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
What People Get Wrong About ‘Political Will’
[governing.com - May 2018] At a recent Governing roundtable, I heard once again that the failure to act on a serious public problem was due to a lack of “political will.” Hearing this from people who are wise and good public officials always leaves me a little annoyed. I agree with David Roberts of Vox, who wrote, “To me, it has always sounded like...
A Flurry of Bills Followed Larry Nassar’s Conviction. Here’s Why That’s a Problem.
[injusticetoday.com - 5/24/18] The history of child sex abuse legislation in the United States follows a well-worn pattern: a chilling incident rouses public anger and fear, to which lawmakers respond with expansive, emotionally charged legislative action. The 1994 Jacob Wetterling Act, the first law to establish federal guidelines requiring states to implement sex offender registries, was named after an 11-year-old Minnesotan who was kidnapped...
NV: Giunchigliani amendment exempted teachers from bill expanding sex offender reporting laws
[rgj.com - 5/23/18] Democratic governor hopeful Chris Giunchigliani, a former teacher and state lawmaker, helped hollow out a proposed law that would’ve required teachers who have sex with an underage student to register as sex offenders. Then-Assemblywoman Giunchigliani — an ex-teachers union boss who in January won an endorsement from the Nevada State Education Association — waited until the second-to-last day of the 2005...
MO: Missouri Supreme Court disciplines prosecutor who criticized letter writers in the press
[missourinet.com - 5/23/18] The Missouri Supreme Court has sided with a disciplinary counsel in deciding that Platt County Prosecutor Eric Zahnd violated rules of professional responsibility. Missouri Supreme Court – Image courtesy of Missouri Courts Zahnd publicly criticized letter writers who expressed support for a man who pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting one of his daughters. In doing so, the high judges determined that...
MI: Michigan lawmakers advance legislation on mandated reporters
[mytwintiers.com 5/23/18] LANSING, Mich. (AP) - Sports coaches, the types of paid employees who allegedly learned Larry Nassar was molesting gymnasts and other athletes before the sexual abuse scandal broke, would still not be required to report such suspected abuse to the authorities under a watered-down proposal to expand Michigan's mandatory reporting law. A state House committee on Wednesday passed a bill that would...
OH: Evading Justice: How some accused rapists in Cuyahoga County avoid the sex offender registry
The sex offender registry is an important tool that tracks those convicted of sexual assault to keep the public safe. A 5 On Your Side six-month-long investigation uncovered a loophole that allows many accused rapists to evade the registry. https://www.news5cleveland.com/longform/evading-justice-how-some-accused-rapists-in-cuyahoga-county-avoid-the-sex-offender-registry
Is The “First Step Act” Real Reform?
[themarshallproject.org 5/22/18] The First Step Act, which passed the House of Representatives Tuesday, has been a hot-button topic for Congress. It addresses the dire need for rehabilitative services in the federal prison system, proves there is strong bipartisan support for at least modest criminal justice reform and underscores a strategic debate that has split the Democratic Party. What is the First Step Act? The...
CA: Tobin Resigns from CA Sex Offender Management Board
Tom Tobin, CEO of Sharper Future, has resigned from the California Sex Offender Management Board (CASOMB) where he served as Vice Chairman for more than two years. Although no reason was given for his resignation, a growing number of complaints had been made that his participation on the board was at least an appearance of a conflict of interest because the company he leads...
NY: ‘We Just Want Our Community Back:’ Long Islanders Upset Over ‘Clustering’ Of Ex-Cons In Residential Neighborhoods
[newyork.cbslocal.com 5/21/18] GORDON HEIGHTS, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) — Just how much can one community take? There are multiple neighborhoods in New York where the state has clustered paroled ex-cons, and innocent families are paying the price. A 26-year-old mother accused of trying to kill her baby earlier this month created anguish in her Suffolk County community. Her lawyer claims she was mentally ill and a...
AL: Governor ceremonially signs juvenile sex offender bill
[wbrc.com 5/21/18] MONTGOMERY, AL (WSFA) - Monday, Gov. Kay Ivey put her signature on a score of legislation. Although the signing was just for the camera (the laws were already signed in private about a month ago), it still had a special meaning for the Cook family. “Amazing, it was the biggest blessing for us to experience this today,” Kristina Cook said. Ivey put...
Life on the List: Why Reporters Should Stop Using “Predator”
[floridaactioncommittee.org 5/22/18] “The anonymity of the Internet has allowed predators to easily hide or misrepresent themselves.” – ABC News, August 2017 “Concerns about sexual predators have led communities in 30 U.S. states to adopt laws limiting where registered sex offenders can live.” – Reuters, November 2015 “Convicted Sexual Predator Allowed to Stay in Hotel During Cancer Treatments” – WFTV 9, May 2017 In May,...
Australia: What impact do public sex offender registries have on community safety?
[aic.gov.au 5/22/18] Abstract: Sexual offending has a significant impact on victims and can cause considerable angst within the community. The effective management of sex offenders in the community is of paramount importance. This paper reviews the latest empirical evidence from Australia and overseas regarding the effectiveness of public and non-public sex offender registries. Results show that while public sex offender registries may have a...
The sex offender registry: a non-punitive civil regulatory scheme
[narsol.org 5/22/18] Keep that in mind. Keep repeating it. A non-punitive civil regulatory scheme. Civil, not criminal. The requirement to register is triggered by a criminal conviction, both felonies and misdemeanors, but the requirement to register is not part of punishment. It is non-punitive. So ruled the Supreme Court well over a decade ago. It is a Non-Punitive. Civil. Regulatory. Scheme. And yet, in...
TX: Houston Is Forcing Its Parolees Out of City Center and into ‘the Boonies’
[injusticetoday.com 5/22/18] Houston has come up with a new way to make life harder for people leaving prison on parole: by forcing the programs that provide them with housing, often paired with job placement and other services, to move outside the city limits. At the end of March, the city council approved an ordinance that imposes new regulations and inspections designed to improve safety...
NC: Appeals court reverses twice-convicted sex offender’s lifetime GPS monitoring
[wect.com 5/15/18] NEW HANOVER COUNTY, NC (WECT) - A state appeals court has reversed a ruling that would have required a twice-convicted sex offender wear a GPS monitoring bracelet for the rest of his life. In 1997, Torrey Dale Grady, 39, pleaded no contest to a second-degree sex offense, and in 2006, he pleaded guilty to taking indecent liberties with a child. Both incidents...
IL: Must Watch – Argument in IL Supreme Court in People v. Bingham
[floridaactioncommittee.org 5/22/18] The below video is from the recent argument before the Illinois Supreme Court in People v. Bingham. Jerome Bingham, who committed a sexual offense more than 30 years ago, was arrested for stealing pallets. As a consequence of his stealing these wooden pallets and a further consequence of a 2012 change in the Illinois law that required anyone with a previous sexual...
Tips on Writing to Your Elected Officials
[floridaactioncommittee.org 5/20/18] Letters and faxes are an extremely effective way of communicating with your elected officials. Many legislators believe that a letter represents not only the position of the writer but also many other constituents who did not take the time to write. These tips will help increase the effectiveness of your letter: Keep it brief: Letters should never be longer than one page,...
FL: $385 million is what it costs Florida every year to deny civil rights for non-violent felons, report says
[tampabay.com 5/21/18] The Republican-leaning Washington Economics Group of Coral Gables says Florida loses millions by spending on extra court and prison costs while losing the opportunity to create new jobs for new offenders. By Mary Ellen Klas Seven years after Gov. Rick Scott and the Florida Cabinet voted to end the state policy that automatically restored the civil rights of nonviolent offenders after they...
MO: Mother of Beaten Inmate Files Lawsuit
[floridaactioncommittee.org 5/21/18] Harley Holt was being held in a Jefferson Missouri jail on a charge of failure to register, when two other inmates beat him. He was put into a separate cell, but his repeated requests for medical attention were ignored. Eventually, he lost conscious and was taken to the hospital where he was placed on life support and later died. His cause of...
Sex offender registry: More harm than good?
In the 1990s, in response to a number of horrific and highly publicized crimes against children, states and the federal government created stringent penalties for sex offenders, notably registries where offenders’ names and addresses are available to the public. But now critics across the country are demanding review and revision of these policies, saying they are based on false assumptions, are a waste of...