Child Pornography And Criminal Justice Reform

Source: Dawinder S. Sidhu & Kelsey Robinson Drug offenses lie at the heart of the movement for criminal justice reform, and for good reason. Drug policy is defined by severe and disproportionate penalties owing to a retributive, factually flawed, and hurried congressional process. These central characteristics apply to the child pornography context as well. Though drug sentencing is problematic enough, child pornography sentencing is arguably worse. The U.S. Sentencing Commission has disavowed the child pornography sentencing guidelines and invited judges to vary from them. Judges have done just that, varying…

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Senators call for audit of TSA’s facial recognition tech as use expands in airports | The Record from Recorded Future News

Source: therecord.media 11/22/24 A bipartisan group of 12 senators on Wednesday sent the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) inspector general a letter expressing alarm over the widespread use of facial recognition technology at American airports without an audit of privacy protections or any third-party assessment of the technology’s accuracy. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA), which is housed within DHS, will soon roll the technology out in small and mid-size airports, taking the total number of airports where it is deployed to 430 nationwide, the letter to Inspector General Joseph Cuffari said. The…

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SORNA Case Advances in Federal Court; PLF Files Motion for Summary Judgment

The Pacific Legal Foundation (PLF) filed a motion for summary judgment on November 18 in its pending case that challenges current federal SORNA regulations.  The U.S. Department of Justice is required to file its opposing brief to this motion no later than December 23.  The PLF will have a final opportunity to support its motion in a response due no later than January 24, 2025.  A hearing on the motion is scheduled to be held on March 10, 2025. In its motion, the PLF argued that the SORNA regulations are…

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TX: Texas Cops Fired for ‘Inappropriate’ Sexual Contact With Massage Workers

Source: reason.com 11/13/24 [ACSOL note: This is posted to show a case of abuse of authority] As a result of the internal affairs investigation, three Lewisville officers were fired, one was demoted, and seven were suspended without pay. Eleven Texas police officers have been disciplined for misconduct related to prostitution stings at massage parlors. Some of the officers are accused of inappropriate physical conduct with alleged sex workers during the stings, while others are accused of failing to stop or report this misconduct. Thirteen officers were investigated, and three wound…

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LA: Louisiana Supreme Court reverses course; child sex abuse ‘lookback’ window ruled constitutional

Source: kadn.com 6/21/24 NEW ORLEANS (KADN) — On review, the Louisiana Supreme Court has determined a 2021 law that created a three-year “lookback” window for child sex abuse victims is in fact constitutional. The law gives victims of child sex abuse a limited timeframe to file civil lawsuits, regardless of when the alleged abuse occurred. Read the full article  

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US appeals court rejects sentencing panel’s compassionate release policy

Source: reuters.com 11/1/24 Nov 1 (Reuters) – A federal appeals court on Friday ruled that the U.S. Sentencing Commission lacked authority to enact a policy last year that would allow judges to deem changes in law as “extraordinary and compelling” reasons justifying releasing prisoners early. A three-judge panel of the Philadelphia-based 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reached that conclusion as it rejected, opens new tab a Pennsylvania man’s bid to reduce the nearly 42-1/2 year prison sentence he received for committing two armed robberies in 2003.   The defendant, Daniel Rutherford, had argued…

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NY: D.A. Whines That He Can’t Use Abusive “Sexually Violent Offender” Term

Source: Jason Schmidt on observertoday.com 11/2/24 [Jason Schmidt is Chautauqua County district attorney] I write to clarify and correct the public record created by recent reporting and editorial comment on my efforts to obtain “Sexually Violent Offender” designations for certain convicted sex offenders under New York’s Sex Offender Registration Act (“SORA”). … One critical designation under SORA is that of “Sexually Violent Offender,” a classification which recognizes the inherent violent nature of certain sex crimes, many of which concern sexual assaults committed against children, by requiring lifetime registration, increased monitoring by law enforcement, and…

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Read the new 2024 Federal Sentencing Guidelines Manual amendments that are effective Nov 1, 2024

Source: ussc.gov 11/1/24 The U.S. Sentencing Commission, a bipartisan, independent agency located in the judicial branch of government, was created by Congress in 1984 to reduce sentencing disparities and promote transparency and proportionality in sentencing. The Commission collects, analyzes, and distributes a broad array of information on federal sentencing practices.  The Commission also continuously establishes and amends sentencing guidelines for the judicial branch and assists the other branches in developing effective and efficient crime policy. Read the guidelines  

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Every Halloween, Cops Brag About Arresting Sex Offenders. Here’s What The Arrests Were Actually For.

Source: huffpost.com 10/31/24 HuffPost obtained 37 arrest reports, the overwhelming majority of which show law enforcement officers arresting people for minor technical parole violations.   Every year on Halloween, law enforcement agencies throughout the country conduct thousands of random checks on people who are required to register as sex offenders. The sweeps, called “Operation Boo,” typically result in a handful of arrests, which cops tout as evidence of their utility in protecting children from would-be predators. The press has dutifully spread this message: “For the 26th year, ‘Operation Boo’ Keeps…

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FL: ‘Let Parents Decide’ What Kids Can Do Online, Argue Tech Groups in New Lawsuit

Source: reason.com 10/30/24 The groups are challenging a Florida law that bans some teens from social media. The Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA) and NetChoice, two prominent tech-industry trade groups, have filed a lawsuit against a Florida statute barring younger teens from social media. Their suit—filed Monday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida—cites First Amendment concerns with Florida House Bill 3, which the groups also portray as an imposition on parents’ rights. “Florida House Bill 3 is the latest attempt in a long line of…

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MO: Janice interviewed on TV news about Missouri sex offenders no longer having to put signs out on Halloween

Source: ksdk.com 10/29/24 ST. LOUIS — This Halloween, Missouri sex offenders won’t have to put a sign on their front door turning people away after a court decision earlier this month. Since August of 2008, registered sex offenders had to put signs on their doors on Halloween saying “No candy or treats at this residence.” Attorney Janice Bellucci represented a Hazelwood man challenging the law.   “All the laws have one thing in common, which is they’re based on a myth or misunderstanding that people on the registry actually pose…

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IL: How do scores of Chicagoans arrested for sex crimes stay off the sex offender registry once convicted?

Source: nbcchicago.com 10/22/24 When John heard the news on a recent Friday, it hit him hard: Elliott ____, a former Chicago public schoolteacher and John’s former colleague, had been arrested and charged with three counts of child exploitation, after allegedly exposing himself to three girls – ages 10, 9, and 7. Eight years ago, John – who does not want to be identified by his real name – was one of more than two dozen victims recorded by Elliott after he hid a motion-activated camera in an employee bathroom at…

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MT: Montana’s Porn Age Verification Law Is Headed to Court

Source: reason.com 10/23/24 “Invoking the innocence of children is not…a magic incantation sufficient for legislatures to run roughshod over the First Amendment rights of adults.”   It seems that a puritanical wave is sweeping the country as state governments increasingly try to make it more difficult to access pornography from within their borders. A lawsuit is challenging one of those laws, and this week, a federal judge allowed it to continue. Montana is one of multiple states in recent years to pass a law requiring pornographic websites to verify users’ ages. Under Senate…

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FL: 47 Sex Workers and 96 Clients Arrested in Florida ‘Human Trafficking’ Sting/Sham

Source: reason.com 10/21/24 Polk County, Florida, continues to be one of the worst offenders for sham efforts to combat human trafficking. The Polk County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) is publicizing “Operation Autumn Sweep” as a “human trafficking operation” that netted 157 arrests, including 25 arrests of illegal immigrants. But the vast majority of those arrested are accused not of anything the average American would view as trafficking. Instead, they were allegedly either soliciting prostitution or offering to commit prostitution. After posing online as either (adult) sex workers or prospective customers, cops…

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MD: 13-year-old boy charged for sex offense on University of Maryland campus

Source: dcnewsnow.com 10/18/24 [ACSOL note: this shows the need to educate children in how to avoid violating the law] COLLEGE PARK, Md. (DC News Now) — A 13-year-old boy was charged with a sex offense at the University of Maryland (UMD), police said Thursday. … A student told police that around 11 a.m., she was walking in that area when a “young male” walked up to her and started to ask her questions.  She said that during that conversation, the boy touched her inappropriately before running away and leaving down…

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KY: AG defending state law requiring child sex offers to use full name on social media

Source: amnews.com 10/17/24 As a parent, I’m grateful to my own State Senator, Lindsey Tichenor, and Kentucky’s legislators who are protecting our children from predators,” Coleman stated. “This statute doesn’t ban any speech, but it simply empowers kids and their parents to know who may be lurking in the shadows of the internet. The law clearly passes constitutional muster, and we hope the Sixth Circuit will quickly allow it to take full effect.” The brief noted, “The law is therefore little different than sex-offender registry laws, whose constitutionality is not…

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MO: Attorney General Files Notice of Appeal in Missouri Halloween Case

Source: ACSOL The Missouri Attorney General filed a notice of appeal today notifying a federal district court in Eastern Missouri that they will seek review of that court’s decision by the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.  The district court’s decision permanently prohibits enforcement of a state law that requires registrants in Missouri to post a sign on their residence on Halloween. “We are not surprised that the Attorney General has filed a notice of appeal in this case,” stated ACSOL Executive Director Janice Bellucci.  “The filing of this notice, however,…

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Tim Ballard files lawsuits against women accusing him of sexual assault

Source: thespectator.com 10/10/24 A number have alleged the subject of Sound of Freedom used the ‘couples ruse’ as a pretext to make unwanted sexual advances Timothy Ballard, the founder of Operation Underground Railroad and subject of the film Sound of Freedom, has filed lawsuits against seven women who are accusing him of sexual assault: Celeste Borys, Sashaleigha Hightower, Mary Hall, Kira Lynch, Krista Kacey, Bree Righter and Amy Morgan Davis. Specific accusations against Ballard include pretending to have sex with Borys in the shower, grinding, grabbing, kissing and licking. “It…

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