ST. PAUL – The trial in the lawsuit against Minnesota’s program for treating its most dangerous sex offenders opened with contrasts: how two very similar states can have such dramatically different results in treating offenders. About 20 years ago, Minnesota and Wisconsin established programs to treat sex offenders who seemed likely to recommit crimes. But where Minnesota’s program has more than 700 offenders confined to its facilities in Moose Lake and St. Peter, Wisconsin’s Sand Ridge facility is home to 362 committed offenders, Deborah McCulloch, head of the Wisconsin program,…
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NE: Boy’s family fighting state putting him on sex offender registry
Juveniles aren’t listed on Nebraska’s Sex Offender Registry, but a 12-year-old boy who recently moved to the state could end up there by the letter of the law. His family is fighting the move, and a federal judge already has agreed to block the Nebraska State Patrol from adding his name and picture to the registry and public website while the civil case is pending. Full Article
Read MoreTX: Stranded triplets’ dad arrested on sex offender violation
HOUSTON — The father of month-old premature triplets who were staying in a hotel with his wife and toddler daughter with no money to get home was arrested Tuesday at a Houston motel for a sex offender violation. ___ ___ was arrested following his appearance in a KHOU-TV report about the family’s financial troubles. Full Article
Read MoreMinnesota Sex Offender Program violates human rights (Opinion)
The Associated Press reported this week on the Minnesota Sex Offender Program. This civil commitment program allows the state to place sex-offenders who have finished their prison sentences into high-security custody for an indefinite period. In other words, if sex-offenders meet certain, supposedly objective criteria, Minnesota holds the authority to put them in a penal dungeon, with little hope of release within their lifetime. This is not only a violation of due process, but a complete removal of any of the needed neutral tendencies of law. Full Opinion Piece
Read MoreMN: Trial may bring changes to sex offender program
A federal court trial starting today could decide the future of the state’s controversial sex offender treatment program. More than 700 civilly committed sex offenders are suing the state claiming it’s unconstitutional to keep them locked up indefinitely and that they don’t get adequate treatment from the program run by the Minnesota Department of Human Services. Full Article
Read MoreKY: Teen sex a crime? Ky high court to hear case
The eighth-grade boy and his seventh-grade girlfriend had been dating about 1½ years when they decided to have sex, which they did twice at her house when nobody was home. The boy, 15, also texted two nude pictures of himself to the girl, 13, who sent him one back. When the girl’s parents found the pictures on her phone, they took out a warrant in Woodford Circuit Court, and the boy was charged with sexual misconduct, a misdemeanor, and possessing matter portraying a sexual performance by a minor, a felony.…
Read MoreMN: Does ‘justice for all’ include sex offenders? (Opinion)
“And justice for all.” Boy, did I believe that as a child, when I placed my hand on my chest and recited the Pledge of Allegiance with fellow grade-school classmates. Although I grew up and smelled the coffee, that ideal is still implanted in my psyche. Dan Gustafson also grew up not only believing in it but walking the talk as a trial lawyer. On Monday, the former high school dropout, twice named a “super lawyer” in Minnesota by a prestigious legal magazine, will go to bat in a federal…
Read MoreMO: 3 relatives accused of staging kidnapping of boy to teach him a lesson
LINCOLN COUNTY, Mo. – A 6-year-old Missouri boy’s mother, grandmother and aunt are accused of staging a kidnapping, then holding the child for four hours to teach him about stranger danger. Full Article
Read MoreOK: State Lawmaker Proposes Chemical Castration For Sex Offenders
An Oklahoma lawmaker is pushing to allow chemical castration of sex offenders. The procedure is in effect in two other states and could be in Oklahoma before the end of the year. This isn’t the first time this idea has come up in Oklahoma. It’s always been shot down, but some believe it could actually work. Full Article Bill Text
Read MoreMN: Judge sides with Minnesota sex offenders
he class-action lawsuit featuring more than 700 civilly committed sex offenders, many from Moose Lake, will go to trial in a St. Paul courtroom beginning Monday after a judge denied the state and its defendants a summary judgment earlier this week. In his ruling filed Monday, U.S. District Judge Donovan Frank scolded the state’s legislative and executive branches for having “let politics, rather than the rule of law and the rights of ‘all’ of their citizens, guide their decisions.” Full Article
Read MoreUT: Lawmaker wants death penalty for sex traffickers
SALT LAKE CITY — A Davis County Republican wants to give convicted child sex traffickers the ultimate punishment – the death penalty. Rep. Paul Ray, R-Clinton, is pushing to make child sex trafficking a capital offense. He says he accompanied the Salt Lake City vice squad on patrol a few years ago. He’s realized how big an issue child trafficking is in Utah. He said he’s been working on bills to target prostitution and trafficking for years. “I got so fed up with what I’ve seen,” Ray said. “It’s time…
Read MoreIL: Arlington Heights limits garage sales after sexual assault
Arlington Heights is now limiting garage sales, months after neighbors blamed an out-of-control number of such events for a home invasion and sexual assault in the Cedar Glen area. Full article
Read MoreVA: Should sex offenders be allowed to visit their own child at school?
RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia lawmakers will consider a measure Tuesday that will affect parents and their children. House Bill 1366 would change state guidelines pertaining to sex offenders on school property. The measure is aimed at limiting school access for parents who are sex offenders and want to visit their child’s school. Under current state law, registered sex offenders are allowed on school campuses if their children goes to the school and their visit is cleared with the school superintendent. However, a bill introduced by Delegate Jeff Campbell (R-Marion) would change…
Read MoreUT: Letter – Sex offender treatment worth the money
I am writing to draw attention to the fact that our state Legislature’s budget cuts are resulting in cutbacks in sex offender-specific treatment for both adult and juvenile offenders. The budget at the prison has not increased in 17 years, and this is within a time frame that the sex offender population there has been exploding. The juvenile sex offender population is mushrooming, too, without increase in funding. Full Letter to the Editor
Read MoreWI: Sheriff – Why sex offenders live in our communities
Throughout the years I have written articles pertaining to many topics that affect the overall safety of our communities. From theft and fraud prevention to animal bites and cold weather preparation, there is never a shortage of issues in which helpful information can be shared. This week I would like to cover some information regarding sex offenders and the guidelines that govern their re-integration into our communities. Full Article
Read MoreTX: State program out of space to hold sex offenders
AUSTIN – Six repeat sex offenders that Texas has deemed among its most dangerous are due to be freed from prison in the next month, and a state program designed to keep them off the streets is full The problem promises to get worse: More than three dozen violent offenders are slated for release in coming months, and four halfway houses where more than 100 are confined have served notice they want them out by the end of August, officials confirmed Thursday. Full Article
Read MoreNY: Senate approves tougher penalties, requirements for sex offenders
The New York State Senate passed a package of seven bills Monday aimed at increasing penalties and establishing tougher requirements for sex offenders. Legislation sponsored by state Sen. Jeff Klein, co-leader of the state Senate Majority Coalition and leader of the Independent Democratic Conference, would ban level 2 and level 3 sex offenders from being placed in homeless shelters or emergency and temporary housing if children are currently living in the facilities. The state Senate also passed measures to establish a crime if an individual knowingly harbors, houses or employs…
Read MoreFL: State bills aim to monitor sex offenders for life
A new push has begun in the state Legislature to require convicted sex offenders to wear ankle monitors to track their movements for the rest of their lives. Two essentially identical bills, Senate Bill 134 and House Bill 203, aim to keep tabs on past offenders to make sure they don’t slip away so it becomes impossible to track them. But some experts said such laws would immediately be challenged in court. Full Article
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