From 2007: In the early 1980s, a therapist named Robert Longo was treating adolescent boys who had committed sex offenses. Their offenses ranged from fondling girls a few years younger than they were to outright rape of young children. As part of their treatment, the boys had to keep journals — which Longo read — in which they detailed their sexual fantasies and logged how frequently they masturbated to those fantasies. They created “relapse-prevention plans,” based on the idea that sex-offending is like an addiction and that teenagers need to…
Read MoreCategory: General News
Federal Youth Case on Trial
Two years ago federal prosecutors won a delinquency finding against a boy accused of engaging in sex acts when he was 10 years old with other young boys on an Army base in Arizona—one of the youngest defendants ever pursued by the U.S. Justice Department. The case, now being reviewed by the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, could open a new front in a long-running debate about how to handle juvenile sex offenders, whose cases generally have been tried in state, not federal, courts. The records are sealed because…
Read MoreThe Justice Department Prosecuted A 10-Year-Old As A ‘Sex Offender’
A federal appeals court is getting ready to hear the case of a boy who was prosecuted for engaging in sex acts with other boys when he was just 10 years old, The Wall Street Journal reports. Lawyers for the unnamed boy are appealing a court’s ruling that found him “delinquent” — the juvenile equivalent of guilty — for having sex with other young boys on an Arizona Army base. Full Article
Read MoreSex offenders congregate to reform laws they consider too harsh
American Bar Association Journal – More than 700,000 people are now registered sex offenders, and some among that group are fighting to change or overturn laws that they consider too harsh. More than 100 people attended a conference held in Los Angeles a few weeks ago to advocate for reform, the New York Times reports. Those attending the meeting—and other conferences like it—claim the sex offender laws are unconstitutional and ineffective. In California, for example, sex offenders can’t live within 2,000 feet of a school, park or playground. In the state’s Orange…
Read MoreSexual assault not rare among teens. Neither is feeling responsible.
Nearly 1 in 10 young Americans between ages 14 and 21 acknowledges having perpetrated an act of sexual violence at least once, and 4% of a nationally representative sample of American kids reported attempting or completing rape, a new study finds. While those most likely to report initiating unwanted sexual contact in their early to mid-teens were boys, girls were among the perpetrators as the age of respondents increased. Latino and African American youths, and those from low-income families, were less likely to have coerced another person to engage in…
Read MoreMugged by a Mug Shot Online
In March last year, a college freshman named ____ ____ was riding in a van filled with friends from Austin, Tex., to a spring-break rental house in Gulf Shores, Ala. As they neared their destination, the police pulled the van over, citing a faulty taillight. When an officer asked if he could search the vehicle, the driver — a fraternity brother of Mr. ____ who quickly regretted his decision — said yes. Six Ecstasy pills were found in Mr. ____’s knapsack, and he was handcuffed and placed under arrest. Mr. ____ later agreed…
Read MoreNY: Penile stimulation test unnecessary [UPDATED with decision]
NEW YORK (AP) — Subjecting a sex offender who is no longer imprisoned to “extraordinarily invasive” penile stimulation testing risks violating the premise that even convicts retain their humanity, a federal appeals court said Thursday. The ruling by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan frees ____ ____ of a requirement that he submit to penile plethysmography, a test in which a man’s erectile responses are measured as he is shown sexually stimulating images. Full Article Also: http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/35a2e4f39f9147dfa18316e29264e7af/US–Sex-Offender-Stimulation-Test Court Decision (US Court of Appeals – Second Circuit) Commentary
Read MoreNo More Victims
Pennie Farrell, L.C.S.W., Ph.D., says, “80% of sex offenders who successfully complete a certified treatment program never commit another sex crime.” In this video, Dr. Farrell shares insights from her 21 plus years experience treating sex offenders. She explains what she is trying to accomplish with her website,http://www.SexOffenderInformationStat…, and she compares recidivism rates between treated sex offenders and other non-sex crime offenders. Other questions she explores are, Why are some sex offenders not treatable? Why do some fail while others succeed? What are the changes sex offenders go through in…
Read MoreIs It ‘Very Offensive’ for Sex Offenders to Demand Just and Sensible Laws?
The New York Times notes a recent conference in Los Angeles aimed at calling attention to the excesses and injustices of laws aimed at sex offenders. The Times reports that the 100 or so attendees—sex offenders plus their girlfriends, wives, and mothers—”hope to convince judges, lawmakers and the public that indiscriminate laws aimed at all sex offenders are unconstitutional and ineffective.” Illustrating the mentality they are fighting, Nina Salarno-Ashford, a lawyer with Crime Victims United, tells the Times. [quote cite=”Nina Salarno-Ashford”]I find it very offensive that registered sex offenders are trying to defeat…
Read MoreGeneral Comments October 2013
Comments that are not specific to a certain post should go here, for the month of October 2013. Contributions should relate to the cause and goals of this organization and please, keep it courteous and civil.
Read MoreRestricted Group Speaks Up, Saying Sex Crime Measures Go Too Far
NY Times … A few weeks ago, more than 100 people — sex offenders, almost all of them men, along with wives, girlfriends and mothers — came from around the country to “Justice for All: A Conference to Reform Sexual Offense Laws.” They and others have formed associations and are holding conferences like this one to argue that a wave of legal penalties and restrictions washing across the country has gone too far. They hope to convince judges, lawmakers and the public that indiscriminate laws aimed at all sex offenders are…
Read MoreJudge Battles Child Pornography Mandatory Minimum Sentence He Considers Unjust
With momentum building for sentencing reform and federal judges among the most avid supporters of rolling back harsh mandatory minimum sentences, one judge is standing up for lower sentences for a particularly controversial category of defendant — those guilty of child pornography offenses. As with other offenses, lawmakers have ratcheted up the sentences for child pornography sentences — including for online possession. And some judges have insisted that, as reprehensible as the offense can be, long prison terms are not the answer. Full Article
Read MoreCalifornia prisons careening closer to cliff
For a minute there, it looked like California’s prisons were on the verge of positive reforms. But the current situation in the state’s massive prison system — one of the largest in the world — is far from encouraging. It’s been a kaleidoscope of bad news lately. Full Article
Read MoreFederal Court of Appeals: Sex Offender Registry Fee Unconstitutional Ex Post Facto Violation Under Certain Circumstances
Plaintiffs John Doe of Connecticut (Doe I) and John Doe of Florida (Doe II) are each adult males who were previously convicted of sex crimes in Wisconsin and are subject to Wisconsin’s sex offender registration and notification statutes, Wis. Stat. §§ 301.45, 301.46 (2009-10)[1]. Plaintiffs filed this action against the Wisconsin Department of Corrections (DOC), its secretary and the director of the DOC’s Sex Offender Program, alleging that the application and enforcement of the Wisconsin sex offender registration requirements against them constituted punishment in violate the ex post facto clauses…
Read MoreEfficacy of sex offender treatment still up in the air
That is a front-burner question for judges and jurors in sexually violent predator trials. Understandably, before they decide to release someone who has been convicted of sexually molesting a child, they want reassurance that he is sincerely remorseful and has acquired the tools to turn his life around. In short, they want a certificate of rehabilitation attesting to his low risk. But does formal sex offender treatment really lower risk? Full Article
Read MoreRSOL Conference Videos
Presentation videos from from the National RSOL Conference continue to be published. Instead of posting them here piecemeal we are linking to the RSOL YouTube Channel. Thanks to RSOL for making these invaluable videos available. The 2013 National RSOL Conference was held in late August in Los Angeles and was hosted by California RSOL. — One of the presenters references an excellent article that was previously listed on this site – it is here again as a reminder. RSOL 2013: “Telling Your Story to the Media” – Article from the Dallas…
Read MoreReport: Kids Accessing Inappropriate Materials at Younger Age
According to a survey of parents around the world, thanks to the internet, kids are being exposed to adult content at an ever earlier age. More than 19,000 parents took part in an online study conducted by Bitdefender, an anti-virus company based in Bucharest. Full Article
Read MoreAgainst Juvenile Sex Offender Registration
Catherine Carpenter (Southwestern Law School) was a keynote speaker at the recent RSOL Conference in Los Angeles. Her excellent presentation can be viewed here. This is the paper she is referencing in her workshop. Download it here
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