Proponents of criminal justice reform never talk about sex offenders. They’re political untouchables subject to lifelong restrictions that continue long past their confinement, restrictions justified as necessary to protect the public from their propensity to re-offend. Two Supreme Court decisions established that justification. But they rely on a scientific study that doesn’t exist. Full Article Related ‘Frightening and High’: The Frightening Sloppiness of the High Court’s Sex Crime Statistics
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High court orders review of sex offender GPS monitoring
WASHINGTON — State programs that use GPS systems to monitor sex offenders could eventually be jeopardized based on a preliminary Supreme Court ruling Monday. The justices gave a North Carolina sex offender another chance to prove in state court that being forced to wear a GPS monitoring bracelet for life could be unconstitutional. Full Article Related Los Angeles Times
Read MoreOR: Supreme Court to consider – Is it ‘cruel and unusual’ to imprison public masturbator for life?
____ ____ is serving a life prison sentence — but not because, like many in that situation, he killed someone. ____, 69, has repeatedly exposed his genitals in public with sexual intent. In 2012, after a Marion County jury found him guilty of that conduct again, a judge sentenced him to life without any hope of being released. Full Article
Read MoreIs a lifetime of involuntary GPS monitoring constitutional?
When the Supreme Court ruled in 2012 that affixing GPS devices to vehicles to track their every move without court warrants was an unconstitutional trespass, the outcome was seen as one of the biggest high court decisions in the digital age. That precedent, which paved the way for the disabling of thousands of GPS devices clandestinely tacked onto vehicles by the authorities, is now being invoked to question the involuntary placement of GPS devices onto human beings. Full Article
Read MoreOH: Supreme Court – When Is a Sex Offender Not a Sex Offender?
Maybe Hollywood culture has impassioned us too much. We expect loud murmurings and banging from a gavel to restore order when we envision courtroom scenes. Largely, we expect drama, especially when it comes to sex crimes. The reality is that it is a subdued affair. At least it was this morning. There was a small and quiet crowd in the Supreme Court of Ohio this morning. Overall, it was a feeling of intrigue as the Court heard an important paradox of a question. When is a sex offender not a…
Read MoreCA Supreme Court to Hear Two Residency Restrictions Cases
The California Supreme Court has scheduled oral argument on two residency restriction cases on December 2 starting at 2 p.m.. The oral arguments are open to the public and will be held at the Ronald Reagan State Office Building, 300 South Spring Street, Third Floor, North Tower, Los Angeles. “The issue of where a registered citizen may live is of great importance to more than 105,000 families within the state of California,” stated California RSOL President Janice Bellucci. “This issue is also important to the protection of the state and…
Read MoreCA Supreme Court to Hear Residency Restrictions Case
The California Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on December 2 in Los Angeles on a case in which the constitutionality of residency restrictions have been challenged. Following oral argument, the Court has up to 90 days to render its decision. “Current residency restrictions violate both the state and federal constitutions,” stated CA RSOL President Janice Bellucci. “As applied, they constitute banishment which has been outlawed in our country for more than 100 years.” The case to be argued is In re Taylor, S206143, in which the California Court of…
Read MoreThe Supreme Court Renders Another Decision Interpreting the Ex Post Facto Clause
June 2013 – The national drive to identify and punish child predators took a step backward this week. While on its surface, the Supreme Court’s decision this week in Peugh v. United States does not deal with sex offenders, its impact will surely be felt in the sex-offender cases. As with the Court’s decision ten years ago in Stogner v. California, the Ex Post Facto Clause has once again been interpreted to make it more difficult to incarcerate criminals, and particularly sex offenders, as I will explain below. Full Article
Read MoreCALIFORNIA SUPREME COURT UPHOLDS BAN ON CITY, COUNTY ORDINANCES
[Updated with media links] The California Supreme Court today denied review of a lower court’s decision that, in effect, bans cities and counties from enforcing ordinances that restrict where a registered citizen may be present or near. Review by the Court was requested by the Orange County District Attorney. “Today’s decision is a major victory,” stated CA RSOL President Janice Bellucci. “Through its denial to review a lower court decision, the California Supreme Court has ruled that ordinances in more than 70 cities and 5 counties are preempted by existing…
Read MoreSupreme Court sets aside $3.4-million verdict for child-porn victim
WASHINGTON — Victims of child pornography whose images of sexual abuse have circulated on the Internet may claim damages from every person caught with illegal images, the Supreme Court ruled Wednesday. But justices rejected the idea that a single person who possesses such images may be assessed the full amount due to the victim, setting aside a $3.4-million verdict against a Texas man in a favor of a woman whose childhood rape was photographed and widely circulated on the Internet. Full Article Also see: http://www.scotusblog.com/2014/04/opinion-analysis-dividing-the-duty-to-pay-for-child-porn/ (Analysis) http://www.courthousenews.com/2014/04/23/67276.htm
Read MoreSupreme Court turns away woman’s challenge to Virginia sex offender registry law
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court has declined to take up the case of a Virginia woman who claims the state’s sex offender registry law is unconstitutional. The woman was reclassified as a violent sex offender 15 years after being convicted of unlawful sex with minor in a case that did not involve any violence. The reclassification subjects her to a ban on entering her children’s schools without first seeking permission from state courts and the local school board. The woman was identified only as Jane Doe in court records. She…
Read MoreOK: Supreme Court rules on sex offender lawsuit [updated with decisions]
OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma Supreme Court says people convicted of sex crimes in other states are not required to register as sex offenders in Oklahoma if the convictions occurred before the Legislature passed a sex offender law and if they completed their sentence, probation or parole before Nov. 1, 2005. The justices ruled that two men convicted of sex crimes in other states were not offered the same protection under the law as people convicted of sex crimes in Oklahoma. Full Article Case Information http://law.justia.com/cases/oklahoma/supreme-court/2013/108819.html http://law.justia.com/cases/oklahoma/supreme-court/2013/108797.html
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