[floridaactioncommittee.org – 11/23/18] In an opinion entered earlier this month. A North Carolina District Court Judge found the state’s process for adding people to their sex offender registry who had been convicted out of state, was unconstitutional. In this case, the plaintiff’s case was out of Washington State. He moved to North Carolina, where he was originally told he did not have to register, but after moving within North Carolina, was told he did. The decision to place someone on the registry is not made by a judge. It’s made…
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One Criminal-Defense Attorney’s Lament: Scott Greenfield argues that innocents are being sacrificed in the name of utopian causes
[theatlantic.com – 11/21/18] For more than a decade, the criminal-defense attorney Scott H. Greenfield has been writing about American law and culture at Simple Justice. Among the site’s readers are lawyers, law professors, judges, civil libertarians, and advocates of criminal-justice reform. What keeps me coming back is his zealous advocacy for a consistent set of principles no matter how unpopular their application might be in a given instance. Whether I agree or strongly disagree with where he comes down on a given matter, I can count on his steadfast commitment…
Read MoreOK: Some law enforcement worry new, stricter law will discourage sex offenders from registering
A new law that further tightens restrictions on where sex offenders can live has some law enforcement agencies concerned it will discourage people from registering as offenders. The law, which went into effect on Nov. 1, added home daycares to the list of locations sex offenders cannot live near. Prior to that, state law already prohibited offenders from living near child-friendly areas, ordering them to live 2,000 feet from public and private schools, churches, playgrounds, parks or daycare centers. The law did not apply to home daycares, of which Oklahoma…
Read MoreCO: Judge Matsch On SORA: Cut The Crap, It’s Unconstitutional [UPDATED]
UPDATE: Oral Argument – Thursday, November 15, 2018 – Courtroom III https://www.ca10.uscourts.gov/clerk/oral-argument-recordings 9/2/2017: In Millard v. Rankin, an as-applied challenge, Colorado Senior District Judge Richard Matsch rejected the pretty ribbons the legislature wrapped around the Sex Offender Registry Act. Applying the “intents-effects” test to the law, the court held that it was unconstitutional under the Eighth Amendment. Full Article
Read MoreRI: Judge dismisses charge against sex offender
Recent misdemeanor charges against ____ ____, a registered sex offender who caused a stir among neighbors when he moved to Providence last month, were dismissed Monday in District Court. Full Article Related Statement by RI ACLU
Read MoreDenying Bail
The Arizona Supreme Court got it right: categorical denials of bail to persons charged with sexual assault violates the Constitution. Full Article Also see Is a Categorical Denial of Bail for Accused Sex Offenders Constitutional?
Read MoreGA: City Council passes emergency ordinance banning homelessness
With an outcry from neighbors about recently released sex offenders living under a nearby bridge, the Ringgold City Council unanimously passed an emergency ordinance banning homelessness Monday night. Full Article Related COLUMN: Georgia City Wrong to Target Sex Offenders in New ‘Homelessness Ordinance”
Read MoreIs a Categorical Denial of Bail for Accused Sex Offenders Constitutional?
The Supreme Court will soon consider whether to grant a certiorari petition filed by Arizona, which involves a voter-approved amendment to the Arizona Constitution rendering a defendant categorically ineligible for bail if “the proof is evident or the presumption great” that he committed sexual assault. In a 4-3 divided opinion, the Arizona Supreme Court concluded that this amendment was unconstitutional. Arizona has sought review of that decision. Full Article
Read MoreNC: High court weighs if tracking sex offenders reasonable
North Carolina’s Supreme Court is re-evaluating whether forcing sex offenders to be perpetually tracked by GPS-linked devices, sometimes for the rest of their lives, is justified or a Constitution-violating unreasonable search. The state’s highest court next month takes up the case of repeat sex offender Torrey Grady. It comes three years after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in his case that mandating GPS ankle monitors for ex-cons is a serious privacy concern. Full Article
Read MoreFL: Over 1 Million Felons Win Right To Vote With Amendment 4
In a key ballot initiative, Florida will restore voting rights to citizens convicted of certain felonies after they have served their sentences, including prison terms, parole and probationary periods, AP has projected. Voting rights will not be restored to those convicted of murder or felony sexual offenses. Full Article
Read MoreIL: Woman broke sex offender law after registering children at daycare
A Joliet woman was apparently registering her children at a daycare when she violated the requirements of her sex offender status, according to court transcripts. Full Article
Read MoreCO: Aurora middle-school parent mislabeled as sex offender when visiting son’s school
Staff in an Aurora school office staff mistakenly flagged a man as a registered sex offender when he and his family went to his son’s middle school for a recent event. Full Article
Read MoreDirty Landlords Openly Discuss How to Remove a Registrant Tenant during a Property Takeover
[sosen.org – 10/20/2018] One of my associates has recently joined the boring world of land brokerage and has been training for a few months. A couple of days ago she contacted me to notify me of this public forum for the real estate industry called “Bigger Pockets”. A discussion began on October 9th entitled “Inheriting a ‘sexually violent predator against children’ tenant” was stated by a woman buying an apartment complex in IN. A picture with the “#IBelieveSurvivors” slogan was found on her social media page along with links to…
Read MoreOK: Police Oppose New Sex Offender Residency Restrictions [video]
[newson6.com – 11/1/18] Tulsa police say that the new laws will prevent registrants from living in the entire city of Tulsa. The law affects the entire state [1:35]. Watch the video
Read MoreGA: Georgia sheriff’s office places ‘No Trick-or-Treat’ signs in sex offenders’ yards
[fox11online.com – 10/30/18] ACKSON, Georgia (WSYX/WTTE) — A Georgia sheriff’s office is placing “No Trick-or-Treat” signs in sex offenders’ yards in an effort to keep children safe. “As Sheriff, there is nothing more important to me than the safety of your children,” said Butts County Sheriff Gary Long. “This Halloween, my office has placed signs in front of every registered sex offender’s house to notify the public that it’s a house to avoid.” Long said Georgia law forbids registered sex offenders from participating in Halloween. That includes decorating their property…
Read MoreMO: Registered sex offenders in Dent County will have signs outside their home this Halloween
[ky3.com – 10/23/18] SALEM, Mo. — We are now just 8 days away from Halloween and one local sheriff’s office here in the Ozarks wants to make it a safe night for all the kids going door to door. That’s why the Dent Co sheriff’s office wants a particular group of people to put a sign outside their home. The Dent County Sheriff’s Office is asking all the registered sex offenders in the county and especially those inside the Salem city limits to put this sign reading, no treats or…
Read MoreRI: City Officials Stoke Mob Mentality in Front of Sex Offender’s Home
When _____ _____ , a convicted child sex offender, was released from prison after serving almost 30 years, he quietly moved into the Washington Park neighborhood in Providence. One would not have expected a welcome wagon — but an angry mob should not have been the result either. Because his crimes were committed so long ago, Gardner is not subject to the community notification provisions that apply to more recent offenders under the state’s Megan’s Law. But the police leaked his address to public officials, and a media circus ensued.…
Read MoreLauren McCluskey Murder: What’s the Point of the Sex Offender Registry?
At approximately 8:20 p.m. on Monday, October 22nd, University of Utah college student Lauren McCluskey, 21, was found shot to death inside a car parked on campus. Only a short time before, the star track-and-field athlete had been on the phone with her mother, Jill McCluskey, who reported hearing her daughter’s last words. “Suddenly, I heard her yell, ‘No, no, no!’ I thought she might have been in a car accident,” Jill McCluskey said in a statement to press. “That was the last I heard from her.” … Rowland’s status…
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