UPDATE:Janice Bellucci was asked this morning to participate today (Wednesday, 1/22) in a live radio interview on a radio station in Fresno, the Broeske & Musson Show, on KMJ. which can be found online or at 580 AM. The show will begin right after the 10 a.m. news and could continue until 11 a.m. Please call in if you can. (See comment below) Fresno County’s policy that keeps sex offenders from living within 3,000 feet of places like parks and schools is unconstitutional, according to an attorney suing the county…
Read MoreCategory: California
CA: For civil rights leader shunned for being gay, a chance at pardon and a new legacy
A day after the federal government observed Martin Luther King Jr. Day, two California representatives are asking the state to posthumously pardon one of King’s close confidantes, Bayard Rustin. On Jan. 21, 1953, Rustin was arrested for having sex with two men in a parked car in Pasadena, Calif., where he was visiting as part of a lecture tour on anti-colonial struggles in West Africa. He was cited for vagrancy, which the representatives say in a letter was a common charge against gay men engaging in consensual sexual behavior at the time.…
Read MoreCASOMB Reports “Biggest Jump” in Number of Registrants
The number of people required to register as sex offenders in the state of California continues to grow at a rapid case, according to the CA Sex Offender Management Board (CASOMB). That total number peaked at 109,379 as of January 8, 2020, which represents an increase of about 1,600 in only two months. “This is the biggest jump in several years,” stated CASOMB Vice Chair Brenda Crowding of the CA Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Of that total number, CASOMB reported that there are 78,981 registrants not in custody of…
Read MoreCommittee Permanently Stops Assembly Bill 884
The Assembly’s Public Safety Committee today permanently stopped Assembly Bill (AB) 884. The Committee, in a vote of 3 to 4, defeated AB 884 a second time. The bill was originally denied passage in April 2019, however, the same Committee granted the bill reconsideration in order to allow the bill to be modified. The author of the bill did not to modify the bill, however, and did not attend today’s hearing. If AB 884 had become law, more than 40,000 people convicted of PC 288(a) would have been moved from…
Read MoreCA: Prison guards opened cells for inmate attacks. Why some kept their jobs
A California prison warden was going to fire six correctional officers after an investigation found they had helped a group of inmates assault convicted sex offenders. The warden managed to get rid of four of the officers, but then California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation attorneys stepped in and prevented firing two of them, according to an Office of the Inspector General report published Friday. The report doesn’t identify the prison. Full Article
Read MoreEmployment Help for Registrants in LA County
“Friends Outside” has been awarded a grant from the State of California to help registrants succeed in job searching and conduct registrant research. For more information and contact info, please see the flyer.
Read MoreCA DOJ Releases New Information About Tiered Registry Law
The California Department of Justice (CA DOJ) has released new information regarding the Tiered Registry Law in the form of Answers to Frequently Asked Questions. A similar document was issued by the agency about two years ago. A link to a copy of the new document is below and can also be found on the website of the Office of the California Attorney General. According to the new information, registrants will be able to request their “tier notification letters” from the local law enforcement agency where they register after January…
Read MoreSacramento Lobby Day (Feb 11) Details Revealed
ACSOL will conduct Lobby Day on Tuesday, February 11, in Sacramento. The day will begin with training at 9 a.m. at a “new” address, 500 Capitol Mall, and will end about 5 p.m. All participants are invited to attend a group dinner, funded by ACSOL, following at 5:30 p.m. “The primary focus of this year’s Lobby Day will be proposed changes to the Tiered Registry Law,” stated ACSOL Executive Director Janice Bellucci. “There is a lack of logic and reason to the assignment of individuals convicted of non-contact, non-violent offenses…
Read MoreCA: Court of Appeal to Hear Prop. 57 Case on January 22
The California Court of Appeal, Third District, will hear oral arguments from attorneys representing both the California Department of Corrections (CDCR) and the plaintiff on January 22 at 2 p.m. The court is located in Sacramento at 914 Capitol Mall on the fourth floor and the public is welcome to attend the hearing. Oral arguments in the appeal are being heard at the request of CDCR despite a letter from the court stating oral arguments in this case were not necessary. CDCR filed an appeal after a Superior Court determined…
Read MoreCA: New AB 218 law allowing childhood sexual assault victims more time to report draws widespread praise
CALIFORNIA: [ocregister.com – 10/15/19] AB 218 extends statute of limitations allowing victims to file lawsuits up until age 40. Advocates, lawyers and victims across the state on Monday lauded a new law signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom allowing victims of childhood sexual assault more time to file lawsuits. Assembly Bill 218 affects those abused in many walks of life, from Olympics swimmers and schoolchildren to Boy Scouts and young Catholic churchgoers. The bill, signed by the governor on Sunday and taking effect Jan. 1, gives victims of childhood sexual…
Read MoreEmotional Support Group Meetings
Emotional support meetings provide individuals required to register, their family members, and their friends, an opportunity to discuss personal challenges and share their experiences, strengths and hopes. They are not the same as monthly ACSOL phone conference meetings. The support meetings do not discuss legal issues, bills, and laws. They are based upon the format of 12 Step meetings. Media, law enforcement, parole, etc. are not allowed to attend meetings. There is no cost to attend. The meetings are currently online using Zoom or phone. This may change over time…
Read MoreCA: State court revives psychotherapist challenge to law on patients who reveal child porn activity
[sfchronicle.com – 12/26/19] The California Supreme Court revived a challenge by psychotherapists Thursday to a state law requiring them to notify the government about any patient who has viewed child pornography. The law, passed in 2014, expanded statutes from the 1980s that required therapists to report to police or child welfare offices — or face loss of their licenses and criminal prosecution — when a patient has produced, distributed or duplicated images of juveniles engaged in sexual activity. The new law extended the requirement to patients who downloaded or viewed…
Read MoreShould psychotherapists be required to report patients who look at child porn?
For years, California law required psychotherapists to report any patient who admitted developing, duplicating, printing or exchanging material depicting an obscene act involving a child. The therapists accepted that requirement. They regarded it as an obligation to report producers and distributors of child pornography. But when the Legislature amended the law in 2014 to reflect new technology, many therapists balked, complaining the new wording required them to inform on patients who posed no threat to others. … Ira Ellman, one of several scholars who joined a friend-of-the-court brief in the case,…
Read MoreCA: CASOMB Reports Significant Increase in Number of Registrants
[ACSOL] The number of individuals required to register as a sex offender in the state of California continues to grow rapidly, according to the CA Sex Offender Management Board. The current number of registrants in the state is 108,970, an increase of about one thousand people in only five months. “The rapid growth in the number of registrants in California must stop,” stated ACSOL Executive Director Janice Bellucci. “A significant part of this growth is made up of individuals convicted of offenses involving unlawful images, including teens who are viewing…
Read MoreCA: Federal Court Voids San Diego Residency Restrictions [NEW LINKS]
[New related links added] [ACSOL] A federal district court determined today that San Diego’s residency restrictions are void. As a result, the city cannot restrict where a registrant who is not on parole may reside. “The court’s decision today settles plaintiffs’ Motion for Partial Summary Judgment, but does not settle the entire case,” explained civil rights attorney Janice Bellucci. “We will continue the case in order to protect the rights of all registrants who choose to reside in San Diego.” Plaintiffs filed their motion on June 27…
Read MoreCA: Registrants Challenge Jury Pool Exclusion
Five registrants have filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court challenging a new state law that allows all felons, except those convicted of a sex offense, to serve as jurors. According to the lawsuit, the new law violates the equal protection clause of the state’s constitution. The new law, which began as Senate Bill 310, did not initially exclude registrants from jury service. That version of the bill passed the Senate, however, the bill was later amended to exclude registrants in the Assembly’s Appropriations Committee. “There is absolutely no…
Read MoreCould GPS-Tracked Sex Offenders Go Unmonitored During Power Shutoffs?
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) – Hundreds of thousands of Californians remain in the dark as another round of planned power outages hit California. Parts of 29 counties and nearly 600,000 customers are affected. And now the shutoffs are raising new concerns that violent offenders could take advantage of the outages. Victims rights groups say the fear is real. They want to make sure offenders using tracking devices are being monitored. Full Article
Read MoreJanice’s Journal: The Big Picture
I founded California Reform Sex Offender Laws, the predecessor of the Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws (ACSOL) eight years ago in September 2011. I did so after reading the book, “We’re All in This Together”, by Frank Lindsay who was convicted of a single sex offense in 1979. My decision to create this organization was based upon the outrage I experienced after learning that not only Frank’s civil rights, but the civil rights of a large group of people in this country were being violated every day, 24 hours…
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