Category: General News

Only in death, it seems, can a person on the sex offender registry be considered a human worthy of love and sympathy. Full Article

There is perhaps no more reviled crime in America today than sexual assault, especially on a minor. When a person is found guilty of sexual assault, he or she is forced to register as a “sex offender,” often a lifelong designation. Yet, is this a good thing? The modern sex offender laws were born out of the “tough on crime” period of the 1990s. The laws require those designated as sex offenders to inform a community when they move into a neighborhood, makes their name and address public information, and…

When I first became a public defender, I believed the worst punishment that my clients would face would be time in jail. Since then, I’ve learned that incarceration is not the only — and perhaps not the worst — punishment the criminal justice system can impose. The registration requirements imposed on those convicted of sex offenses are unfairly harsh and punitive, though few recognize them as such. Full Article

There are two parts to any criminal sentence for any crime involving sex. There’s the standard sentence: prison time or probation. As soon as the first sentence ends, the second one begins. After getting released from prison, an ex-offender has to sign up for his state’s sex offender registry. If he moves to another state, he’ll have to sign up there too. Depending on the state and the seriousness of the crime, his name, picture, and information will be publicly listed for all to see — permanently. Full Article

Federal laws protecting the internet did not give the owner of several sex-offender websites license to post false and harassing information, a jury in U.S. District Court in Phoenix decided Friday. Full Article

An attorney for a businessman accused of using multiple websites for internet harassment is arguing in court that his client did nothing wrong and that his online activity was protected by federal law. Full Article

Even when they serve their time, sex crime offenders in some states are being held years beyond their release date. The civil commitment laws that let jailers deem convicts too dangerous to walk free are facing increased scrutiny, especially in Minnesota, where even juvenile sex offenders grow old behind bars. William Brangham reports. Full Article

Many people end up on sex offender registries who aren’t a danger, like minors who have consensual sex, public urinators or streakers, the author argues. Full Article

Three maps show states that register people as sex offenders for consensual teenage sex, peeing in public, and prostitution. Full Article

The Assembly Public Safety Committee will consider on June 21 an amended version of Senate Bill 448, which requires some registered citizens to disclose their internet identifiers. The hearing will be held in State Capitol Room 126 and begin at 9 a.m. As amended, the bill requires the disclosure of internet identifiers by registered citizens convicted after January 1, 2016, if they used the internet to collect private information about their victim. Disclosures would be required during annual registration as well as within 30 working days of additions or changes…