The Utah Legislature approved a bill this past session giving judges more sentencing discretion in cases in which a defendant had consensual sex with a minor under age 14 if that defendant is under 21. The measure passed the House 42-31 and the Senate 15-11. Gov. Gary Herbert signed it into law. It changes slightly the mandatory-minimum requirement of 25 years to life and a lifetime listing on the sex-offender registry for having sex with a minor. But it now has a deputy in the Wasatch County attorney’s office gunning…
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UT: Sex offender doesn’t have to reveal sexual history, Utah Supreme Court rules
SALT LAKE CITY — A convicted sex offender does not have to reveal his complete sexual history as a condition of his parole, the Utah Supreme Court has ruled. Full Article
Read MoreUT: New Twist on the Sex-Offender Registry: Financial Crime
States have taken the idea of the sex-offender registry and applied it to everything from kidnapping to animal abuse. Utah is expanding it into new territory: financial crime. An early version of the White Collar Crime Offender Registry, which has been online since February, includes more than 100 people convicted of tax, credit-card or insurance fraud; thefts from employers or friends; and bilking investors. They include 41-year-old ____ ____ ____. “Eye Color: Blue. Hair Color: Blonde … Targets: Insurance company.” Full Article (WSJ – may be behind paywall)
Read MoreUT: Amendment to lower time on Sex Offender Registry on House floor
SALT LAKE CITY — Amendments to HB16 would allow those who have been charged with crimes like voyeurism or “enticing a minor” to be dropped from the Sex Offender Registry in five years instead of 10. “Almost everyone is the legislature knows someone in this situation and has been asked to please do something about it,” said Rep. Jack Draxler, R-North Logan. For the past five years, Draxler has been trying to make amendments to get sex offenders charged with lesser crimes off the list quicker than other sex offenders…
Read MoreUT: Change in law may get some off Utah sex offender registry early
(KUTV) A new bill at the state Capitol could cut time on Utah’s Sex Offender Registry for some people convicted of misdemeanor crimes. “It really acts like a scarlet A, a label,” Angie Fenimore told 2News. The author who said she was abused as a child, testified in support of the measure Thursday — and cast the registry as doing more harm than good. “It’s a wide net that catches everybody, from a 19-year-old who smacks the rear end of a 16-year-old, to someone who is a violent, predatory offender,”…
Read MoreUT: Utah sex offender must pay victim for lost wages, appeals court says
A man who sexually exploited a Utah teen will have to reimburse her for the pay she lost when depression caused by the abuse led to problems at work and a reduction in her hours. In a 3-0 decision, the Utah Court of Appeals upheld a 3rd District judge’s order requiring Scott C. Wadsworth to pay restitution of nearly $13,000 in lost wages to his victim, who is now an adult. The ruling said the connection between the sex crimes and the victim’s economic injury is sufficient to support the…
Read MoreUT: Utah Passes White-Collar Felon Registry
With just a point and a click, you can browse a face book of felons, a new government website that will warn of the danger these criminals pose to society. Only these are not the faces of sex offenders and serial killers. These criminals are mortgage schemers and inside traders, most likely armed with nothing more than an M.B.A. or a law degree. Full Article
Read MoreUT: Lawmaker wants death penalty for sex traffickers
SALT LAKE CITY — A Davis County Republican wants to give convicted child sex traffickers the ultimate punishment – the death penalty. Rep. Paul Ray, R-Clinton, is pushing to make child sex trafficking a capital offense. He says he accompanied the Salt Lake City vice squad on patrol a few years ago. He’s realized how big an issue child trafficking is in Utah. He said he’s been working on bills to target prostitution and trafficking for years. “I got so fed up with what I’ve seen,” Ray said. “It’s time…
Read MoreUT: Letter – Sex offender treatment worth the money
I am writing to draw attention to the fact that our state Legislature’s budget cuts are resulting in cutbacks in sex offender-specific treatment for both adult and juvenile offenders. The budget at the prison has not increased in 17 years, and this is within a time frame that the sex offender population there has been exploding. The juvenile sex offender population is mushrooming, too, without increase in funding. Full Letter to the Editor
Read MoreUT: In our opinion – Policy dilemma – how to handle prison issues with large number of sex offenders
The numbers are often repeated in discussions about sexual assault, but they never become less shocking. One out of three women in Utah will be sexually assaulted in their lifetime; one out of eight will be raped. But while there is evidence that a large percentage of sex crimes go uninvestigated and unprosecuted, there are still more people in prison in Utah for sexual assault than for any other category of crime. Full Opionion Piece
Read MoreUT: Sex offenders driving up prison population
Prison populations around the country have been in steady decline for the past 10 years. In Utah, it’s a different story. The number of men and women in the state’s prison system has continued to rise, with the highest drivers being nonviolent criminals and sex offenders, who are staying in longer and taking up more beds than ever before, according to data collected by the Pew Charitable Trusts. Sex offenders now take up 42 percent more beds than they did 10 years ago, making them the largest group inside the…
Read MoreUT: Man arrested after living as unregistered sex offender for 20 years
CEDAR CITY — A man was arrested after living under the radar in Cedar City for 20 years as an unregistered sex offender. Incarcerated in California for sex offense, ____ ____ moved to Utah and failed to register with Utah. Full Article
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