CA RSOL Presentations in San Francisco

California RSOL members will make three important presentations on July 27 during a hearing conducted by the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers in San Francisco.  Presentations will be made by CA RSOL State Organizer Janice Bellucci regarding the impact of the state’s lifetime registry. She will be joined by registrants Ken Woods, a former physician, and Frank Lindsay, author of “We’re All in This Together“.  The hearing is focused upon the unintended consequences of state legislation on felons, including those convicted of sex-related offenses.

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Public-Place Laws Tighten Rein on Sex Offenders

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. — Convicted sex offenders are barred from surfing at the famous pier in this Orange County city. In nearby Dana Point, they are prohibited from casting a fishing line in the harbor. And if they wander into a public park in Mission Viejo, they could be shipped back to jail for six months, following the City Council’s vote this year to ban them from a host of places where children congregate. “We need to protect our kids,” the Orange County district attorney, Tony Rackauckas, had told the…

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Rape conviction reversed; Long Beach football star exonerated

LONG BEACH — A man convicted of rape nine years ago walked out of court Thursday an innocent man. Brian Banks, a promising football star at Long Beach Poly High with a scholarship offer from USC, had his 2003 conviction reversed by Long Beach Superior Court Judge Mark Kim after the victim in the case recanted. Nine years in the making, Banks’ battle to be exonerated lasted less than 30 seconds in court. It took only moments for the District Attorney’s office to “concede the matter” and Banks was no…

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San Bernardino County – Ban on RSOs Participating in Halloween

May 22, 2012 – SB County Board of Supervisors directs County Counsel to research and return to the Board with a recommendation on an ordinance that restricts the activities of sex offenders on Halloween that reside within the unincorporated areas of the County. From the Agenda: Some of these restrictions include: Having a porch light on during usual “trick-or-treating” hours of 5 p.m. to Midnight on Halloween; Decorating their home for Halloween; Hosting a “haunted House” on their property; Handing out candy; Answering the door for anyone other than law…

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The New Jews in America

This is the twenty-sixth in a series of articles about Auburn-area homeless people, written by local attorney, author, and Sierra College Instructor, Bob Litchfield . The young man looks to be about twenty years old. But it turns out that he is actually 28. He has been homeless for about two years. Since he is a 290 registered sex offender, we will not use his real name. Instead, we’ll call him Sam. Young Sam can’t get a job, he is homeless, he wears a GPS ankle monitor, and he is…

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Treatment of sex offenders at issue in conference

Posting photos of sex offenders on the Internet and lumping all of those convicted of the crimes into one category is probably not keeping anyone safer, according to a member of the California board tasked with managing sex offenders. The question of how California deals with sex offenders was under scrutiny Thursday, as dozens of professionals from social workers to law enforcement officers met in San Diego for an annual conference offered by the California Coalition on Sexual Offending. Full Article

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Officials speak of nuanced approach to monitoring sex offenders

Crafting Chelsea’s Law —- named for slain Poway teen Chelsea King —- was a “bipartisan success,” but other California laws to monitor sex offenders are problematic, state Sen. Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, said Friday. At a panel discussion with San Diego County District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis in Mission Valley, Leno addressed a gathering of professionals from social workers to law enforcement officers, who were in town for an annual conference held by the California Coalition on Sexual Offending.  Full Article

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El Dorado County bans sex offenders from public parks

February 8, 2012: The El Dorado County Board of Supervisors gave initial approval Tuesday to a law that will make it a crime for registered sex offenders to frequent public parks. Full Article  –  County Ordinance [hana-flv-player video=”https://all4consolaws.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/Movie-El-Dorado-County.flv” width=”400″ height=”330″ description=”” player=”4″ autoload=”true” autoplay=”false” loop=”false” autorewind=”true” /]

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City of Cypress Adopts Punitive Ordinance

The Cypress City Council unanimously adopted a punitive ordinance that would deny the civil rights of registered citizens despite a recommendation from the City Attorney to delay further consideration in order to conduct further research. The City Attorney’s recommendation was consistent with a request from California RSOL that was submitted in writing as well as addressed during the City Council meeting on March 12. In its letter and oral testimony, California RSOL questioned the constitutionality of the proposed ordinance as it pertains to residency restrictions, park bans, hotel stays and…

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California RSOL Opposes Punitive Ordinance Proposed by City in Orange County

California RSOL will publicly oppose an ordinance proposed by the City of Cypress that would prohibit all registrants from (1) living with 2,000 feet of a school, park or day care center, (2) being in close proximity of a child safety zone, (3) staying in a hotel that already has a registrant guest, and (4) celebrating Halloween. The Cypress City Council will consider the ordinance on March 12. “This is the most comprehensive and the most damaging ordinance yet considered by a city,” stated state organizer Janice Bellucci. “The ordinance…

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ASSEMBLY DEFEATS AB 625

The Assembly has just voted on AB 625 and defeated it by 41 to 19. It’s hard to believe that elected officials don’t understand the current challenges faced by the state’s 92,000+ registrants such as unemployment, homelessness and vigilante violence. These challenges are of course experienced by family members as well. California RSOL attempted to educate them by lobbying efforts in October, November, December and January. Many thanks to Frank and Marshall who lobbied with me during the first months and with 8 others who joined us in January. And…

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AB 625 AMENDED BY ASSEMBLY

AB 625 was amended by the Assembly during its deliberations on Thursday, January 26. The amendment, proposed by Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, would create a fourth tier of individuals that would only be required to notify law enforcement officials when they moved. The amendment was proposed in order to attract additional votes for the bill. The amendment passed 32 to 16 after being opposed by Assemblyman Hagman of Orange County. A vote on the amended bill is scheduled for Monday, January 30.

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VOTE ON AB 625 DELAYED

Voting on Assembly Bill (AB) 625 was delayed due to the absence of several supporters of the bill, according to staffers in the office of Assemblyman Ammiano. The bill is expected to be voted upon either Thursday, January 26, or Monday, January 30. The delay provides an opportunity to provide further input into the office of Assembly members. Please call the office of the Assembly person who represents you. A list of Assembly members, including phone numbers, can be found online at www.assembly.ca.gov.

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BOARD RECOMMENDS CHANGES TO RESIDENCY LIMITS

The California Sex Offender Management Board recently issued a report that questioned the effectiveness of residency restrictions. The report noted an extremely low recidivism rate for sex offenders (3.25 percent for parolees and 5 percent for those who completed parole) and concluded that most sex offenses are committed by individuals who are not on the state’s registry. The report also noted an increase of more than 100 percent in the homelessness of registered individuals. This increases rather than decreases the safety of communities, according to the Board. The full report,…

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