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.
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Janice's Journal
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AUS: Should child sex offenders be allowed to travel?
Australia has passed tough, "world-first" legislation that will deny passports to about 20,000 people on the national child sex offenders register. The aim is to stop Australians who are planning to abuse children in regions like South East Asia before they even get on a plane. But how will it work, is it fair and will other countries follow suit? Full Article
New state law aims to limit where California judges place violent sex offenders out on conditional release
A state law signed by Gov. Jerry Brown this week would make it harder for violent sex offenders released under a court's conditions to live in counties where they have no work or family ties. Assembly Bill 255 will require judges to consider additional factors, such as residential, family or employment connections, when weighing where to release offenders who fall under the Sexually Violent...
OR: New law means life sentences for second-strike sex offenders
Repeat rapists and certain sex offenders can now be given a "two strikes and you're out" ticket to life in prison under a bill recently passed by the Oregon Legislature. Senate Bill 1050 imposes presumptive sentences for those convicted of first-degree rape, first-degree sodomy or first-degree unlawful sexual penetration if the defendant has been previously convicted of those crimes or an equivalent federal offense....
Tiered Registry Bill Passed by Assembly Committee
The Tiered Registry Bill (Senate Bill 421) was passed today by the Assembly's Public Safety Committee. The final vote on the bill was 5 in favor (Chairman Jones Sawyer as well as committee members Rubio, Quirk, Santiago and Gonzalez-Fletcher), one opposed (Lackey) and one who did not vote (Flora). During deliberations on the bill, the bill's author (Senator Scott Wiener) stated the reform of...
OC’s district attorney sounds off against 3 Senate bills that would change the state’s bail system, sex-offender registry and laws for gun crimes
Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas and victims’ rights advocates sounded off on Monday against three state Senate bills that would make sweeping changes to California’s bail system, sex-offender registry and sentencing laws for gun crimes. Full Article OCDA Statement Related San Jose Police Union Opposes State Sex Offender Bill Police Union speaks out against sex offender bill
Sex offender revamp in works under state bill
California’s sex offender registry didn’t protect Chelsea King. A registered child predator abducted, raped and murdered the 17-year-old high school senior after she set off for a jog on the trails around Lake Hodges in San Diego County in 2010. Authorities used DNA to track down John Albert Gardner III, who confessed to killing Chelsea and another teen, Amber DuBois, who had gone missing...
DOJ urges SCOTUS not to review Sixth Circuit panel decision finding retroactive application of Michigan sex offender law unconstitutional
As reported in this post from last summer, a Sixth Circuit panel concluded in Does v. Snyder, No. 15-1536 (6th Cir. Aug. 25, 2016) (available here), that Michigan's amendments to its Sex Offender Registration Act (SORA) "imposes punishment" and thus the state violates the US Constitution when applying these SORA provisions retroactively. Michigan appealed this decision to the US Supreme Court, and SCOTUS in March asked for the US Acting...
PA: Judge was right to protect foreign kids from U.S. sex predator, court says
An Allegheny County judge acted correctly when she sentenced a sex predator to a 20- to 40-year prison term to ensure he'll be too old to molest foreign children when he is eventually deported, a state appeals court panel has ruled. Full Article
TX: Should independent living complexes have to notify residents of sex offenders?
The Houston Housing Authority has changed the way the agency reviews its 60,000 tenants after Channel 2 Investigates found a registered sex offender getting a housing allowance he is barred from receiving. Full Article
IA: State can’t block sex offender from having smart phone
The state can't stop a convicted sex offender from having a smart phone or internet access, according to a ruling from the Iowa Court of Appeals. Full Article
Court strikes down sex registration requirement
A California appellate court has again struck down a requirement that ____ ____ ____, a well-known Redding man who often ran for elected office and who was sentenced to prison in 2013 for stalking a woman, register as a sex offender for life. In its June 30 ruling, the Third District Court of Appeal, which once again upheld his stalking conviction, reversed ____ ____...
NY: Sex offenders banned from driving for Uber, Lyft
When Gov. Andrew Cuomo and state lawmakers approved a ride-hailing law in April, it would have allowed certain low-level sex offenders to drive for companies like Uber and Lyft. That's no longer the case. Cuomo signed a bill late last week block all sex offenders from driving for ride-hailing companies for as long as they are listed on the state's registry, regardless of the...
Houston federal judge revokes sex offender’s naturalized citizenship
A federal judge this week approved an order revoking the naturalized citizenship of a Harris County man convicted of a sex offense more than 20 years earlier, one of a growing number of immigrants stripped of citizenship in a push that began in the final years of the Obama administration. Full Article
Janice’s Journal: Freedom from Tyranny of the Registry
Today we sit on top of a mountain. We take a short rest after an arduous journey up a steep path. We gather strength. We gather numbers. We prepare for what we believe will be the final legs of a journey for many who will reach freedom…..freedom from the tyranny of the sex offender registry. Our journey began six years ago when a brave elected official, Tom Ammiano,...
Sex offender rules need to be revisited (Letter to the Editor)
Surely there needs to be a lot of changes made in the sex offender registry. I heard about a man in his early thirties who committed some sort of a sex crime. This young man wanted to become a male nurse. But because of his record, he could not get into nurse's training. He paid an attorney $2,000 for his service, but his case...
Business Ethics Discussion Topic – Public Accommodation and the Sex Offender Registry
My company operates campgrounds on public lands under contract with various public agencies. Over the past several years, there has been a lot of discussion about public accommodation (e.g. can a private photographer choose not to serve a gay wedding). This has never really been a big issue for me in my business, both due to my personal tolerance of just about anyone and...
IRE: Seeking to track sex offenders poses human rights questions
The idea of electronic tagging for sex offenders is not a new one. It was considered by the Department of Justice in 2009 in relation to the Discussion Document on the Management of Sex Offenders, and continued to gain political interest in the following years, up to the recent announcement that new legislation will make provision for this perceived shortcoming in our law. Full...
NC: Iredell sex offender’s charges dismissed after Supreme Court ruling on social media
A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling has overturned a nearly 10-year-old law in North Carolina that banned registered sex offenders from using social media like Facebook. The unanimous ruling allows the roughly 257 registered sex offenders in Iredell County access to social media online, according to the North Carolina Department of Public Safety. Full Article
FL: Woman’s License Mistakenly Marked ‘Sexual Predator’
A Florida woman took her children to Disney World for a fun weekend, but was denied service at the hotel. When she asked why she was not allowed to stay there, she was shocked by the response. Now, the mother is taking legal action. Tammy Lemasters was denied service at Disney World and when she asked why, she was told it was because her...
Brock Turner judge Aaron Persky responds to calls for his removal
Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Aaron Persky, who came under fire for sentencing former Stanford swimmer Brock Turner to six months in county jail for sexual assault, sought Friday to dismiss demands for his removal, saying the court of law should be separated from the court of public opinion. Full Article