, more than 12,400 registrants have not yet received a tier assignment and are also ineligible to petition for…
Read MoreCA: Steven Tyler Accused of Sexual Assault of a Minor in New Lawsuit Over a Decades-Old Claim
Source: yahoo.com 12/29/22 A woman who claims to have had an illicit relationship with Steven Tyler in the Seventies when she was a minor has filed a lawsuit against the Aerosmith singer, accusing him of sexual assault, sexual battery, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. The lawsuit was filed following California legislation that temporarily waived statutes of limitations for childhood sexual abuse allegations. Read the full article
Read MoreCA: Child-sex offender faces felonies for living in High Desert home but claiming homelessness
Source: vvdailypress.com 1/2/23 A registered sex offender last convicted in California less than six years ago for child-sex abuse is now behind bars on two felony charges for allegedly “giving false information to law enforcement” by claiming to be homeless despite having taken up residence in a High Desert home. John Ray ____, 57, was arrested shortly before noon last Wednesday on the outskirts of Apple Valley at a home that authorities say he’s been living in without registering it as a residence he uses in legally-required updates to his…
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