The Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws (ACSOL) is dedicated to protecting the Constitution by restoring the civil rights of registrants and their families. In order to achieve that objective, ACSOL will educate and litigate as well as support or oppose legislation. The ACSOL website and recordings are provided as a service to registrants, registrants’ families, and others for general information only. The information on the website and in the recordings are not designed to provide legal or other advice or to create an attorney-client relationship. You should not take, or refrain from taking, action based on their content. Prior results and case studies do not guarantee a similar outcome in future representations. ACSOL accepts no responsibility for any loss or damages that may result from accessing or reliance on content on the ACSOL website and recordings and disclaim, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, any and all liability with respect to acts or omissions made by registrants, registrants’ families and others on the basis of content on the ACSOL website.
Important News / Announcements
Janice's Journal
General News Feed
New Zealand: Public vilification a factor in Wellington academic sentencing
[stuff.co.nz - 1/28/19] Convicted sex offender ______ likely received a lesser sentence because of the potential "vilification" he would face, a leading criminal lawyer says. John Miller, who was a former senior law lecturer at Victoria University and previous Wellingtonian of the Year, said the Sentencing Act 2002 set out mitigating and aggravating factors in sentencing offenders, and a number of those factors would...
IN: Northwest Indiana legislators support bills closing loopholes in sex offender laws
[chicagotribune.com - 1/25/19] Northwest Indiana legislators said they are in support of bills looking to close some of the loopholes in the state’s sex offender laws. One of those bills would ban sexually violent predators or offenders against children from working as a child care provider or baby sitter, while the other prevents a convicted sex or violent offender from petitioning for a name...
Australian girl, 12, ‘had no idea about pregnancy’ until childbirth at home
[tert.am - 1/26/19] A 12-year-old girl who gave birth at a home in Western Australia could be charged over the pregnancy - along with the baby's father. Youth Legal Service WA solicitor Sally Dechow said the charges could be brought against the pair as the conception was considered illegal under state law, The West reported. ... WA Police believe the baby's father is a...
MD: Maryland House GOP to push for state income tax cut, violent offender registry
[baltimoresun.com - 1/25/19] Republican leaders in Maryland’s House of Delegates on Friday released their legislative priorities for 2019, including a state income tax cut, a registry for violent repeat offenders, and single-member districts in the General Assembly. Flanked by fellow Republicans, Anne Arundel Del. Nic Kipke, the House’s minority leader, and Baltimore County Del. Kathy Szeliga, the minority whip, also said they would push...
MI: Sex Offender Registry afoul of constitution (Editorial)
Michigan lawmakers seem keen on making important reforms to the state’s criminal justice system, which should expand protections for civil liberties. Another item they should add to the list: Revamping the state’s Sex Offender Registry Act. Full Editorial
HI: Proposal would put tough restrictions on where sex offenders can live
A proposal before lawmakers would make it illegal for any registered sex offender to temporarily or permanently live within 1,000 feet of a school, childcare facility, playground or park. Full Article Also see HI: Dozens of sex predators registered as living in Oahu parks
Kat’s Blog: Death of a Registrant: Two Different Perspectives
The recent heart attack and subsequent death of a registrant who attended a “sex offender” treatment group for the past decade brought about two vastly different perspectives on his passing. The group counselors were emotional and grief stricken. They expressed their concern about how to break the news to the group. They offered group time or individual time to help any registrant that needed...
CA: Wiener legislation seeks to end ‘blatant discrimination’ in sex offender registry laws
A new state bill introduced by Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, could possibly change the way young offenders, specifically those who identify as LGBT, are put on the state’s sex offender registry list, Wiener’s office announced Tuesday. Currently, while consensual sex between 15- to 17-year-olds and a partner within 10 years of age is illegal, vaginal intercourse between the two does not require an...
South Africa: Call for sex offenders’ list to be made public
[www.iol.co.za - 1/24/19] DURBAN - Child rights organisation Save the Children has launched an online petition calling on Police Minister Bheki Cele to make the National Registrar for Sex Offenders (NSRO) public. The NSRO is not available to the general public, but only to those who employ people who work with children or disabled people. The list helps with protection by ensuring the names...
IL: Court tosses lawsuit in sex-video suicide case
A federal judge in Chicago has dismissed a lawsuit brought against a suburban Chicago school by parents of a student who killed himself after staff warned him he may have to register as a sex offender because they suspected he made a video of himself having sex with a classmate without her knowledge. Full Article Opinion https://cases.justia.com/federal/district-courts/illinois/ilndce/1:2017cv04036/340584/114/0.pdf?ts=1547809387
Formerly Incarcerated Sex Offenders Say Civil Commitment Programs Deny Proper Rehabilitation
Responding to several highly-publicized sex crimes and public fears, legislatures across the country have adopted statutes that allow the continued imprisonment of sex offenders after they have completed their sentences. Veteran investigative reporter Barbara Koeppel has spent the past 12 months reporting on this third rail of the criminal justice system. Full Article
Civil Regulation? The Registry and its Components are in fact Legislative Punishment
[sosen.org - 1/12/19] The first thing that must be pointed out is that the sex offender registry came about because of the myth that people convicted of sexual related crimes were always going to reoffend. Some of the numbers that were tossed around at the time that the registry was conceived were 60 to 80% would reoffend. The registry was not originally designed to...
Janice’s Journal: Justice an Important Pillar
As we celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Day, it is important to remember that an essential pillar of his civil rights platform was Justice. ACSOL which is a civil rights organization has, in fact, adopted and advanced one of Dr. King’s best-known sayings about justice: “Injustice Anywhere is a Threat to Justice Everywhere” in our lobbying efforts in the state capitol. We credit the...
MI: ACLU suit seeks changes to Michigan sex offender registry
Civil rights advocates say ___ is an example of how thousands of people have been unfairly penalized by the Michigan Sex Offender Registry more than two years after the Sixth Circuit Court ruled the state's changes retroactively putting people on the list for life were unconstitutional. Full Article http://www.aclumich.org/article/what-you-need-know-about-does-v-snyder-ii http://www.aclumich.org/SORAinfo
ACSOL Meeting January 26 in L.A.
Please mark your calendars for ACSOL’s upcoming meeting: Saturday, January 26 10 a.m. ACLU Building 1313 W. 8th Street, Los Angeles (free parking below building) Registrants, friends and family and interested service providers are invited to attend these free meetings. There will be no law enforcement or media present in order to protect everyone’s privacy. The meetings start at 10 am and last about...
NH: Relief for Some Persons on the NH Sex Offender Registry
Effective June 6, 2016, in New Hampshire, Tier 2 and Tier 3 sex offenders who were convicted before 1992 have a clear process by which they can seek to be relieved of sex offender registration requirements. Full Article
FL: Women Against Registry Call to Action – Video visits replacing in-person visits.
Seminole County Jail inmates can no longer handle letters or pictures mailed by family and friends as a new system requires those incarcerated to view digital copies of their messages. Under an agreement between the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office and Smart Communications Holding Inc., a Tampa-based company, the jail also plans to replace all in-person visits at the jail with a video-visitation system. SEE:...
Renowned Law Professor Eric Janus to Speak at ACSOL Conference
Renowned law professor Eric Janus will speak at ACSOL's third annual conference in Los Angeles on June 14. Professor Janus is a national expert on sexual violence law and policy. He was recently recognized for his lifelong commitment to justice and civil liberties work by the ACLU. "Professor Janus will share with all conference participants his unique perspective of current laws and policies that...
SC bill would prohibit sex offenders from working, volunteering around kids
[live5news.com - 1/15/19] MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WMBF) - Right now, registered sex offenders are allowed to work and volunteer around kids, but a South Carolina bill introduced last week in the State House of Representatives could change that. The bill says it would make it “unlawful for a sex offender to work or perform volunteer service with or around minor children under certain circumstances...
Kat’s Blog: Blimey, Who Does Australia’s Fact Checking?
Peter Dutton, Minister for Home Affairs in Australia wants to be the white knight riding in to save his constituents from “sex offenders” by proposing a National Public Registry. “Thwarting the exploitation of children is my key priority as Minister for Home Affairs” says Dutton. Fact #1: That’s all well and good, except Australia already has state-based registries with various levels of public accessibility...