[inquisitr.com – 12/30/19] Thousands of children across the United Kingdom — some as young as four years old — have been investigated by the police for “sexting” — that is, consensually sharing sexually explicit images of themselves with each other, The Guardian reports. In some cases, the children have even been given criminal records. Laws against child pornography have been around for decades, intended to protect children from being sexually exploited and to punish those who would possess such images and/or share them with each other. However, teenagers — and…
Read MoreCategory: International
Nigeria launches first sex offender register
[theguardian.com/ – 11/25/19] Campaigners have hailed the launch of Nigeria’s first sex offender register as a vital step towards tackling reported cases of sexual abuse, which are rising across the country. The publicly accessible onlineregister of people prosecuted for sexual violence since 2015 will allow public bodies and police authorities to conduct background checks and identify repeat offenders. Oluwaseun Osowobi, the director of Stand To End Rape, a Nigerian non-government organisation that supports survivors of sexual violence, said: “If a case is reported anywhere in the country, the case is…
Read MoreCanada: Calls for public sex offender registry in Canada [video]
[ctvnews.ca – 11/11/19] Why isn’t Canada’s sex offender registry viewable by the public like in the U.S.? Watch the video
Read MoreAustralia: Police to review policies as footage emerges of bikie attacking child sex offender in watch house
[abc.net.au – 11/4/19] SA Police is reviewing its security practices as CCTV footage of a bikie attacking a child sex offender at the Adelaide City Watch House is posted online. Rebels bikie member Bradley Daniele posted the footage to social media of him allegedly attacking child sex offender _______. Police this morning confirmed a 26-year-old man from Mawson Lakes had been reported for the assault which took place at the Adelaide City Watch House in April. In the footage, a man can be seen showering in a cubicle before he…
Read MoreCanada: SCC to rule if sex offender registry unfair to mentally ill
[advocatedaily.com] Sex offenders who have been found not criminally responsible on account of a mental disorder (NCRMD), and received an absolute discharge from the Ontario Review Board (ORB), may soon be permitted to have themselves removed from sex offender registries, says Toronto criminal lawyer John Fennel. Fennel, an associate with Hicks Adams LLP, says the issue is expected to be heard by the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) in the spring. In a decision released in April, the Ontario Court of Appeal (OCA) called for the federal and Ontario sex-offender…
Read MoreUK: Manchester Teen Faces Sex Offender Status for Touching 17-Year-Old on the Arm, Waist
Last fall, in Manchester, England, an awkward 19-year-old male student touched a 17-year-old female classmate’s arm on the street during the daytime. He later said he had wanted to make a friend. This rattled the young woman so much that she went to the police. Now the young man is facing possible jail time and could be placed on the sex offense registry. Full Article Related https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/touching-teenage-girl-way-home-17061816?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=sharebar
Read MoreAustralia: WA’s sex offender laws ‘as tough as they can be’, says Premier Mark McGowan
[http://brandsauthority.com – 10/7/19] Premier Mark McGowan says WA laws are as tough as they can be in dealing with dangerous sex offenders following the release of a notorious paedophile.________, a repeat sex offender, walked free on Monday after convincing a judge he was no longer a threat to children.His release is subject to a record 61 conditions – including that he undergo chemical castration. The Premier said that as a parent he was unhappy whenever a sex offender was released from jail but said people could not be kept in…
Read MoreUK: Sex offender – ‘I’ve never had so many deviant thoughts’
In 2017, the government’s flagship treatment scheme for people convicted in England and Wales of rape or child sexual abuse was scrapped after it was shown to raise the risk of reoffending. Two sex offenders have told BBC Radio 4’s File on 4 programme what it was like to take part in the rehabilitation programme. Full Article
Read MoreMandatory registration recommended for sex offenders relocating to Jamaica
[jamaicaobserver.com – 10/3/19] KINGSTON, Jamaica — A parliamentary committee has recommended that it should be made mandatory for sex offenders who have relocated or returned to the island to register in the Sex Offender Registry in Jamaica. Failure to register will constitute an offence, which may be punishable by imprisonment. Minister of Justice, Delroy Chuck, made the disclosure as he opened debate in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, on the Report of the Joint Select Committee appointed to complete the review of the Sexual Offences Act, the Offences against…
Read MoreCanada: Top court to rule if mentally ill must be on sex-offender registry
[thespec.com – 9/26/19] The federal government is challenging an appeal court decision that found that the registry reinforces a stereotype that those who commit criminal acts while mentally ill never change and pose a permanent risk. News Sep 26, 2019 by Colin Perkel The Canadian Press TORONTO — The Supreme Court of Canada will have final say on the validity of laws requiring sex offenders to register when an accused is granted an absolute discharge after being found not criminally responsible. In a decision on Thursday, the high court said…
Read MoreEngland: Kirkby residents protest outside home of sex offender living near to primary school
[nottinghampost.com – 9/25/19] Residents of Kirkby-in-Ashfield are protesting outside the home of a man awaiting sentence over historical child sexual offences who lives near a primary school. ______, 33, pleaded guilty to four counts of indecent assault of children under 16 – taking place in the 2000s – at Nottingham Crown Court on September 9 and has been bailed to live at his home while he awaits sentencing. Members of the community have been organising peaceful protests since September 21 and say they do not want ____living so near to…
Read MoreSouth Africa: Making Sexual Offenders Registry Public a Recipe for Disaster – Legal Expert
[allafrica.com – 9/24/19] Following the high prevalence of violence against women and children in the month of August, the question over whether the sexual offenders registry should be open to the public has been brought to the fore. Social movement Amandla.Mobi has petitioned Justice Minister Ronald Lamola to “make the sex offenders list publicly accessible online and on mobile platforms that anyone can easily access”. The petition was created 18 days ago with the goal of garnering 8 000 signatures. To date, the organisation has collected 7 842 signatures. This…
Read MoreSouth Africa: SA demands sex offenders list be made public
[unitedsouthafrican.com – 2/20/19] For many years South Africans have been calling for a list of convicted paedophiles to be made available like that of the United States however the Department of Justice maintain that revealing details of offenders will go against their right to privacy. The Constitution limits the number of people who are allowed access to the information, yet the public are demanding better protection of their children. In the USA the public can freely search a list of registered paedophiles online to establish where they reside. South Africa…
Read More3 ways to help sex offenders safely reintegrate back into the community
[phys.org – 9/3/19] Few categories of offender invoke as strong a response as sex offenders. There is a public desire to “do something” about sex offenders, which is taken seriously by politicians of all persuasions. One way governments have responded is by increasing the length of time sex offenders spend behind bars. For example, most Australian states and territories now allow for “dangerous sex offenders”—such as Edward Latimer, who committed numerous offenses against adult victims—to be kept in custody after their sentences have ended. But it’s not feasible to keep…
Read MoreIndonesian Doctors Refuse to Castrate Child-Sex Convict
[benarnews.org – 8/27/19] The association representing medical doctors in Indonesia said Tuesday it would refuse to take part in chemically castrating the first convict sentenced to such punishment under the country’s toughened up child-protection laws against pedophiles. In May, a court in East Java province’s Mojokerta regency found Muh Aris bin Syukur guilty of sexually abusing nine children, including girls as young as 7, between 2015 and 2018, and sentenced him to 12 years in prison. The judges, in a landmark ruling, ordered that he be chemically castrated to prevent…
Read MoreIRE: How Ireland deals with sex offenders after they’re released from prison
AT ANY ONE time there are between 400 and 450 people convicted of sexual violence in custody in Irish prisons. … During his time in prison, ____ declined to participate in the Building Better Lives programme, a rehabilitation service for sex offenders, despite meeting many of the conditions. These criteria include a prison sentence of longer than 18 months, full admission of the offence, robustness of personality to withstand the challenge of the group and some literacy capacity. Full Article
Read MoreSex Offender Registries: Are they keeping our children safe?
[psychologytoday.com – 8/9/19] Sex offender registries have been in the news lately as media outlets have been questioning why billionaire Jeffrey Epstein, who was convicted of sexually assaulting a minor female, was able to largely elude the penalty of being on a sex offender registry by maintaining residences in states that did not require him to register. This then begs the bigger question – what do these sex registries accomplish and do they work to keep our children safe? … Do sex offender registries prevent sex abuse? As with most…
Read MoreMalaysia: Applications to use sex offender registry still low – Hannah Yeoh
[malaysiakini.com – 8/6/19] Only 92 applications to check 1,497 names have been received for the sex offenders registry (e-DKK) which was launched by the Women. Family and Community Development Ministry in March. Its deputy minister Hannah Yeoh (photo, above) said the number of applicants using the registry from April to July was still low due to the lack of awareness in society, especially nursery operators when hiring caregivers or new workers. Read more
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