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
Exonerating the Friedmans
Sometimes, after the credits roll, another—more important—story begins. In 2003, Andrew Jarecki and Marc Smerling released Capturing the Friedmans, the story of an average middle-class Jewish family destroyed by sex abuse charges against their then 18-year-old son, Jesse, and his father, Arnold. The film was nominated for an Academy Award, won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance, and graced the tops of countless lists...
CA RSOL Meeting in Bakersfield Feb 9, 2013
California RSOL will hold its first meeting in Bakersfield on February 9th, 2013. The meeting will focus upon issues of importance to registrants, such as residency restrictions and conditions of parole/probation, as well as family members. The meeting will be held at 925 17th Street, Bakersfield (please note address change on Nov 27) beginning at 10 a.m. There will be no media or government...
Suit Contests Limits on Online Activities of Sex Offenders
The ACLU and EFF argue that new law's requirements violate the First Amendment. California’s sex offender registry, the nation’s oldest and largest, lists more than 74,000 living Californians convicted of sex crimes since 1947. Like sex offenders elsewhere in the nation, they have been increasingly restricted in recent years as communities have barred them from not only schoolyards and playgrounds but also beaches, libraries,...
UPDATE: Prop 35 / TRO against collection of internet identifiers & providers
Registrants are not required to disclose their online identities to law enforcement for an extended period of time, according to a decision made by federal district court judge Thelton Henderson on November 14. As a result of this decision, law enforcement is blocked from requiring this information until at least January 11, 2013. Additional details regarding the judge's decision can be found on the ...
CA RSOL Meeting in LA January 19 [UPDATED]
Attorney Alex Landon will join California RSOL at its January 19 meeting in Los Angeles. Landon is a distinguished author as well as professor at the University of San Diego School of Law. He is a recognized expert on sex offender laws as is reflected in the book, "A Parallel Universe", which he co-authored with noted journalist Elaine Halleck. Landon will make a short...
Collection of Internet Identifiers and Providers
The following is a screenshot of the front page of the official California Megans Law web site on November 14, 2012. This is for your information only and NOT to be construed as legal advice. Please keep in mind that, past this page "Any person who is required to register pursuant to Penal Code section 290 who enters this web site is punishable by...
How to Commit Internet Suicide and Disappear from the Web Forever
Note: while this is obviously does not work on all web sites, it might be of use to some extent. Sick of horribly embarrassing things showing up when potential employers Google your name? Tired of everyone knowing you live in a garden level dungeon apartment? Perhaps you just don't like the fact the internet makes you easy to find. Thankfully, it's not that hard...
City Council in Gardiner, Maine, Declines New Sex Offender Restrictions
City councilors tell petitioning residents any new restrictions must come from the Legislature. City councilors in Gardiner, Maine, say they are not interested in moving forward with new restrictions on where some sex offenders can live, despite some residents' pleas it would make their neighborhood safer. Residents making a case for an ordinance at a meeting Wednesday were told hat the state Legislature is...
Critics raise specter of police state in challenge to new California law
California voters yesterday approved a new law billed as curbing human trafficking. A lesser-known section of Proposition 35, however, requires residents convicted of indecent exposure and other sex-related crimes to register their social-networking profiles and e-mail addresses with police. That violates the First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of speech, including anonymous speech, the ACLU and the Electronic Frontier Foundation said in a lawsuit (PDF)...
Life on the List
Does publicly posting names of convicted sex offenders actually reduce the number of sexual offenses? Freelance writer Steve Yoder has written a very informative article about the history of the Nation's sex offender laws, and outlines many of the consequences (and failures) of these severe laws. He makes the point that despite the fact that legislators "are increasingly adopting a 'smart on crime' approach...
Temporary Restraining Order granted by the court to stop enforcement of Proposition 35
California registrants won a major victory today! Federal district court judge Thelton Henderson granted a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) late Wednesday that prevents enforcement of requirements in Proposition 35 that require registrants to identify their online identities and activities. The TRO will stay in effect for 14 days. A hearing on whether to extend the TRO is scheduled for November 20 in San Franciso. ACLU and the...
ACLU and EFF Challenge Free Speech Restrictions in California’s Proposition 35
San Francisco - Today the ACLU of Northern California (ACLU-NC) and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) filed a federal class-action lawsuit to block implementation of unconstitutional provisions of Proposition 35 – a ballot measure passed by California voters Tuesday that restricts the legal and constitutionally protected speech of all registered sex offenders in California. Proposition 35 requires anyone who is a registered sex offender...
Sex Offender Laws May Do More Harm Than Good
End Registration of Juveniles, Residency Restrictions and Online Registries One of the world’s leading independent organizations dedicated to defending and protecting human rights, Human Rights Watch, believes, as many of us do, that "Laws aimed at people convicted of sex offenses may not protect children from sex crimes but do lead to harassment, ostracism and even violence against former offenders." Read more here: http://www.hrw.org/news/2007/09/11/us-sex-offender-laws-may-do-more-harm-good
“Unjust and Ineffective” Says The Economist Magazine
America has pioneered the harsh punishment of sex offenders. Does it work? The Economist magazine, in this online article describes many of the disturbing issues regarding the sex offender registries, including the fact that teenagers are, in increasing numbers, being made to register—many for a lifetime. (more…)
Halloween Safety: A National Survey of Parents’ Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behaviors
In early September 2011, Safe Kids Worldwide performed a survey about "Halloween Safety" and 935 parents responded. Their survey results can be viewed here.
Napa jail inmate apparently hanged himself
A registered sex offender arrested on Halloween night in American Canyon apparently hanged himself Thursday afternoon in the Napa County jail, according to the Napa County Sheriff’s Office. _____ _____, 31, of American Canyon, may have hanged himself with a bed sheet while his two roommates slept on their bunks, said Napa County Sheriff’s Capt. Leroy Anderson. Full Article
Operation Boo / Daily Corrections Clips
State parole agents went door-to-door Wednesday night checking to make sure local sex offenders and convicted child molesters on parole were in compliance. Read More http://www.pe.com/local-news/riverside-county/hemet/hemet-headlines-index/20121031-san-jacinto-police-enforcing-halloween-sex-offender-restrictions.ece makes reference to the Simi Valley Halloween Ordinance Lawsuit filed by CA RSOL
Teen Stunts Landing Kids On Sex Offender List… For Life
http://www.5min.com/Video/Teen-Stunts-Landing-Kids-On-Sex-Offender-List-For-Life-517523819
Family of Registered Sex Offender Speaks Out
PASO ROBLES, Calif.- Hours after wanted sex offender, ____ _____ was arrested, part of his family reacts by speaking out and says he's not who you think he is. "He did not touch his nieces and nephews, he has never touched my children, he has never touched his other sister's children either," says ____ 's brother-in-law, ____ ____ . ____ ____ says his brother-in-law and...
‘Operation Boo’ nets three arrests locally
ANTELOPE VALLEY – Dozens of parole agents fanned out across the Antelope Valley Wednesday night as part of “Operation Boo,” a safety initiative aimed at protecting young trick-or-treaters from sexual predators on Halloween. “This is a night where children are out and about, they’re knocking on doors, they’re introduced to strangers, they’re easy prey for somebody that’s looking to hurt them,” said Jackie Waltman,...