Tag: Washington

WA: House Passes Responsible Teen Communications Act

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[seattlemedium.com – 3/6/19] OLYMPIA – On Monday, the Washington State House of Representatives passed House Bill 1742 on a bipartisan vote of 57-39. The Responsible Teen Communications Act, sponsored by Rep. Noel Frame (D-Seattle), updates Washington’s laws to reflect current technology, and ensure minors sharing sexually explicit images or videos of themselves with their peers (commonly known was “sexting”) are not automatically charged with a felony sex offense and forced to register as a sex offender. According to a recent study, more than one in four teenagers report having received…

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WA: Sheriff’s Seeking Input on Proposed Domestic Offender Registry [House Bill 1080 and Senate Bill 5244]

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[newstalk870.am Washington State] The Franklin County Sheriff’s office posted some comments on their Facebook page, seeking public input on two companion bills (one in House, one in Senate) being debated in Olympia. :House Bill 1080 and Senate Bill 5244 would create a database for domestic violence offenders, similar to that which has been out for years for sex offenders. The Sheriff’s Department clarifies what the bills would do. Here’s part of that commentary: “House Bill 1080 and companion Bill SB 5244 would mandate the registry of persons convicted of a…

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WA: Sex offender records request raises safety, First Amendment questions

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Attorneys fighting a request to release the names of all level 1 sex offenders in Cowlitz County are making a novel — and perhaps long-shot — legal argument to the state Court of Appeals. Judges should take into account the motives of Kelso resident Curtis Hart, a sex offender vigilante who filed a state public records request for the list of offenders’ names months ago, a motion to the Washington Court of Appeals argues. Full Article

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WA: Several more injunctions hit sex offender request

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Curtis Hart is scheduled to receive the names of most of Cowlitz County’s 570 level 1 sex offenders Wednesday, but a few names likely will be withheld. One offender was granted a temporary injunction Sept. 11, and requests for injunctions to block the release of at least four other names were filed Monday on behalf of individual offenders. They are each represented by Vancouver attorney Elijah Marchbanks, and all are referred to as “John Does” in court documents. Full Article Also see: WA: Man plans to publish names of level…

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WA: Man plans to publish names of level 1 sex offenders

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Sex offender vigilante Curtis Hart has caused a furor among level 1 sex offenders by planning to publish many of their 570 names on the internet. Hart has requested that the sheriff’s office give him the names of all level 1 sex offenders in Cowlitz County, and under terms of a state Supreme Court ruling the agency must comply. The names, along with photos, addresses, and brief descriptions of the offenses could be released in less than two weeks. Full Article

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WA: Judges Denies Lakewood’s Request To Stop Sex Offender Relocation

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[patch.com – 8/6/18] LAKEWOOD, WA – A Pierce County judge has denied Lakewood’s request to stop the transfer of three sex offenders from McNeil Island to a private residential adult treatment house in the city. On Friday, Lakewood officials asked Pierce County Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Martin to stop the transfer. Although Martin denied that request, the city’s is still engaged in a lawsuit against the state to stop the transfer of sex offenders from facilities like Western State into residential treatment facilities. Read more about this important precedent  

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WA: County to pay $115K to man mistakenly listed as sex offender

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[kimatv.com – 6/14/18] YAKIMA COUNTY, Wash. – The county has agreed to settle a lawsuit involving a man who was wrongfully listed as a sex offender. Yakima County will pay local man Damian Garza Cantu $115,000 after someone else’s criminal convictions of third degree rape were mistakenly placed on his record. Read more Related links: WA: County to pay $115K to man mistakenly listed as sex offender [floridaactioncommittee.org – 6/14/18]    

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WA: Probationer Wins Washington Supreme Court Case on Pornography

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[floridaactioncommittee.org 5/17/18] A convicted sex offender in Washington challenged a provision of his probation that prevented him from “possessing or accessing pornographic materials” and won! The definition of “pornographic materials”, he argued, is unconstitutionally vague. It could mean watching the film Titanic, or having a Victoria’s Secret catalogue. The Court agreed, finding, “the statute must “give the person of ordinary intelligence a reasonable opportunity to know what [behavior] is prohibited.” Grayned, 408 U.S. at 108. Second, the law must provide explicit standards to those charged with enforcing the law in…

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WA: Landlords sue Seattle over tenant history ordinance

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[richmond.com 5/1/18] SEATTLE (AP) — A landlord group has sued the city of Seattle over an ordinance passed in August that prohibits them from making rental decisions based on a tenant’s criminal background. The Rental Housing Association of Washington sued the city in King County Superior Court Tuesday. The complaint alleges the city has violated property owners’ due process and free speech rights. It says landowners have a right to select their tenants and the ordinance is unreasonable. The Seattle City Council unanimously approved the “fair chance housing” ordinance in…

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WA: New legislation makes our community safer [stop unconditional SVP release]

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[tacomaweekly.com] Flanked by Pierce County Prosecutor Mark Lindquist, State Representative Dick Muri, and others, Governor Jay Inslee signed House Bill 2271 into law on March 27. The new law will help prevent the release of sexually violent predators (SVP) into our community. The bill was prompted by a recent Washington State Supreme Court case, in regards to the detention of John Marcum, which potentially entitled SVPs to a new unconditional release trial each time an annual review found a less restrictive placement or conditional release was appropriate even if the…

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WA: Law Would Reduce Severity of Charges for Teens Who Send, View Sexually Explicit Images

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[chronline.com] The state Senate a week ago passed legislation amending state law to reduce charges against teens over 12 years old for sending, producing or viewing sexually explicit material of other teens over 12 years old from a felony to a misdemeanor charge. According to a news release from the Washington state Senate Democrats, the changes reflect the distinction between the sending of sexually explicit images by teens, as opposed to distributing such materials through malicious intent. The legislation was introduced by Sen. Manka Dhingra, D-Redmond. Under current law, any…

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WA: Home helps Walla Walla sex offenders stay on straight and narrow

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[union-bulletin.com] About 860,000 registered sex offenders were living in the United States in 2016, according to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Washington state Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs said Friday that 19,600 of those offenders are in this state. Today 124 of those live in Walla Walla County: 87 in the city, 17 in College Place, and the rest scattered up to Burbank. Seven sex offenders here are listed as homeless. Some of those, almost all low-level offenders, live in an ordinary-looking house in the Eastgate…

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