A 36-year-old teacher convicted of having sex with a person under the legal age of consent in California is suing the student she slept with for defamation. Tara Stumph, who is currently serving a 180 day sentence for having sex with a 16-year-old student, says that statements made by the young man Source: Teacher convicted of having sex with her student suing teenage boy for defamation
Read MoreCategory: California
Bill offers needed reform for sex offender registry
California’s cluttered sex offender registry is too large to be effective and must be reformed if it is to be of any use to law enforcement. Full Article
Read MoreWe must protect children at schools from dangerous sex offenders: Connie Leyva
Just last year, a group of concerned Fontana parents discovered a loophole in the law that allows dangerous sex offenders to enter school grounds and target children. They found out that dangerous sex offenders could volunteer at schools if they were given permission by a school official. Full Op-Ed piece
Read MoreNew state law aims to limit where California judges place violent sex offenders out on conditional release
A state law signed by Gov. Jerry Brown this week would make it harder for violent sex offenders released under a court’s conditions to live in counties where they have no work or family ties. Assembly Bill 255 will require judges to consider additional factors, such as residential, family or employment connections, when weighing where to release offenders who fall under the Sexually Violent Predator Program. Full Article
Read MoreTiered Registry Bill Passed by Assembly Committee
The Tiered Registry Bill (Senate Bill 421) was passed today by the Assembly’s Public Safety Committee. The final vote on the bill was 5 in favor (Chairman Jones Sawyer as well as committee members Rubio, Quirk, Santiago and Gonzalez-Fletcher), one opposed (Lackey) and one who did not vote (Flora). During deliberations on the bill, the bill’s author (Senator Scott Wiener) stated the reform of the state’s sex offender registry “is long overdue”. He added that the registry was originally meant to be a tool of law enforcement. Law enforcement now…
Read MoreOC’s district attorney sounds off against 3 Senate bills that would change the state’s bail system, sex-offender registry and laws for gun crimes
Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas and victims’ rights advocates sounded off on Monday against three state Senate bills that would make sweeping changes to California’s bail system, sex-offender registry and sentencing laws for gun crimes. Full Article OCDA Statement Related San Jose Police Union Opposes State Sex Offender Bill Police Union speaks out against sex offender bill
Read MoreSex offender revamp in works under state bill
California’s sex offender registry didn’t protect Chelsea King. A registered child predator abducted, raped and murdered the 17-year-old high school senior after she set off for a jog on the trails around Lake Hodges in San Diego County in 2010. Authorities used DNA to track down John Albert Gardner III, who confessed to killing Chelsea and another teen, Amber DuBois, who had gone missing near San Diego a year before on her way to school. Chelsea’s father, Brent King, has been fighting ever since for stricter punishments and closer monitoring…
Read MoreCourt strikes down sex registration requirement
A California appellate court has again struck down a requirement that ____ ____ ____, a well-known Redding man who often ran for elected office and who was sentenced to prison in 2013 for stalking a woman, register as a sex offender for life. In its June 30 ruling, the Third District Court of Appeal, which once again upheld his stalking conviction, reversed ____ ____ ____’s sex offender registrant requirement. Full Article Opinion 2015 Opinion
Read MoreJanice’s Journal: Freedom from Tyranny of the Registry
Today we sit on top of a mountain. We take a short rest after an arduous journey up a steep path. We gather strength. We gather numbers. We prepare for what we believe will be the final legs of a journey for many who will reach freedom…..freedom from the tyranny of the sex offender registry. Our journey began six years ago when a brave elected official, Tom Ammiano, introduced the first tiered registry bill. He saw the truth, that the requirement to register is not a mere administrative requirement, but instead is punishment. Despite the…
Read MoreBrock Turner judge Aaron Persky responds to calls for his removal
Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Aaron Persky, who came under fire for sentencing former Stanford swimmer Brock Turner to six months in county jail for sexual assault, sought Friday to dismiss demands for his removal, saying the court of law should be separated from the court of public opinion. Full Article
Read MoreSuccessful ACSOL Conference Brought Dignity, Hope and Information to Many
In 2017 The Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws held its inaugural national conference, “We Are All In This Together” on June 16th and 17th in Los Angeles at the Southwestern Law School’s historic Bullocks-Wilshire building. More than 165 registered citizens, family members and supporters from across the country were in attendance. Featured speakers at the conference included nationally recognized leaders in Criminal Justice Reform including sociologist Emily Horowitz PhD, law professors and ACSOL Board Members Catherine Carpenter and Ira Ellman, WAR Founder Vicki Henry, Professor Larry Dubin and practicing…
Read MoreFinally, some clearer thinking on sex offenders
After years of panicked and excessively punitive lawmaking against sex offenders, cooler heads are beginning to prevail. The U.S. Supreme Court, for example, on Monday struck down a North Carolina law that effectively banned registered sex offenders from using any social media that is also accessible by children. Full Editorial
Read MoreConsideration of AB 558 Postponed Indefinitely
Bill author Sharon Quirk Silva has pulled Assembly Bill 558 (AB 558) from consideration during next week’s Public Safety Committee hearing. The bill was scheduled for consideration on June 27, but it is now expected that AB 558 won’t be heard until 2018 if at all. “The threat of AB 558 has disappeared from the horizon,” stated ACSOL Executive Director Janice Bellucci. “There is language in the original and revised versions of AB 558 that contradicts language in the current version of the Tiered Registry Bill (SB 421). Perhaps the author…
Read MoreA look at the potential changes in California’s sex offender registry
As reported by the Los Angeles Times, L.A. County Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey and other criminal justice leaders have won state Senate approval to remove names of low-level, nonviolent offenders after 10 or 20 years. This would also include people who are considered not to reoffend. Under current California law, people convicted of certain sex offenses must register for life. Proponents of the bill argue that low level offenders are unfairly categorized with a blanket public perception of sex offenders, affecting offenders’ ability to obtain work, a home and even…
Read MoreCriminal justice leaders seek to end lifetime registry for low-risk sex offenders in California
It’s been nearly four decades since a 25-year-old Frank Lindsay landed on California’s sex offender registry after he pleaded no contest to improperly touching a girl under 14. He has not committed another crime since then, but state law requires Lindsay’s name to remain on the registry, which the public can see on government websites, for the rest of his life. Full Article
Read MoreHearing Dates Set for AB 558 and SB 421
Hearing dates have been set for Assembly Bill 558 (AB 558) and Senate Bill 421 (SB 421) by the Public Safety Committees. Specifically, the Senate Public Safety Committee is scheduled to hear AB 558 on June 27 and the Assembly Public Safety Committee is scheduled to hear SB 421 on July 11. “The best opportunity to stop AB 558 from becoming law is to speak against it during the Public Safety Committee hearing on June 27,” stated ACSOL Executive Director Janice Bellucci. “In addition, it is important to send letters and make…
Read MoreRoman Polanski’s Rape Victim Takes His Side In Court
A woman who was the teenage victim in Oscar-winning director Roman Polanski’s 1977 sex case is expected to appear in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom Friday for a hearing in the fugitive filmmaker’s case. Full Article
Read MoreTwo Barstow Men Arrested for Threatening Rumored Child Molester
Two Barstow men were arrested for threatening a man who they believed was a sexual predator from Las Vegas, Nevada who was attempting to lure children into his car. Full Article
Read More