Source: 5280.com June 2024 Most mornings last year, John Red Cloud would rise before daybreak in his home on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, in southwest South Dakota. He’d walk to the porch of his house and peer out at the shadows of undulating, grassy hills in the distance. Eventually, dawn would spread across the reservation, illuminating the ancestral land where Red Cloud had been born and raised and now was rebuilding his life. On those mornings, Red Cloud stretched his arms skyward and gave thanks to his creator. After…
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LA: Louisiana Passes Surgical Castration Bill for Child Molesters, waiting for Governor’s signature
Source: nytimes.com 6/4/24 Judges in Louisiana could order people who are convicted of sex crimes against children to undergo surgical castration under a bill that state lawmakers passed overwhelmingly on Monday. While Louisiana and a few other states, including California, Texas and Florida, have long allowed chemical castration, the option to punish sex offenders via surgical castration — which is far more intrusive — appears to be the first in the country, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures and prisoners’ advocacy groups. The bill now awaits the signature of…
Read MoreTrump’s case casts a spotlight on movement to restore voting rights to those convicted of felonies
Source: apnews.com 5/31/24 [ACSOL is posting this non-partisan article about voting rights because it affects registrants] WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican-led states have historically made it difficult for those convicted of a felony to vote or barred it altogether. Now the Republicans’ presumptive nominee for president, who lives in one of those states, is among them. Donald Trump’s conviction in the New York hush money case puts a spotlight on a wider movement to restore rights that has been gaining momentum in recent years, with the notable exception of Trump’s newly…
Read MoreThe US might restrict social media in prisons and inmates are worried: ‘I may lose my voice soon’
Source: theguardian.com 5/28/24 A proposed change to US prison rules is threatening to punish inmates for using social media or directing others to do so on their behalf, severing what some view as a vital link to the outside world. Delores Eggerson manages her son’s social media accounts while he serves a life sentence in Arkansas. For almost 22 years, she’s logged into his Facebook from her home in Manville, Texas, screenshotting messages from old classmates, or photos from family reunions. It’s become her way of feeling connected – a…
Read MoreNY: Supreme Court rules for NRA in New York government coercion battle
Source: nbcnews.com 5/30/24 [ACSOL is posting this as it could relate to eventually making the registry non-public] WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the National Rifle Association can pursue a claim that a New York state official’s efforts to encourage companies to end ties with the gun rights group constituted unlawful coercion. The justices unanimously found that the NRA can move forward with arguments that its free speech rights under the Constitution’s First Amendment were violated by the actions of Maria Vullo, then the superintendent of the New York state Department…
Read MoreNY: RAA Applauds NYCLU & Plantiffs for Lawsuit Challenging Banishment Law
Source: restorativeactionalliance.org 5/29/24 Restorative Action Alliance (RAA) applauds the brave plaintiffs and legal professionals of the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) who have recently brought a class action lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of New York Executive Law § 259-c (14), known as “SARA.” This banishment law affects thousands of individuals with certain sex offense convictions preventing them from being in proximity to restaurants, stores, parking lots and other spaces that are within 1,000 feet of a school. The Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (“DOCCS”) also applies SARA to prohibit…
Read MoreMI: Police use license plate readers to arrest 6, including Wyandotte teacher, in undercover sex sting
Source: detroitnews.com 5/29/24 Six people, including a teacher in Wyandotte and two Venezuelan nationals, have been arrested on sex and prostitution charges after Taylor police and Homeland Security officials posed undercover and then used license plate readers and live-time cameras to pinpoint the suspects. The arrests stemmed from an investigation that ran from April 24-26 and involved both Taylor police and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Investigators used license plate readers to track alleged predators after they arranged online to meet the officers who’d posed as 14- and 15-year-old…
Read MoreSC: South Carolina family of boy, 13, who died by suicide sues Snapchat over sextortion scheme
Source: foxnews.com 5/26/24 A South Carolina mother is suing Snapchat after her 13-year-old son died by suicide last year. The family says young Timothy Barnett took his own life April 6, 2023, at his Sumter home after he fell victim to a sextortion scheme on the social media app. “On April 6 … it was a typical morning,” Betsy Hauptman, Timothy’s mother, told Fox News Digital. “My husband and I were waking up. The alarm went off at about 6:15. My husband got up first. He walked out the door.…
Read MoreAlabama Court Rules Residency Restrictions Violate Constitution
Source: ACSOL A federal district ruled yesterday that a state law in Alabama that restricts where registrants may live violates the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The court’s ruling was made in a 162-page decision that carefully reviewed the language of that state law as well as its impact upon more than 20,000 individuals required to register. According to the court, one part of the challenged residency restrictions adversely could affect the ability of registrants to attend church, participate in political events, visit family and access public libraries. Another…
Read MoreTN: Tennessee Governor OKs Bill Allowing Death Penalty for Child Rape Convictions
Source: usnews.com 5/14/24 NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has approved legislation allowing the death penalty in child rape convictions, a change the Republican-controlled Statehouse championed amid concerns that the U.S. Supreme Court has banned capital punishment in such cases. Lee, a Republican, quietly signed off on the legislation last week without issuing a statement. The new Tennessee law, which goes into effect July 1, authorizes the state to pursue capital punishment when an adult is convicted of aggravated rape of a child. Those convicted could be…
Read MoreTN: Sixth Circuit vacates sweeping injunction against Tennessee sex offender registry laws
Source: courthousenews.com 5/15/24 The appeals court panel ordered a federal judge to review the statutory scheme one requirement at a time to determine if any portion violates the ex post facto clause of the Constitution. CINCINNATI (CN) — The entirety of Tennessee’s sex offender registry law cannot be thrown out because a handful of requirements may be unconstitutional, the Sixth Circuit ruled Wednesday. In its decision the court vacated an injunction granted by U.S. District Judge Aleta Trauger and asked the Clinton appointee to tailor relief for a class of…
Read MoreTN: Sex Offender Treatment Class: Four Years, $10,000 and No End in Sight
Source: filtermag.org 5/6/24 Recently, my wife and I were having a quiet dinner at home when armed officers arrived without warning. They ordered me to stand against the wall so they could take a mug shot. While my wife and I sat on the couch, they looked through my phone, photo albums, computer, car—whatever they wanted. These shakedowns occur once a month without warning. The mug shot was to keep the Tennessee Sex Offender Registry (SOR) up to date. In 2009 I took a plea deal and spent the next…
Read MoreIn This Police Youth Program, a Trail of Sexual Abuse Across the U.S.
Source: themarshallproject.org 5/1/24 Explorer posts, overseen by the Boy Scouts, are supposed to foster an interest in policing. They have faced nearly 200 allegations of misconduct. STOUGHTON, Mass. — The last known person to see Sandra Birchmore alive was a police officer. He stopped by her apartment days before the elementary school teacher’s aide, 23 years old and newly pregnant, was found dead in February 2021. The medical examiner later ruled her death a suicide. The officer worked for the Stoughton Police Department, near Boston, where he first met Birchmore…
Read MoreWe need to reframe how we think about juvenile sex offenders
Source: salon.com 4/24/24 Most youth who exhibit problematic sexual behavior don’t need punishment. They need help Adult sex offenders are criminals who need to be brought to justice to maintain public safety. But we need to be careful about extending that same principle to children who hurt other kids. Most youth who exhibit problematic sexual behavior don’t need punishment. They need help. It’s time for the public and our legal system to catch up with the growing literature on the causes of such behavior and how to stop it, rather…
Read MoreIL: DOC can’t outright ban parents convicted of sex offenses from speaking on the phone to their children while they are on supervised release
Source: courthousenews.com 4/19/24 CHICAGO — The Seventh Circuit ruled that the Illinois Department of Corrections may not outright ban parents convicted of sex offenses from speaking on the phone to their children while they are on supervised release. The government may implement call monitoring to minimize the risk of abuse as an alternative to the ban. Read the full ruling (click on “Read the ruling here”)
Read MoreSextortion: A Growing Crime Against Men
Source: psychologytoday.com 12/30/23 Men are being targeted for sextortion at increased rates in the U.S. and beyond. Key points Sextortion is a form of image-based sexual abuse that is growing nationwide. During COVID-19, men experienced higher rates of sextortion than women. Sextortion has negative psychological, physical, and social consequences for victims. “And then all of a sudden I got messages late at night with all sorts of threats” said Alex. “Um, things about sharing [intimate] photos about the things we had. And threatening me.” Alex continued “Depression set in. I…
Read MoreMN: Study: Minnesota’s sex offender civil commitment system is ‘failed investment’
Source: startribune.com 4/24/24 The state is spending more than $110 million this year on a sex offender program that locks up about 730 people. A new report calls for an end to the 30-year-old system. Minnesota involuntarily commits more people for sex offenses than anywhere else in the nation per capita, but authors of a new report say the more than $100 million-a-year program fails to meaningfully address sexual violence or recognize the humanity of those it locks up. Twenty states civilly commit sex offenders. Among those, Minnesota is “notorious”…
Read MoreAsk Amy: I discovered my neighbor is a sexual offender. Should I tell the neighborhood?
Source: cleveland.com 4/26/24 Dear Amy: I have a neighbor who was previously convicted of a sexual offense involving a “child.” He served time in jail. I don’t know the exact circumstances, but I do understand that the term “child” may include a person as young as an infant and as old as a teenager. The sexual offender is married with two young children. I know that he and his wife want to keep his history private. However, the other neighbors around where I live are not aware of the situation…
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