A convicted sex offender who notified authorities he was moving to Georgia last month but never made the trip was charged with failing to report he was still in Ocala. Full Article
Read MoreCategory: National
NY: Legislators OK revised animal-abuse registry
[romesentinel.com – 9/19/19] Oneida County legislators approved a law setting up a public registry of convicted animal abusers but only after tweaking it to make it less worrisome to farmers. The Board of Legislators approved the law by acclimation Wednesday, Sept. 11 at the regular September meeting, shortly after the Ways and Means Committee gave its approval. Its central part is setting up an online registry, to be maintained by the Sheriff’s Office, of people convicted of animal abuse in the county. The measure would establish a website similar to…
Read MoreAL: SPLC sues Alabama officials for overly severe sex-offender law that punishes children for life
____ ____ met ____ ____ when their mutual friends introduced them at a local skating rink. He was 14 and she was 12. Over time, the two became a young couple, going out on movie dates, hanging out with friends at each other’s houses, and attending school dances together. Eventually, the high school sweethearts got married, bought a house, and had three children. They’ve been married now for 20 years. But this otherwise happy love story has a sad twist: When Herbert was 17 and Candi was 15, her mother…
Read MoreNJ: He was labeled a sex offender as a teen. Now he is challenging the law that made him register as one.
At a glance, the 23-year-old has a stellar resume. He graduated magna cum laude from Binghamton University, where he was a part of an Honors Academic Society and routinely on the Dean’s list. During college, he tutored others in calculus and was a teacher’s assistant. He also volunteered at the Jewish Relief Agency collecting, packaging and distributing goods to disadvantaged families. The Union County resident now works as a financial analyst-at-large for an international telecommunications company in the tri-state area. But each year he must check in with law enforcement. He…
Read MoreRI: After prison, more punishment
[washingtonpost.com – 9/3/19] PROVIDENCE, R.I. — He had spent 17 of his 46 years behind bars, locked in a pattern of addiction and crime that led to 16 prison terms. Now, Meko Lincoln pushed a cart of cleaning supplies at the reentry house to which he had been paroled in December, determined to provide for his grandchildren in a way he failed to do as a father. “Keep on movin’, don’t stop,” Lincoln sang, grooving to the British R&B group Soul II Soul on his headphones as he emptied trash…
Read MoreUT: Utah man exonerated years after sexual assault conviction
[kutv.com – 9/10/19] A Utah man is free today, exonerated, after spending years behind bars for a sexual assault he did not commit, according to a judge. Christopher Wickham, 50, was convicted of two counts of aggravated sexual assault in Salt Lake City in 1997, each a first degree felony. He was imprisoned and placed on the sex offender registry. Utah Third District Court Judge Royal I. Hansen signed an order today exonerating Wickham, according to the Rocky Mountain Innocence Center. It said a post-conviction investigation showed “numerous pieces of…
Read MoreVA: Our Man in Arlington
A culture-clash of a trial will resume in late September in Arlington Circuit Court. The scantly reported-on civil procedure involves the disturbing topic of predatory sexual behavior and the Virginia laws intended to protect potential victims. The trial, preliminaries for which I attended Aug. 26, involves an Arlington family eager to spring a son from an open-ended incarceration they feel the state is pursuing to make a statement against a gay man. Full Article
Read MoreNY: Second Circuit Backs Home Checks for Sex Offenders
A Long Island sex offender who faced home visits from a private nonprofit contracted by his county did not endure an unconstitutional search, the Second Circuit affirmed Wednesday. Writing for a three-judge panel, U.S. Circuit Judge Christopher Droney noted in the ruling that in this case, public-safety interests outweigh the offenders’ rights. “In sum, the program advances the government’s substantial interest in reducing sex offender recidivism by improving the accuracy of the registry,” the 29-page opinion states. “Thus, the program serves a special need ‘beyond the normal need for law…
Read MoreFL: People on Sex Offender Registry Should Shelter from Dorian in Jail
For some people convicted of sex crimes in Florida, the only shelter open to them during Hurricane Dorian was the county jail. In some counties, people on the registry were barred from shelters set up for those evacuating, and told to go to separate locations, away from children and other community members. If they attempted to stay with friends or relatives, they faced daunting residency and registration requirements, according to the Florida Action Committee, which advocates for reform of sex offender registry laws. Failure to comply can mean a felony conviction and…
Read MoreIL: Suit settled in teen suicide that led to Illinois law change
[abcnews.go.com – 8/31/19] The case of a suburban Chicago teenager who killed himself after being confronted at his high school about whether he made a video of himself having sex with a classmate raised uncomfortable questions about how aggressively school officials should question kids suspected of wrongdoing and whether they should wait until a parent arrives. A wrongful death lawsuit brought by the parents of 16-year-old Corey Walgren that focused on those questions has been resolved, with the city of Naperville expected to approve a settlement on Tuesday in which…
Read MoreMI: ACLU Michigan Attorney Advocates End of Registry; Provides Update on 6th Circuit Decision
In a recent NPR interview, ACLU Michigan attorney Miriam Aukerman stated she believes that sex offender registries should be abolished. In support of that belief, Aukerman stated that registries are ineffective and make society less safe. Aukerman criticized both legislators and law enforcement for the current challenges now facing registrants. Legislators have passed and keep passing new laws because they believe doing so will help them to get re-elected. Law enforcement spends time and money monitoring people convicted of a sex offense when they should be monitoring those who actually…
Read MoreFL: A look inside Florida Civil Commitment Center life: Pesci v. Budz
[law.justia.com – 8/21/19] James Pesci is a detainee at the Florida Civil Commitment Center (FCCC), a for-profit facility that houses sex offenders involuntarily committed under Florida’s Involuntary Civil Commitment of Sexually Violent Predators Act. Pesci is not a prisoner; like the other roughly 600 residents of FCCC, he has already served out his prison sentence. Instead, he is involuntarily committed because the State has determined that he is a “sexually violent predator” likely to engage in future “acts of sexual violence if not confined in a secure facility for long-term…
Read MoreNJ: Legal Opportunity for New Jersey Registrants
Individuals convicted of a sex offense in New Jersey who are currently on community supervision for life may have an opportunity to join a lawsuit. Opportunities are limited to those placed in the Bo Robinson Assessment Center. Anyone interested in exploring this opportunity should contact Raymon Hof at [email protected].
Read MoreVA: Who lives, works near you, and what it takes to keep track of Virginia’s 13K sex offenders
The process of moving when buying or renting a home can be a lengthy process, from researching neighborhoods, area schools and the cost of living. For some, another part of finding a new home can involve checking crime rates — or the sex offender registry. Full Article
Read MoreUT: ‘Conviction’ aside, Utah Supreme Court says sex offender must register
The Utah Supreme Court has ruled a man must register as a sex offender, despite his conviction ultimately being set aside in another state. Full Article
Read MoreVA: In Arlington, a judge must decide if a nonviolent sex offender should stay incarcerated after serving his sentence
[washingtonpost.com – 8/23/19] Philip Fornaci is a civil rights lawyer based in Washington. Roger Lancaster is the author of “Sex Panic and the Punitive State.” On Monday, the Circuit Court in liberal Arlington County will be the scene of a heavy-handed morality play, with prosecutors seeking lifelong incarceration for a young gay man who has already paid an extraordinary price for youthful, nonviolent sexual indiscretions. Virginia, like 19 other states and the federal government, has a Sexually Violent Predators Act (SVPA). Under these laws, people who have completed their criminal…
Read MoreIL: Explosive 3-hour meeting has many talking about possible health and housing center
[newschannel20.com – 8/21/19] SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WICS/WRSP) — An explosive meeting took place Wednesday evening over whether Springfield should allow a vacant building to become a health and housing center. … While the proposed center is more than just a homeless shelter, some asked how will the place know if they have a sex offender coming to use their facilities, especially because of the proximity to the Lincoln Magnet School. “There is no way to know that the mental health individuals that they’re serving are sex offenders. There’s no way to…
Read MoreNY: Revised animal-abuser registry going to lawmakers
[romesentinel.com – 8/20/19] [This is a continuation of the story we reported here] A revised version of a local law on animal abuse in Oneida County would remove the proposed penalty against someone who sells an animal to a convicted abuser, and would specifically exempt farms where an abuser works or shares the business with other people. … Support for the registry approach is not universal among animal advocates. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals does not endorse them, instead favoring stronger penalties for abuse and…
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