Source: reason.com 8/20/24 From Free Speech Coalition, Inc. v. Rokita, decided Friday by Judges Frank Easterbrook and Amy St. Eve: Indiana seeks a stay of the preliminary injunction that a district court entered preventing the enforcement of Ind. Code § 24-4-23, which requires web sites to limit minors’ access to certain sexual materials. Indiana’s statute is functionally identical to one adopted by Texas. That statute has been held to be valid [by the Fifth Circuit, though the Supreme Court has agreed to hear the case]. Free Speech Coalition, Inc., which…
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IN: Indiana HB 1307 would mean register for life if moving to Indiana
Source: thestatehousefile.com 1/18/24 The Indiana House Courts and Criminal Code Committee discussed several bills Wednesday, including HB 1203 and HB 1307, both of which were held for … … HB 1307 was authored by Rep. Ben Smaltz, R-Auburn. “The first thing that 1307 does is if a sex offender moves from another state to Indiana, they would be required to register for the entire time they are in Indiana and in effect for life. Second, it prevents a serious sex offender from being in a park when they can reasonably…
Read MoreIN: Anderson arsonist told police he targeted child molesters’ homes, court docs reveal
Source: fox59.com 12/21/23 ANDERSON, Ind. — Court documents reveal that an Anderson man didn’t understand why he was being arrested for arson after setting fire to porches, sheds and even an RV. The man reportedly admitted to setting the fires but told police he’d been targeting the homes of child molesters who were “out on the street.” Adam Kinnard, 33, was arrested on Tuesday morning after an RV was found engulfed in flames behind a home on Fletcher Street. Police said Kinnard was spotted by officers — who had been…
Read MoreIA: Prisoner advocates feel more hopeless after sex offense civil commitment presentation
Source: newtondailynews.com 12/5/23 Families and advocates of incarcerated individuals at Newton Correctional Facility had been waiting months for the Iowa Board of Corrections to provide some semblance of an answer to their questions regarding the state’s civil commitment program. It was finally put on the agenda. Open for all to see. Although the department of corrections and its board members acknowledged their concerns, advocates left the meeting last month feeling hopeless. Despite a presentation about the sex offender civil commitment referral process from its program manager, Ken Pirc, those in…
Read MoreIN: County to increase fees for out-of-county sex offenders
Source: wkkg.com 10/3/23 Convicted sexual and violent offenders who come in to Bartholomew County to work or for other activities would now pay more to be entered into the county’s sex offender registry under a change being considered by the county commissioners. Under the existing rules those who lived outside Bartholomew County, but travelled here for various activities were only paying $5 annually to be added to the registry, while in-county residents had to pay $50 annually. Read the full article
Read MoreUPDATED 8/21/23: Corrections to the Paris, Wisconsin 6,500 Feet Residency Restriction by the 7th Circuit
UPDATED Source: floridaactioncommittee.org 8/21/23 Attorneys with the Paris case (6500-foot residence restriction) have contacted us [Florida Action Committee] to correct misstatements that were made in our most recent post. They let us know there is much to be optimistic about in the court’s decision as they are putting some brakes on municipal ordinances that have spiraled out of control in Wisconsin – something they have never done before. We should not be reading this decision as countenancing 6500-foot zones more generally. Attorney Adele Nicholas will be continuing to fight these…
Read MoreIN: Indiana man can’t be removed from sex offender registry for Kentucky offense, COA affirms
Source: theindianalawyer.com 6/27/23 A man convicted of a sex crime against a minor 15 years ago in Kentucky must remain on Indiana’s sex offender registry, the Court of Appeals of Indiana affirmed Tuesday. In 2008, Kevin ____ was convicted in Kentucky of sexual abuse in the second degree. ____ received a one-year executed sentence with five months suspended to probation. Under Kentucky law, a defendant convicted of that crime is required to register. Although the Kentucky court ordered ____ to register as a sex offender for 20 years, he never…
Read MoreIN: 7th Circuit again reverses judgment for sex offenders who challenged registration requirement
Source: theindianalawyer.com 4/27/23 Requiring sex offenders who are already subject to registration elsewhere to also register in Indiana rationally promotes public safety, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in reversing a district court’s judgment. This is the second reversal in the case. The plaintiffs in the case are Indiana residents who committed sex offenses either before the Indiana Sex Offender Registration Act existed or before it covered their specific offenses. Their registration obligations vary depending on their offenses, but they all must register under SORA at least once…
Read MoreIN: Killer of Registrant Sentenced to 75 years But Has No Remorse
Source: tristatehomepage.com 2/23/23 EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WEHT) — An Evansville man will spend decades behind bars for murdering a sex offender. According to court documents, 34-year-old Ricky Allen Kiper Jr. was sentenced to 60 years in prison and 15 years for a habitual offender enhancement after pleading guilty to murder several weeks ago. Kiper shot and killed James ____ at a home on the northside of Evansville on July 27, 2022. After the shooting, officials confirmed that the deceased victim was on the sex offender registry list. Read the full article…
Read MoreIN: Seventh Circuit revisits controversial Indiana sex offender law
Source: courthousenews.com 1/6/23 The Seventh Circuit heard arguments over Indiana’s controversial Sex Offender Registration Act on Friday morning, and not for the first time. Instead, it was just the latest skirmish in an ongoing legal struggle between the Indiana Department of Corrections, the District Court of Southern Indiana and the judges of the Seventh Circuit. Indiana enacted the law known as SORA in 1994, requiring that those convicted of sex offenses in other states must also register as sex offenders in Indiana if they live or work there. It also…
Read MoreIN: ‘We don’t want you here’ Sheriff says over 1,800 sex offenders live in Marion Co., 52% aren’t from here
Source: wrtv.com 8/24/22 INDIANAPOLIS — There are more than 18,000 sexual or violent offenders living in Marion County, more than half of which were convicted and sentenced from out-of-area, according to the Marion County Sheriff’s Office. As part of the office’s efforts to drive down the number of sex offenders in the community, the sheriff’s office conducted a sweep Wednesday morning near Brookside Park. The Sheriff’s Office says 34 registered sex offenders live within a half mile of there. “That is a ridiculous number to be in that neighborhood,” said…
Read MoreIN: Out-of-state sex offender registration requirement does not violate Indiana Constitution
Source: theindianalawyer.com 5/16/22 The Court of Appeals of Indiana has upheld a finding that the retroactive application of the state’s sex offender registration requirements does not violate the Indiana Constitution’s ex post facto clause. Tracey Williams Crowley petitioned the St. Joseph Circuit Court in 2021 to have his name removed from the Indiana Sex and Violent Offender Registry. He had been convicted in Michigan of third-degree criminal sexual conduct, a felony, in 1988. In 2004, Crowley moved to Indiana. As he was required to do in Michigan, he registered as…
Read MoreIN: Beware of Halloween Stranger Danger, Know Your Local Sex Offender Registry
Source: wevv.com 10/30/21 Halloween is nearly here. Soon thousands of Tri-State children will flock to the streets for their fill of candy and frights, but while costumes monsters and villains are out in good fun, there’s a fear real predators might be lurking in the shadows. “You don’t know what situation you’re going to be faced with, which can be scary,” Trish Crawford said. “You don’t know who you’re going to run into when you go to someone’s door. My son is five now but I think even as, this…
Read MoreIN: Community raises concerns on operator of new business run by a registrant
Source: washtimesherald.com 10/13/21 LOOGOOTEE – The fact that a convicted sex offender has opened a tattoo shop near a preschool brought out an overflow crowd of more than 30 to Tuesday’s Loogootee City Council meeting. Makenzie Wagoner, 19, made an impassioned plea for city officials and the public at large to take action to protect young children. She does not want the business closed, but rather forced to relocate some place away from children. Indiana law prohibits sex offenders of minors from living within 1,000 feet of any school property,…
Read MoreIN: Indiana Police target sex offenders in operation before Halloween
Source: nwitimes.com 10/15/21 LAPORTE COUNTY — As trick-or-treating season will soon entice children to front doors across the Region, law enforcement launched “Operation Candy Corn Compliance” to target violent sex offenders. On Thursday the LaPorte County Sheriff’s Office conducted the countywide initiative to ensure sexually violent predators and offenders against children are in compliance of being registered as a sex offender. “All 123 of the classified and registered sexually violent predators and offenders against children were specifically targeted because of the upcoming trick-or-treat that will be taking place during the…
Read MoreIN: Federal Appeals Court OKs Indiana Sex Offender Registry Law
Source: wfyi.org 8/24/21 A federal appeals court said Indiana’s sex offender registry law does not violate the U.S. Constitution, overturning previous rulings. Indiana’s sex offender registry law does not require offenders to register if they were convicted before it was created in the 1990s. But it does require offenders who move to Indiana to register if they were registered in another state, even if their conviction came before Indiana’s law was created. A few offenders who came from other states sued, arguing they were treated differently than offenders who’d always…
Read MoreIN: Divided 7th Circuit reverses order to remove sex offender names for ‘right to travel’ violation but remands equal-protection claim
Source: theindianalawyer.com 8/17/21 A split en banc 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has reversed a decision from an original three-judge panel that ordered the removal of six names from the Indiana sex offender registry, finding that the state’s sex offender registration law doesn’t discriminate based on residency. However, the case was remanded for further consideration of an equal-protection claim. Judge Amy St. Eve — a member of the original panel who dissented from the January ruling — wrote for the en banc majority Monday in Brian Hope, et al. v.…
Read MoreIN: En Banc Seventh Circuit Hears Challenge to Indiana Sex Offender Registry Law
[courthousenews.com – 5/20/21] Indiana argued before the full Seventh Circuit on Thursday that state law does not place unfair registration requirements on sex offenders moving to the Hoosier State. At issue is a provision of the Indiana Sex Offender Registry Act requiring people convicted of sex offenses who relocate to Indiana to register as sex offenders, even if the crime was committed before the law was passed. The plaintiffs are challenging its retroactive application. The requirement creates a situation where an Indiana resident who was not required register as a…
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