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
Penalties sought for parolees cutting GPS monitors
SACRAMENTO (KGO) -- Those GPS ankle bracelets that monitor some California parolees are not as effective as they could be. And that's because some convicted sex offenders and gang members are cutting off the devices and getting away with it. Authorities say 48-year-old repeat sex offender _____ ______ cut off his GPS ankle bracelet in November and days later he was charged with the...
San Jose: Ruling finds DA’s right-hand man committed misconduct
SAN JOSE -- In a scathing opinion published Thursday, a state appellate court reversed a judgment against a felon accused of being a sexually violent predator, saying the prosecutor handling the case -- now District Attorney Jeff Rosen's right-hand man -- engaged in a "pervasive pattern'' of misconduct. The misconduct finding against Chief Assistant District Attorney Jay Boyarsky is the first black mark against...
TRO Application Filed to Halt Enforcement of Lancaster Sex Offender Ordinance
An application for a temporary restraining order (TRO) was filed today in federal district court requesting that enforcement of a sex offender ordinance in the City of Lancaster be halted. “The Lancaster ordinance denies the civil rights of more than 100,000 individuals and families in California,” stated Janice Bellucci, President of California Reform Sex Offender Laws (RSOL). “It prohibits people who made a mistake,...
Another OC City Backs Off Sex Offender Ban
Westminster became the latest Orange County city to distance itself from a law banning sex offenders from city or county parks. A number of cities including Mission Viejo, Seal Beach, Fountain Valley, Los Alamitos and Laguna Niguel have similar bans, all of which could face challenges in court. An attorney who represents a sex offender in the Westminster case represents several offenders challenging similar...
NY: Bill O’Reilly – Gun Owners Compared To Sex Offenders
Former New York City mayoral candidate and author Mark Green advocated for new legislation that would allow people to identify and locate gun owners who lived in their neighborhoods. He compared it to the already existing "Megan's Law," which lets citizens know if a convicted sex offender lives near them. Then he flat-out compared sex offenders to gun owners. "If we have a Megan's...
California State Supreme Court to hear Jessica’s Law challenge
Today, more than two years after declining to rule on a law restricting where paroled sex offenders can live, the California Supreme Court agreed to again hear the case. Passed by voters in November 2006, Jessica's Law includes a provision that bars parolees who've committed a sexual offense from living within 2,000 feet of a school or park. A challenge over the residency restriction's...
California RSOL Meeting in Santa Maria on February 23
The first California RSOL meeting in Santa Maria will take place on February 23, 2013 at 9 am. As always, the meeting will focus upon issues of importance to registrants, such as residency restrictions and conditions of parole/probation and the status of pending lawsuit. Registrants, family members and supporters are invited to attend this free meeting. There will be no media or government officials....
The Year in Review… and Things to Come
The year 2012 was a remarkable year! The civil rights of registered citizens were recognized and protected by federal and state judges in a series of cases that (1) declared the Orange County park ban is preempted by state law, (2) stopped temporarily enforcement of Prop. 35’s requirements to disclose online identities, (3) prohibited the City of Simi Valley from requiring registrants to post...
NE: State told to pay $292K to firm that challenged sex offender laws
A federal judge has ordered Nebraska to pay more than $292,000 in attorneys' fees in a lawsuit that challenged the constitutionality of changes to the state's sex offender registry laws. But it was a fraction of the amount sought by the attorneys who represented the sex offenders who sued. The laws, the most recent changes to the state's Sex Offender Registration Act, were passed...
Rights Group sues over Lancaster’s restrictions on sex offenders
Constitutional rights advocates sued the city of Lancaster on Tuesday to block a recently enacted ordinance banning registered sex offenders from going to - or even being near - the city's parks, movie theaters and other public and private locations. "The ordinance basically violates the state and federal constitutions, and fails to protect public safety," said Janice Bellucci, president of a group called California...
[UPDATE 2 with Hearing Date] Court of Appeals to Review Orange County Ordinance
UPDATE 2: This case is now calendared for Thursday, 9-26-13 at 1:00 p.m.http://appellatecases.courtinfo.ca.gov/search/case/dockets.cfm?dist=43&doc_id=2030448&doc_no=G047657 *** UPDATE: This case will be heard on Monday, July 22, 2013 at 1:00 pm in the 4th District Court of Appeal, Division 3, Santa Ana, California. 4th District Div 3, 601 W. Santa Ana Blvd., Santa Ana, California 92701, Clerk's Office (714) 571-2600http://www.courts.ca.gov/4dca.htm The California Court of Appeals has decided to review the ordinance passed...
New York Culls Sex Offenders From the Online Gaming Ranks
SternisheFan writes with a story at PC Mag that New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman has announced that more than 2000 registered sex offenders have been kicked off various online gaming platforms, in an cooperative effort involving both the state and various gaming companies. Full Article
Lake Forest reverses sex-offender ban in parks
LAKE FOREST – Three members of the City Council voted Tuesday to undo a law passed a year ago banning registered sex offenders from city parks. Mayor Kathryn McCullough, Mayor Pro Tem Scott Voigts and Councilman Peter Herzog voted to remove the ban from the city's books in light of a court ruling that a similar ordinance elsewhere is trumped by state law, and...
CA RSOL CHALLENGES LANCASTER SEX OFFENDER ORDINANCE IN FEDERAL COURT
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 18, 2012 California Reform Sex Offender Laws (RSOL) today filed a lawsuit in federal district court challenging the sex offender ordinance adopted by the City of Lancaster. The ordinance prohibits all sex offenders from entering both public and private areas, including the city’s library, museum, and parks as well as privately owned arcades and movie theaters. The bases for the...
City of Lake Forest Take Final Action to Repeal Sex Offender Ordinance
The City Council of Lake Forest voted 3 to 2 to finally approve the repeal of the sex offender ordinance they adopted unanimously about a year ago. The Council preliminarily approved repeal of the ordinance at its meeting on December 4. “California RSOL thanks the Mayor and the City Council of Lake Forest for repealing a law that violated the civil rights of more...
Why We Fight to Keep Registered Sex Offenders Online
Believing that human trafficking is worsened by the internet’s anonymity, the sponsors of California’s Proposition 35 thought they had a simple solution to combating the problem: require convicted traffickers to register as sex offenders. Then require all individuals on California’s sex offender registry to disclose their online identities and service providers. The measure passed in the November election with 81 percent voter approval. This isn’t surprising,...
City of Lake Forest – Parks Ban Repeal, Second Reading 12/18
At the regular meeting of the City Council on December 4, 2012, the City Council considered and conducted the first reading of Ordinance No. 248. This Ordinance repeals Lake Forest Municipal Code Chapter 13.12 relating to registered sex offenders in City Parks. The second reading will take place on December 18 at 7 pm. Lake Forest City Hall, Council Chambers25550 Commercentre DriveLake Forest, California...
Seal Beach Considers Reversal of Sex Offender Ban
The Lake Forest City Council voted to reverse its ban on sex offenders in city parks last week, and Seal Beach might do the same. The Seal Beach City Council will meet in closed sessions Monday to discuss the possibility of ending a city law that prohibits sex offenders from Seal Beach recreation areas: parks, the pier, the jetties, the beach and beach parking...
Arizona, states failing to find places for sex offenders to live
Arizona is not unique in its struggles to monitor and house sex offenders. No state does it well, experts say. An eight-month review by The Arizona Republic found troubling gaps in Arizona’s system of registering and monitoring sex offenders, with overlapping laws and restrictions contributing to homelessness among high-risk offenders. In central Phoenix and Tucson, many homeless sex offenders who are required to provide...
City of Lake Forest Repeals Sex Offender Ordinance
The City Council of Lake Forest voted 4 to 0 to preliminarily approve the repeal of the sex offender ordinance they adopted unanimously a year ago. Final approval of the appeal is expected at the Council’s next meeting on December 18. “The Mayor and City Council of Lake Forest are to be commended for their courage in correcting a mistake they made one year...