I was convicted in federal court of distribution and possession of child pornography in January 2008. I was sentenced to 151 months, which, after good time, was a little under 11 years. I was released from prison in June 2018 and sent to a halfway house in Indiana, about three hours from my home. While there, I was encouraged to work, because you have to pay them part of it, but I actually wanted to work so I obtained a job at a local factory through the halfway house. In…
Read MoreTag: Illinois
IL: Woman broke sex offender law after registering children at daycare
A Joliet woman was apparently registering her children at a daycare when she violated the requirements of her sex offender status, according to court transcripts. Full Article
Read MoreIL: Appellate court reverses sex offender registration conviction
An Illinois appeals court reversed a man’s conviction after he was accused of failing to register as a sex offender. The Fifth District Appellate Court, in reversing former judge John Baricevic, found the state did not provide enough evidence that ____ had to continually register as a sexual offender on the date of his offense. Prosecutors conceded there was no indication if Kitterman’s imprisonment or subsequent conviction changed the required registration date. The three-judge panel ruled ____, who represented himself, proved the the Sexual Offender Registration Act (SORA) requires the offender to…
Read MoreIs a life sentence for child sexual abuse just?
Arguably Chicago’s most notorious figure in the national Roman Catholic priest sex abuse scandal was committed indefinitely Wednesday to a state facility for sex offenders. In refusing to release ____ ____ under strict monitoring, Cook County Judge Dennis Porter noted that the defrocked priest had never cooperated with treatment or even admitted to a problem. Full Opinion Piece
Read MoreIs it an unconstitutional taking of property without just compensation to require sex offenders to move away from their home if a school, etc is established near their home after their initial occupation?
In Mann v. Georgia Department of Corrections,653 S.E.2d 740 (Ga. 2007), the Georgia Supreme Court held that a state statute prohibiting registered sex offenders from living or working within 1,000 feet of any facility where minors congregate, see Ga. Code Åò42-1-15, constituted a taking of property as applied to a sex offender who was forced to move after a child care center opened a facility within 1,000 feet of his home. … The Seventh Circuit just came to the opposite conclusion in an opinion written by Judge Diane S. Sykes.…
Read MoreIL: 7th Circuit Upholds Illinois Residency Restrictions
The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld residency restrictions adopted by the state of Illinois that prohibit anyone convicted of a sex offense involving a minor from living within 500 feet of a school, playground, child-care center, child day-care home and group day-care home. According to the decision, which was issued on July 11, the restrictions can even be applied to individuals who are no longer required to register as a sex offender. The circuit court rejected arguments in the case that the residency restrictions violated the ex post…
Read MoreIL: Good news. A Win in Illinois!
[floridaactioncommittee.org – 6/15/18] In April, we wrote about an FAC member currently exiled from his home country because of International Megan’s Law. One of our members, who has a decades-old conviction, for which he got probation, left the country 17 years ago and hasn’t come back. He went on to live a good life in this other country, established a business, got married and had three children. In October, his mother fell gravely ill and he returned to see her. When he flew into the country (another state) he did…
Read MoreIL: 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 offense, who is subsequently convicted of ANY offense, be added to the registry (even if their sex offense predated the registry). Watch the video
Read MoreIL: What to Do to Make Sure Your Family Doesn’t Rent a Motel Room Next to a Registered Sex Offender
[nbcchicago.com 5/7/18] Remember that a sex offender’s residency at a motel or inn is completely legal, and there is no obligation on the part of any establishment to research the background of a guest, or alert other guests to someone’s criminal history. There is also no specific obligation of any police agency, in the states we checked, to give notice directly to hotel or motel guests, about a sex offender who has reported his or her residence there. So the best way – and likely the only way – for…
Read MoreIL: ‘I’m Scared, Very Scared’: Mass Murderer Moves Into Home Near La Grange Elementary School
[UPDATED LINKS 5/2/18] [nbcchicago.com 4/30/18] Parents tell NBC 5 they’re shocked a mass murderer recently released from prison moved in right across the street from a suburban elementary school. _______, 77, just got out of prison after serving time for killing five people in a Yorkville restaurant in 1972. Neighbors say he’s living in a La Grange home with a family who took him in as part of an outreach program with their Hinsdale church. The home is across the street from Seventh Avenue School. … “How could a sex…
Read MoreIL: State Senate targets masturbating jail inmates, making ‘sex offender’ tag easier
It’s a daily sight being called “a pretty extreme brand of workplace sexual harassment.” Citing a rise of lewd behavior in the Cook County Jail, the Illinois Senate on Wednesday passed a measure that would place inmates on the sex offender registry upon release if they expose themselves or masturbate in front of female staffers more than two times. Full Article
Read MoreIL: Fake Facts And Rational Basis
[simplejustice.us 4/12/18] When the constitutionality of a law is challenged, the most critical factor is the test use by the court in deciding whether it passes scrutiny. If it’s strict scrutiny, the law almost always gets crushed. But then, strict scrutiny is reserved for laws that implicate fundamental rights, which are fundamental because the Supremes say they are. And the others? Last week the Illinois Supreme Court upheld a state law banning sex offenders from public parks, overturning a 2017 appeals court ruling that deemed the statute “unconstitutional on its…
Read MoreIL: Bill to close sex offender registry loophole expected to die in Illinois House committee
UPDATED LINKS 4/23/18 [ilnews.org] Friday is the deadline for bills to move out of Illinois statehouse committees, or the bills will die this session. One measure has overwhelming support, but isn’t moving. House Bill 816 gives a judge discretion to require someone convicted of battery to register as a sex offender, if the crime was sexually motivated. Read more RELATED LINKS: Stephanie’s Law gets hearing, still remains in committee [ilnews.org 4/23/18]
Read MoreIL: Writing Sex Offender Laws Based on Fake Recidivism Numbers Is Rational, Court Says
Last week the Illinois Supreme Court upheld a state law banning sex offenders from public parks, overturning a 2017 appeals court ruling that deemed the statute “unconstitutional on its face because it bears no reasonable relationship to protecting the public.” The seven members of the higher court unanimously disagreed, saying, “We conclude that there is a rational relation between protecting the public, particularly children, from sex offenders and prohibiting sex offenders who have been convicted of crimes against minors from being present in public parks across the state.” Full Article…
Read MoreIL: Public Parks Ban is Constitutional (Supreme Court Reversal)
The Illinois Supreme Court reversed an appeals court ruling and found that the state’s ban on sex offenders entering public parks is constitutional. Other Media Quick Take on Illinois Supreme Court Opinion Issued Thursday, April 5 Supreme Court of Illinois rejects claim that state prohibition on sex offenders in parks is violative of substantive due process
Read MoreIL: Sex offender facing charges in Troy sues, says burden to prove innocence is too high
A Florida man facing child sex assault charges has filed a lawsuit against the state of Illinois alleging that the burden of proof placed on him to prove his innocence is too high. ____ ____ says Illinois’ laws “allow convictions without proof,” placing a crippling burden on the defendant and lowering the burden of proof for prosecutors so much so that they only need to place someone on the stand and point and say, “He did it.” This, he said, is a violation of his Fifth Amendment rights to protect…
Read MoreIL: Illinois Appellate Court Rules Lifetime Sex Offender Registration “Grossly Disproportionate Punishment” for 21 Year Old
[floridaactioncommittee.org] The opinion in People v. Tetter, which came out a couple days ago, is another great decision to add to our growing list of cases where courts have found the registry to be “punishment” and conditions of the registry have crossed the line into irrational. Kyle Tetter was 21 when he met a girl on an online social media app. Her profile said she was 18. Even though he later learned she was 16, they continued the consensual relationship and eventually she became pregnant and her mother reported him…
Read MoreIL: Class worked to break the cycle of sex offenses
[news.illinoisstate.edu] The criminal justice majors in Shelly Clevenger’s course studying sex offenses are usually prepared for a final project that is out-of-the-ordinary. “I’ve had a lot of these same students in my other classes, so they know their projects will be a little quirky,” said Clevenger, whose innovative teaching has been honored by the American Society of Criminology. “I wanted something that will help them communicate with their audience.” For the future members of law enforcement, that means connecting not only with those who are vulnerable to sexual offenses, but…
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