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
General News Feed
WA: On McNeil Island, the only residents are 214 dangerous sex offenders
Civil commitment centers, which exist in less than half of US states, are meant as a community safeguard, but they’re riddled with controversies. Full Article
Sex offender registry sparks Supreme Court debate over congressional powers
Supreme Court justices on Tuesday grappled with how much power Congress can pass on to federal agencies in a case that could change the way Capitol Hill legislates. Full Article Transcript of oral argument
General Comments October 2018
Comments that are not specific to a certain post should go here, for the month of October 2018. Contributions should relate to the cause and goals of this organization and please, keep it courteous and civil.
MO: The sex offender next door – 1,300 missing Missouri criminals must be found quickly
Jackson County remains at the center of a scandalous problem with unregistered sex offenders in Missouri. According to an audit released Monday, 439 sex criminals in Jackson County have failed to register as required by law — more than 20 percent of all the known sex offenders in the county. Statewide, roughly 1,300 sex offenders have failed to register, and “their locations are unknown,”...
CA: Lawsuit Challenges Kern County Residency Restrictions
A lawsuit has been filed in Kern County Superior Court which challenges the residency and presence restrictions in that county. According to those restrictions, registrants -- including those convicted as juveniles -- are prohibited from living within 2,000 feet of schools, parks, day care centers and other locations where children regularly gather. In addition, registrants may not visit a day care center for any...
NV: Nevada to embark on new sex offender registry system, but critics say it’s overly harsh
Las Vegas attorney Alina Shell represents sex offenders, and she said it’s been an emotional time in recent weeks among clients calling her office. Starting Oct. 1, Nevada will be implementing its version of the federal Adam Walsh Act, a law that significantly changes the way the state classifies its more than 7,200 sex offenders. Rather than categorizing them according to their projected risk...
CA: When Handing Out Candy To Trick-or-Treaters Means Risking Arrest
[theappeal.org - 10/1/18] Lawyer [Janice M. Bellucci] seeks end to Halloween restrictions that target people convicted of sex offenses. Before the police apprehended Steve, he tried to kill himself by cutting his wrists, he told The Appeal. Then 20 years old, he had attempted to sexually assault a 12-year-old girl in California. “I couldn’t believe I had done that,” said Steve, whose name has...
MO: Proposed ordinance would keep sex offenders from serving liquor
To serve alcohol in Kansas City, you need a liquor card. The public safety committee is considering a new proposed ordinance that would change that, but some agencies are concerned. The Metropolitan Organization to Counter Sexual Assault, or MOCSA, is speaking out. Victoria Pickering, Director of Advocacy for MOCSA, said, "The goal is to prevent individuals who have a history of committing sexual offenses...
ACSOL Meeting October 13 in West Sacramento
Please mark your calendars for ACSOL’s upcoming meeting: Saturday, October 13 10 a.m. 1275 Starboard Drive West Sacramento, CA 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 2-3 hours. Topics of conversation include...
NV: New bill may create longer waits at Las Vegas police headquarters
Days before a Nevada bill changing the sex offender registry goes into effect, the Metropolitan Police Department suggested ways to avoid anticipated large crowds at Las Vegas police headquarters. People who need to file or request police reports may do so at any of Metro’s 10 substations, said Lisa Hank, director of Metro’s Police Records and Fingerprint Bureau. That way people can avoid crowds...
Two California Cities Repeal Halloween Restrictions
The Cities of Lancaster and Temecula this week repealed restrictions which prohibited all registrants living in those cities from fully participating in Halloween celebrations. The repeals took place after letters were sent to a total of five cities warning that the restrictions were preempted by state law. The letters also warned cities that fail to repeal the Halloween restrictions could be sued in court.....
India: Sex Offender’s Registry – A Misplaced Danger?
On September 20, the government announced that in order to take a step forward towards ‘women safety’ in the country, it has launched the National Database on Sexual Offenders(NDSO). It would include names of offenders convicted under charges of rape, gang rape, child sexual abuse, and eve teasing (harassment) maintaining details of some 4,40,000 people convicted for the above offences. It will be maintained...
PA: Inmates in Pennsylvania launch boycott of prison profiteers
[workers.org - 9/27/18] “I am going to boycott the third-party correspondence system,” Bryant Arroyo, an activist and organizer currently detained at SCI Frackville in central Pennsylvania, told this WW reporter during an extended Sept. 23 interview. Arroyo urges all prisoners to immediately cease sending and accepting mail in response to the draconian new prison policies of current Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf. Eliminating the right...
WI: For now, sex offenders will not be allowed to move into the village of Hartland
Members of the Hartland Village Board have voted to begin work on an ordinance that will restrict where sex offenders can live. In the meantime, the village will not allow any new offenders to move into the village. ... The moratorium states that sex offenders cannot move into Hartland until the village's average amount of sex offenders living in the village is the same...
SCOTUS: Justices face nondelegation challenge to federal sex-offender registration law
Argument Preview: Congress enacted the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act. One provision of SORNA created a requirementthat a convicted sex offender register with every jurisdiction in which he resides, works or studies, as well as in the jurisdiction in which he was convicted. Another part of SORNA, its criminal enforcement provision, made it a crime for a convicted sex offender subject to the...
NY: People are using a new app to report sex assault anonymously
[nypost.com - 9/21/18] In the wake of #MeToo, more than 1,000 people have downloaded an app aimed at rooting out repeat sex offenders by allowing victims and witnesses to report the crimes anonymously and join forces against the sickos. Called JDoe, the free app launched on the Apple and Android app store in April. It works by prompting users to report when and where...
TX: For some sex offenders, their deal with the state wasn’t really a deal
When the Beaumont police detective called him in 2014, Curtis wondered what the officer might want. His only run-in with the law had been half a lifetime ago. In 1985, he had been charged with indecency with a child, his stepdaughter. Curtis, then 34, struck a deal with prosecutors. He would plead guilty, but if after 10 years he kept out of trouble, the...
India gets a sex offenders registry. What’s that?
[indiatoday.in - 9/13/21] India's new National Database on Sexual Offenders (NDSO), a resource only law enforcement authorities can access, has 4.4 lakh entries. Who's in it? The government said Thursday, the day of the launch, that it would "include offenders convicted under charges of rape, gang rape, POCSO and eve teasing". POCSO stands for Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses Act. Each entry has...
NY: Banished from New York City [audio]: The Legality, Policy Considerations, and Practical Implications of the Housing Restrictions Faced by People on the Sex Offender Registry
[nycbar.org - 9/11/18] In New York City, there are hundreds of men and women on the sex offender registry who are subject to the Sexual Assault Reform Act (SARA) residency restriction, which prevents them from living within 1,000 feet of a school. This little-known restriction has created enormous constitutional problems. Because our densely-populated city contains virtually no residences that comply with this restriction, prisons...
FL: What Would Dr. King Do? The Case Against Amendment 4 on Felon Voting Rights
[floridaactioncommittee.org - 9/21/18] Florida leads the nation with over 1 million citizens disenfranchised and unable to vote due to felony convictions. The path to having their voting rights restored is long and difficult, and has been found unconstitutional by a federal judge. This November, Floridians who are able to vote will determine whether convicted felons who have completed their sentences, including parole or probation,...