Category: California

CA: Large Online Retailer Settles Suit for FCRA Violation

R H

Source: pre-employ.com An online retailer recently announced it reached an agreement in a California federal court. This agreement ends a lawsuit with a former associate. According to the case, the associate accused the retailer of illegally using information about a past conviction to deny him a full-time job. The online retailer did not detail the terms of the agreement. However, it did file a notice stating that it had agreed to settle the lawsuit under the California Fair Chance Act (FCA). The FCA first took effect in January 2018, intending…

Read More

Janice’s Journal: The Glass Is Half Full

R H

Is the glass half empty or is the glass half full?  It’s a question many have asked when they believe not all of their needs or desires have been met.  The answer to that question often depends upon whether the person who asked it is an optimist or a pessimist. I am an optimist and I declare that the glass is half full.  That is, the California Sex Offender Management Board (CASOMB) has approved two proposed changes identified by the Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws (ACSOL) and CASOMB plans…

Read More

CASOMB Recommends Tier Reductions!

R H

The California Sex Offender Management Board (CASOMB) today approved two tier reductions that would benefit thousands of individuals convicted of either felony possession of child pornography or lewd or lascivious acts with a person 14 or 15 years old.  CASOMB is expected to share the news of its approvals with the state legislature later this calendar year.  The changes will not become law, however, until the legislature passes a bill that includes CASOMB’s approvals. Specifically, CASOMB today approved the reduction from Tier 3, the highest tier, to Tier 1, the…

Read More

CA: Gavin Newsom Can Sign a Bill to End Price-Gouging in California Prisons

R H

Source: theappeal.org 9/18/23 California prison canteens currently sell essential items—such as snacks and medication—at a markup of between 65 and 200 percent.   With just one signature, California Governor Gavin Newsom can significantly curtail the state’s long-standing practice of price-gouging imprisoned people for vital items like toothbrushes or deodorant. Last week, the Basic Affordable Supplies for Incarcerated Californians Act, or the BASIC Act, overwhelmingly passed the state Senate and Assembly. The bill is now with the governor, who has until October 14 to sign it. If signed into law, the…

Read More

CA: Neighborhood council collapses after new member is suspected of being a registered sex offender

R H

Source: ktla.com 9/12/23 LOS ANGELES – Studio City’s neighborhood council has imploded after members found out that they may have voted in a convicted sex offender – even after they alerted Los Angeles city leaders, KTLA has learned.  Ian Mitchell King, a self-described a “non-practicing lawyer” and business consultant, joined the council in mid-August.  At the time, he told councilmembers that he had served in the U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Navy.  What council members did not yet know, however, is that there is an individual who is listed on…

Read More

CA: Still no housing option for convicted sex offender Michael Cheek following state committee meeting

R H

Source: lookout.co 9/8/23 Michael Cheek’s release remains in limbo as a state-mandate committee did not identify any viable housing options for him at its Thursday meeting. Cheek is due back in court Tuesday, when Liberty Healthcare Corporation — the state contractor trying to find him a home — is expected to bring more options. A state-mandated committee tasked with consulting on where convicted sex offender Michael Cheek should live in Santa Cruz County did not identify any viable housing options at its meeting on Thursday, prolonging a process that has…

Read More

CA: Danny Masterson sentenced to 30 years to life in prison

R H

Source: nbcnews.com 9/7/23 [ACSOL note: This case is significant due to lengthy sentence.] LOS ANGELES — “That ’70s Show” star Danny Masterson was sentenced Thursday to 30 years to life in prison for raping two women more than two decades ago at his Hollywood Hills home. Masterson, 47, displayed no visible emotion after Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Charlaine Olmedo threw the book at him. “Mr. Masterson, I know that you’re sitting here steadfast in your claims of innocence, and thus no doubt feeling victimized by a justice system that…

Read More

CA: Elk Grove will (of course) exclude people who have committed sex offenses from their homeless shelter

R H

Source: msn.com 9/6/23 Elk Grove plans to open a temporary winter shelter for the city’s unhoused, starting later this year and lasting for five months. Officials on Tuesday announced the plan for the vacant Rite Aid drug store at Elk Grove Boulevard and Waterman Road. The city-owned site would open Nov. 1 through March 31, officials said. Dubbed an “Enhanced Winter Sanctuary,” the site will be able to house up to 30 people and will provide opportunities for people to access social services, resources and housing, said Elk Grove housing…

Read More

ACSOL Demands Removal of Registrants from CA Megan’s Law Website

R H

ACSOL demanded today that the California Department of Justice (CA DOJ) remove from the state’s Megan’s Law website the profiles of every individual that lack two important pieces of information — year of conviction and year of release. The demand was sent to Attorney General Rob Bonta, who leads that agency, by email and U.S. mail. “We believe that the California Megan’s Law website is in violation of state law which requires that profiles on that website include the year in which a person was convicted as well as the…

Read More

CA: Placer County officials push back on transient release of sexually violent predator

R H

Source: kcra.com 8/21/23 Placer County and state leaders on Monday heard from people worried about the release and relocation of 66-year-old William ________, a sexually violent predator (SVP). County leaders spoke after the Department of State Hospitals (DSH) and Liberty Health Care held a meeting to talk about possible locations to place ________. He’s the man set to be released as a transient in the county, meaning he’ll live without a permanent address. While this doesn’t mean he gets dropped off at a bus stop, concerned officials are fighting the…

Read More

CA: School District Warned Regarding Support for Residency Restrictions

R H

The Lakeside Union School District (LUSD), located in San Diego county, was warned in a letter sent yesterday of the dangers it would face if it chooses to support residency restrictions.  Local parents and other residents of Lakeside, California, recently demanded that LUSD support residency restrictions due to their concerns about registrants who live near local schools. “Once again, the public is reacting out of fear and ignoring the facts regarding registrants,” stated ACSOL Executive Director Janice Bellucci.  “Their fear is based upon the mistaken belief that all registrants pose…

Read More

CA Department of Justice Assigns Tiers to 9,000 Additional Registrants

R H

The California Department of Justice (CA DOJ) has assigned tiers to more than 9,000 individuals required to register during the past seven months.  As a result, there are up to 9,000 additional registrants who are now eligible to petition for removal from the registry.   ACSOL filed a lawsuit on January 5, 2023, in Sacramento Superior Court requesting that the court order CA DOJ to assign all individuals required to register to a tier.  At the time the case was filed, more than 12,500 registrants lacked a tier and therefore could…

Read More

CA: Sex offenders near Lakeside [near San Diego] schools upset parents, board members

R H

Source: cbs8.com 8/9/23 LAKESIDE, Calif. — Lakeside residents gathered at Riverview Elementary School Wednesday to express their outrage over the amount of convicted sex offenders near the schools. Both parents and school board members said they want to be more informed about sex offenders in the area and also more blanket restrictions surrounding them living near schools, parks and bus stops. There used to be state restrictions that prohibited registered sex offenders from living within 2,000 feet of schools and parks where children gathered. Jessica’s Law was overturned in 2015…

Read More

CA: Nearly 140 arrested in Southern California child sex abuse raids

R H

Source: ktla.com 7/26/23 139 people were arrested in a sweeping multi-agency crackdown on child sex abuse and child pornography this month, the Los Angeles Police Department announced Wednesday. The crackdown, dubbed Operation Online Guardian, involved over 100 agencies that comprise LAPD’s Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force. “Child exploitation is one of the most horrendous crimes affecting our most vulnerable members of the community,” Joe McNally, Assistant U.S. Attorney General, said at a news conference Wednesday morning. “Through these crimes, predators target those who can’t protect themselves.” The operation…

Read More

CASOMB Committee Moves Forward with Proposed Changes to Tiered Registry Law

R H

A committee of the California Sex Offender Management Board (CASOMB) moved forward today with three proposed changes to the Tiered Registry Law.  Those changes would affect individuals convicted of felony possession of child pornography, individuals convicted of lewd or lascivious acts with a 14 or 15 year old and individuals assigned to Tier 3, the highest tier. During today’s meeting, the committee members agreed that individuals convicted of felony possession of child pornography and lewd or lascivious acts with a 14 or 15 year old  should be assigned to Tier…

Read More

CA: A newly amended complaint claims MTS offered Nathan Fletcher’s accuser $10,000 in exchange for silence

R H

Source: cbs8.com 7/19/23 SAN DIEGO — Grecia Figueroa, the woman who accused former San Diego County Supervisor Nathan Fletcher of sexually assaulting her, says her former employer, the Metropolitan Transit System, offered her $10,000 in exchange for her silence.  In addition, Ms. Figueroa says the former County Supervisor and Chair of the Metropolitan Transit System set her up to make it appear as if Ms. Figueroa was extorting money from the family and that if not paid, she would go public with what he claimed were false sexual assault accusations. …

Read More

CA: Convicted sex offender to be released as transient in Placer County

R H

Source: kcra.com 7/18/23 PLACER COUNTY, Calif. —A convicted sex offender will be released as a transient in Placer County, according to a release from the district attorney’s office. The Placer County District Attorney’s Office said it “has vehemently opposed” William _____’s release during every court proceeding involving the sex offender. On Monday, after a three-hour hearing and argument, the judge granted _____ transient release in Placer County. He is classified as a Sexually Violent Predator and is enrolled in the state’s Sexually Violent Predator program under state law. The district…

Read More

ACSOL Stops Protests Outside CA Registrants’ Home

R H

The Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws (ACSOL) has stopped protests outside a house in Fairfield, CA, where five registrants on parole were residing.  The protests were televised and included the Mayor of that town which is located between Sacramento and San Francisco. The Mayor falsely claimed on several TV broadcasts that the registrants pose a current danger and demanded that the registrants move from the house where they were placed by the CA Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR).  Registrants on parole do not pose a current danger, according…

Read More