[dailyherald.com – 7/27/20] Sex offenders who sued to stay at the Wayside Cross Ministries halfway house in downtown Aurora after a judge ruled it is too close to a playground have dropped their litigation after all of them found alternative housing. The lawsuit was voluntarily dismissed Friday, according to Kane County court records and their attorney, Adele Nicholas, who credited the Kane County state’s attorney’s office with giving the 18 men time to move instead of arresting and essentially evicting them. Read the full article
Read MoreTag: Illinois
IL: High court upholds ban on sex offenders in parks
The state’s criminal code completely bars child sex offenders from entering public parks, despite an exception written into a similar but separate part of the law, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled last week. The 5-2 majority held that the exception in Section 11-9.3(a-10) of the Illinois Criminal Code of 2012, which allows child sex offenders to visit public parks with their minor children when other minor children are present, cannot be read into Section 11-9.4-1(b), which prohibits a child sex offender from “knowingly be[ing] present in any public park.” Full…
Read MoreIL: Porn Convictions Tossed Due to Use of Confidential Information
[bloomberglaw.com – 4/14/20] An Illinois man’s convictions on two counts of child pornography were tossed and resentencing was required on a third because the trial court improperly allowed the jury to hear confidential pretrial services information about his residence, the Seventh Circuit ruled. Defendant Michael Chaparro told the Office of Probation and Pretrial Services he had lived at the address linked to a computer containing images of child pornography. Read the full article (ONLY with a subscription!) Read the court document
Read MoreIL: Lawsuit – Release Sex Offenders Who Have Served Their Time
Sex offenders who have completed their sentences but are still being held in Illinois prisons should be released as part of the effort to reduce the state’s prison population during the COVID-19 crisis, according to a lawsuit filed in federal court. The request for a temporary restraining order was filed on behalf of Marcus Barnes, a sex offender held at Graham Correctional Center, and about 300 other sex offenders who remain in prison because they have not located state-approved housing required for their release. Full Article
Read MoreIL: Registered sex offenders can stay at Wayside Cross a little longer after ruling again delayed
[chicagotribune.com – 1/21/20] The child sex offenders living at Wayside Cross in Aurora can remain at the ministry for at least a while longer, after a judge again delayed ruling on their request to temporarily block enforcement of a sex offender residency law pending the outcome of a lawsuit. The Wayside Cross residents are seeking a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction, which would allow them to remain at the ministry until their lawsuit challenging enforcement of a sex offender residency law is resolved. Kane County Circuit Court Judge Kevin…
Read MoreIL: Illinois law will remove the statute of limitations for adult sex crimes
[mdjonline.com – 12/26/19] A new law will remove the statute of limitations for sexual assault crimes in Illinois. Lawmakers passed House Bill 2135 this spring. Oswego state Rep. Keith Wheeler introduced the measure in the House. Aurora state Sen. Linda Holmes introduced the Senate version. The law will remove the statute of limitations for the prosecution of sexual assault crimes against adults. General Counsel for the Illinois Coalition Against Sexual Assault Sarah Beuning said the new law was “a very big deal in the message it sends to survivors about how serious…
Read MoreIL: Wayside Cross child sex offender residents receive new notices citing proximity to Aurora park
[chicagotribune.com – 12/13/19] For the second time this year, child sex offenders who live at Wayside Cross Ministries in Aurora were given letters stating they must find a new place to live within 30 days. An Aurora police officer delivered letters to 19 residents who were scheduled to receive them around 7:30 a.m. Friday morning, police spokesman Paris Lewbel said. The letters said the men reside within 500 feet of McCarty Park and therefore by law must move. The residents received similar notices in June but were allowed to remain…
Read MoreIL: Illinois Supreme Court strikes down social media ban for sex offenders
Illinois’ highest court ruled Thursday that it is unconstitutional to ban convicted sex offenders from social media sites. Conrad Allen Morger was convicted of sexually abusing a minor and sentenced to four years of probation by a court in McLean County. That came with a binding condition he not use specific internet sites, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn. During oral arguments, held in September in Godfrey, Morger’s representative said the ban is a violation of the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment fundamental right to freedom of speech. Full Article…
Read MoreIL: Former Sex Offenders can Proceed with Lawsuit Challenging Restrictions on Internet Use
A group of former sex offenders may continue with their lawsuit, challenging the constitutionality of the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC’s) restrictive policy on internet access for those convicted of sex crimes. A federal district court has ruled that it is premature at this early stage of the litigation to dismiss the lawsuit. Full Article
Read MoreIL: Suit settled in teen suicide that led to Illinois law change
[abcnews.go.com – 8/31/19] The case of a suburban Chicago teenager who killed himself after being confronted at his high school about whether he made a video of himself having sex with a classmate raised uncomfortable questions about how aggressively school officials should question kids suspected of wrongdoing and whether they should wait until a parent arrives. A wrongful death lawsuit brought by the parents of 16-year-old Corey Walgren that focused on those questions has been resolved, with the city of Naperville expected to approve a settlement on Tuesday in which…
Read MoreIL: Explosive 3-hour meeting has many talking about possible health and housing center
[newschannel20.com – 8/21/19] SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WICS/WRSP) — An explosive meeting took place Wednesday evening over whether Springfield should allow a vacant building to become a health and housing center. … While the proposed center is more than just a homeless shelter, some asked how will the place know if they have a sex offender coming to use their facilities, especially because of the proximity to the Lincoln Magnet School. “There is no way to know that the mental health individuals that they’re serving are sex offenders. There’s no way to…
Read MoreIL: Wayside residents sue City of Aurora, challenge state’s residency laws for registered sex offenders
The 19 child sex offenders who were told they must leave Wayside Cross Ministries by July 26 have filed a civil federal lawsuit against the city of Aurora, arguing the men should not have to move and challenging the state’s residency laws for registered sex offenders. Full Article
Read MoreIL: Column: Now it’s Wayside Cross residents’ turn to be blindsided
[chicagotribune.com – 6/28/19] Yes, this is a story about the law. In particular, it’s about a law that prohibits child sex offenders from being within 500 feet of a public park or building where children gather. Which is why the city of Aurora on Wednesday sent eviction notices to almost two dozen residents of Wayside Cross Ministries. It is, however, also a story about the spirit of the law, which is always far more complicated. For more than 90 years, the people who society tend to deem undesirable, even repugnant,…
Read MoreIL: Long legal battle in sex offender case ends with plea deal, probation
Charges filed in 2018 were dismissed Friday against a 26-year-old Normal man after he pleaded guilty to a new charge involving a 2014 offense, ending his long-running legal challenge of the constitutionality of the state’s sex offender registration rules. ___ ___ was 16 when he engaged in sexual activity with a 14-year-old classmate. He served 12 months’ probation, and registered as a sex offender until 2018 when the state did not object to his request to end reporting requirements. Full Article IL Supreme Court Decision
Read MoreWI, IL: Wisconsin, Illinois sued over transgender name-change laws
[washingtonpost.com – 5/1/19] Attorneys sued Wisconsin and Illinois Wednesday over laws that forbid transgender individuals from changing their names if they have certain criminal convictions. Both federal lawsuits argue that the states are violating free speech rights and are preventing people from expressing how they identify themselves. “The impact on their lives is severe. This is an issue of equality and equal participation in society,” said Lark Mulligan, an attorney who filed the Illinois lawsuit. Mulligan, who is a transgender woman, noted “all the times that people are forced to…
Read MoreIL: Federal Judge Finds Illinois Rules On Sex Offenders Unconstitutional
[wbez.org – 4/1/19] A federal judge in Chicago has found the Illinois Department of Corrections is violating the constitutional rights of prisoners convicted of certain sex crimes by making the restrictions on where they can live so stringent that inmates are often locked up long beyond their sentences. In a ruling issued Sunday, Judge Virginia Kendall wrote that hundreds of offenders in the state’s prison system successfully complete their entire court-ordered sentences yet remain behind bars indefinitely. Kendall found the corrections department is depriving them of fundamental rights, and…
Read MoreIL: Court tosses lawsuit in sex-video suicide case
A federal judge in Chicago has dismissed a lawsuit brought against a suburban Chicago school by parents of a student who killed himself after staff warned him he may have to register as a sex offender because they suspected he made a video of himself having sex with a classmate without her knowledge. Full Article Opinion https://cases.justia.com/federal/district-courts/illinois/ilndce/1:2017cv04036/340584/114/0.pdf?ts=1547809387
Read MoreIL: Man sues state’s attorney, officials for $10M over sex offender registration
A convicted sex offender who claims he was innocent is suing St. Clair County State’s Attorney Brendan Kelly and state officials for $5 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages, alleging his reputation within his community continues to be irreparably injured by his registration status. Full Article
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