Category: National

BALTIMORE —The Labor Day weekend in Baltimore’s Reservoir Hill ended with the beating of a 52-year-old man on the street in full daylight. The man — who the 11 News I-Team has learned is a registered sex offender — later died. A witness said an orange traffic cone was used as a weapon. The attackers seemed to be carrying out instant street justice with their target claiming he’d done nothing wrong. Full Article

RALEIGH, N.C. – The North Carolina Supreme Court has granted a stay to keep a state law that bans sex offenders from using social networking websites in effect. Attorney General Roy Cooper requested the stay after a Court of Appeals ruling last week ruled the law unconstitutional because it is vague and violates free speech. Full Article

Daniel Murrie of the University of Virginia and Marcus Boccaccini at Sam Houston State University presented new research in the Aug. 28, 2013, issue of the journal Psychological Science that indicates that forensic psychologists and psychiatrists provide the group that is paying them for their testimony with the evidence that group, prosecution or defense, expects to be best for their case. Full Article

PHILADELPHIA — A child pornography victim from Pennsylvania is using a law that carries her name to seek at least $150,000 each from her father, 13 other jailed men and anyone else who viewed explicit images of her. “Masha’s Law” is named for Masha ____, a Russian orphan adopted at age 5 by divorced Pittsburgh-area millionaire ____ ____. He’s in prison for making and posting about 200 sexually explicit images of her that authorities believe have been viewed millions of times online. Full Article

Michigan Senator Tonya Schuitmaker has introduced Senate Bill 454 which by any standard should be considered unconstitutional. Given it was introduced the end of July, it is FIRST intended to be a Halloween restrictions bill, but reading the bill shows us it extends 365 days of the year and to circumstances far beyond Halloween; Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter and to other types of celebrations. And for those certain sex offenders who are required to register for a lifetime, a lifetime restriction. Read more

NPR – A suburban county on Long Island, N.Y., is taking a novel approach to monitoring sex offenders: It’s giving the job to a victims’ advocacy group. The measure was approved unanimously earlier this year; lawmakers call it a cost-effective way to keep citizens safe. But a local lawyer calls it a “vigilante exercise,” and convicted sex offenders are organizing to challenge the legislation. ____ ____, 42, a convicted sex offender, is among those who object to the methods of Parents for Megan’s Law, the advocacy group hired by Suffolk County. ____,…

DENVER – In a case brought by ACLU attorneys, a federal district court yesterday invalidated an Englewood ordinance that restricts where persons convicted of certain sex offenses can live, ruling that the ordinance violates the Colorado Constitution. Englewood’s ordinance makes it a crime for persons convicted of certain sex offenses to live within 2000 feet of any school, park, or playground, or 1000 feet of any licensed day care center, recreation center or swimming pool, or any property located next to a bus stop, walk-to-school route, or recreational trail. Judge R. Brooke…

A Harlingen couple is facing criminal charges after being accused of brutally beating a convicted sex offender. Harlingen police arrested 31-year-old Monica Nieves and her 19-year-old boyfriend Juan Quezada. Investigators told Action 4 News that it all happened on the 200 block of East Madison Avenue. Police said Nieves slapped and attacked the man while Quezada jumped in to punched him. Both of them told police that they did it because the man was a sex offender. Full Article

CLEVELAND (AP) – The case of 3 Cleveland women held captive for a decade is inspiring an Ohio lawmaker to call for expanding the state’s death penalty law. State Rep. John Becker of suburban Cincinnati wants the death penalty to cover some sex-related crimes. Full Article

In this week’s print edition of New Times, you’ll find a feature story on the warring opinions over Florida’s sex offender registry. It’s also not the only piece of journalism around town this week diving into the issue. Over the last three days the Sun-Sentinel has dropped a large-scale investigation into the state’s Jimmy Ryce law, a safeguard designed to keep the state’s worst sex offenders locked up after their prison time. Even though the investigation’s data-mining turned up some troubling trends, the series was a textbook knee-jerk sex offender story: the data…

RALEIGH, N.C. — A 2008 law making it a felony for registered sex offenders to use social media websites in North Carolina was struck down Tuesday after a challenge by a Durham man. ___ ___., a registered sex offender from Durham, appealed to the state after being convicted in May 2012 of accessing a commercial social networking website. ___ alleged that North Carolina General Statute 14-202.5 violated his rights to “free speech, expression, association, assembly and the press under the First and Fourteenth Amendments.” Full Article

Sulphur, LA – Currently, any convicted sex offender who moves into the city pays a $60 fee for their initial registration. That same amount is charged for the annual renewals of those already living in Sulphur. If passed, the new ordinance, according to Councilman Stuart Moss, would make the initial registration $600 and the annual renewal fee $200. Full Article

The way Nebraska tracks sex offenders might not be protecting public safety as well as the system lawmakers abandoned in 2009, according to a study commissioned by the state Legislature. Under the old system, only the names of sex offenders deemed by the Nebraska State Patrol as most likely to re-offend were publicized. Those who had committed minor offenses and were considered at low risk of re-offending — known as Level 1 offenders — were required to register with law enforcement agencies, but their information wasn’t made public. Full Article…

When Allen and his girlfriend moved into their Austin-area house, a woman down the street passed out fliers warning neighbors a monster had moved in next door. His front door was egged, their cars broken into, and “people started crossing the street instead of walking in front of my house,” said Allen, who asked that the Current not use his full name. Full Article

HOUSTON — The mother of a 10-year-old girl accused of raping a 4-year-old boy in their apartment complex said police have got it all wrong. “She was just being a child having fun and playing,” the woman said. “She didn’t know she was doing anything wrong.” Full Article

Host Mike Monta gives you an inside look at Montgomery County’s “Sex Offender Laws” and how they impact you. (Link sent via this web site) [hana-flv-player video=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkGKtGORA3c” width=”200″ description=”” player=”5″ autoload=”true” autoplay=”false” loop=”false” autorewind=”true” clickurl=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkGKtGORA3c” /] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkGKtGORA3c