Legislation that would create a statewide violent felony offender registry has been included in the New York State Senate’s one-house budget, state Sen. Michael Nozzolio said Wednesday. “New York state currently requires all convicted sex offenders to register with the state and it keeps track of those individuals,” he said. “It makes no sense that we do not do the same for those who commit violent felony crimes against our citizens. We cannot continue to put innocent New Yorkers at risk.” Full Article
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IL: Sex offender workplace registry bill sparks debate
State Senator Julie Morrison (D-Deerfield) has introduced a bill that would require convicted sex offenders to register with police in the locales where they work to plug a hole in the state’s registry system. The measure is viewed as a common-sense approach by Highland Park Police Chief Paul Shafer and others in law enforcement, and seen as overly punitive and burdensome by some advocates looking out for offenders’ rights. Full Article
Read MoreCT: Bill to Keep Sex Offenders Away From Schools Could Cause ‘Chaos,’ Critics Say
A bill intended to keep convicted sex offenders away from kids would throw the Connecticut’s sex offender registry into “chaos,” according to the state’s Department of Correction. Included in Senate Bill 1087 is a provision that would prohibit registered sex offenders from residing within 1,000 feet of a school or a child day care center, but according to Eric Ellison, deputy director for parole and community services at the Correction Department, that’s not a feasible, or even desirable, goal. Full Article
Read MoreVA: woman convicted for harassing sex offender
All she wanted to do, Delores Ann Harris told a jury Friday, was to protect herself and her granddaughter from a man who had been convicted 21 years ago of aggravated sexual battery, a man who has been on the state’s sex offender registry since 1997. But the convicted sex offender in the courtroom was the victim in the jury trial. And Harris, 61, was the defendant, charged with misusing information from the sex offender registry. Full Article
Read MoreIN: Sex offender fights restraint law Challenges Hartford City child safety zones
Challenges Hartford City child safety zones – Convicted sex offender ____ ____ would like to take his daughter bowling. And to church. And although it’s been more than 20 years since he was convicted of the crime in Los Angeles County, California, the 47-year-old Blackford County man is prohibited from doing those and other activities with his daughter because of a Hartford City ordinance. Full Article
Read MoreIA: Supreme Court rules on sex offender supervision of Waterloo man
The Iowa Supreme Court is questioning whether the supervision of a Waterloo man who was deemed a sexually violent predator is constitutional. ____ ___, 57, was committed to treatment at the Iowa Department of Human Services’ Civil Commitment Unit for Sexual Offenders in Cherokee in 2001 after he was released from prison for a 1995 sexual abuse conviction in Dubuque. The state’s sexual predator laws allow for civil confinement for convicted sex offenders who have a mental abnormality that makes them more likely than not to carry out future sex…
Read MoreND: Man Sentenced to Prison For Sexual Conversations with Minors
… Judge Gary Lee ordered ____ ____ to spend six years in prison, followed by five years of probation, and a lifetime requirement to register of a sex offender. Judge Gary Lee told ____ that the prison time was a minor worry in his life. The judge said the lifetime sex offender label was much more damaging, adding, quote, “Your life is over.” Full Article
Read MoreUT: Utah Passes White-Collar Felon Registry
With just a point and a click, you can browse a face book of felons, a new government website that will warn of the danger these criminals pose to society. Only these are not the faces of sex offenders and serial killers. These criminals are mortgage schemers and inside traders, most likely armed with nothing more than an M.B.A. or a law degree. Full Article
Read MoreWI: Expert Weighs In On Proposed Statewide Sex Offender Law
Some local ordinances have made it increasingly difficult for sex offenders to find housing. In response to restrictive buffer zones and housing bans, many sex offenders relocate to communities with fewer restrictions. Full Article and Radio Show
Read MoreNY: Drawing the line on sex offenders
___ ___, Douangtavilay, a Level 3 sex offender, once lived 200 feet from athletic fields used by Penfield youth. The discovery of this fact has prompted Penfield officials to propose residency restrictions on sex offenders, potentially putting Penfield in conflict with state law. New York’s courts assign sex offenders a Level 1, 2, or 3 designation, based on the risk that they’ll re-offend. Level 1 means a low risk, Level 2 is moderate, and Level 3 is high. Full Article
Read MoreOH: Supreme Court – When Is a Sex Offender Not a Sex Offender?
Maybe Hollywood culture has impassioned us too much. We expect loud murmurings and banging from a gavel to restore order when we envision courtroom scenes. Largely, we expect drama, especially when it comes to sex crimes. The reality is that it is a subdued affair. At least it was this morning. There was a small and quiet crowd in the Supreme Court of Ohio this morning. Overall, it was a feeling of intrigue as the Court heard an important paradox of a question. When is a sex offender not a…
Read MoreNV: Bill would exempt more crimes from sex offender registration
CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) – Nevada lawmakers are considering a bill that would exempt more people from registering as sex offenders. Members of the Assembly Judiciary Committee reviewed AB208 on Tuesday. The measure would only require someone to register as a sex offender if they’ve been convicted of a felony sex crime, not a misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor. Full Article
Read MoreFL: Bill Puts Lottery Winnings By Sex Offenders in Escrow
Sex offenders who hit it big in the Florida Lottery would have the winnings placed into escrow, giving their victims an opportunity to resolve any claims, under a proposal filed Friday by state Rep. Bob Cortes, R-Altamonte Springs. Full Article
Read MoreNC: Sheriff bans sex offenders from church
ROBBINSVILLE, N.C. – A sheriff in one of North Carolina’s smallest counties told sex offenders they can’t attend church services, citing a state law meant to keep them from day care centers and schools. Sheriff Danny Millsaps, in Graham County, told the registered offenders about his decision on Feb. 17, according to a letter obtained by the Asheville Citizen-Times on Friday. Full Article
Read MoreNH: It’s time to abolish where sex offenders can’t live
New Hampshire lawmakers are again debating measures that would ban communities from restricting where sex offenders can live. Typical restrictions bar sex offenders from living within a half-mile of places where kids gather: Schools, playgrounds, etc. At the risk of offending many readers, particularly those in Dover where sex offender residency requirements were repealed, we cautiously support this position. Full Article
Read MoreNH: Lawmakers debate lifting sex offender residency restrictions
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — New Hampshire’s legislature is once again debating measures that would ban municipalities from restricting where sex offenders can live, even as some other states are making such restrictions tougher. The legislature’s Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee is expected to send the proposals to the full House this week. The House last year supported the ban on residency restrictions by a vote of 231-97, but the Senate killed the bill by consigning it to an interim study. Full Article
Read MoreNV: Bill would repeal Adam Walsh sex-offender act
After years of languishing in Nevada courts, legislators are reconsidering sex-offender laws affecting juveniles and the way criminals are ranked and registered. State Sen. Richard “Tick” Segerblom, D-Las Vegas, and Assemblywoman Michele Fiore, R-Las Vegas, introduced Senate Bill 99 in February to repeal the state’s version of the federal Adam Walsh Act. Critics have said the law disenfranchises juveniles who could be reformed, and many think the way the law categorizes offenders — based on the crimes committed rather than risk of re-offending — might not really serve the public…
Read MoreAZ: Pastor who helped ex-cons, sex-offenders killed in home invasion
A pastor known for his outreach to addicts, homeless ex-convicts and sex offenders was killed Friday night in a home invasion in central Phoenix. Jack Moriarty, whose imposing figure, tattoos and thick goatee made him look more like a biker than a preacher, was shot to death at about 8:30 p.m. Friday after two unknown suspects entered a home near 20th Avenue and Monroe Street, police said. Full Article
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