Here is a positive commentary from the Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws regarding recent rulings from the Massachusetts Supreme Court:The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Council, the state’s supreme court, has ruled in favor of registrants who were trying either to terminate their duty to register or to change the tier level on which they were … Continue reading ACSOL: MA court recognizes harm to registrants
MA court says state has burden to prove dangerousness
The Massachusetts Supreme Court has ruled that the state bears the burden of proof when determining whether registered citizens should or should not be moved to a less dangerous classification.Here's an excerpt from an article about the ruling at WBUR."We conclude that the risk of erroneous classification and deprivation remains in reclassification proceedings and that … Continue reading MA court says state has burden to prove dangerousness
Failure to Comply Arrests Reveal Flaws in Sex Offender Registries
In an article at the Appeal, Joshua Vaughn notes that in just one Pennsylvania county, in one year, more than three times as many people on the sex offender registry were charged with failing to comply with registry requirements as were charged with new sex crimes.Hundreds of people every year in Pennsylvania are arrested and … Continue reading Failure to Comply Arrests Reveal Flaws in Sex Offender Registries
Did California Suppress Research on Sexually Violent Predators?
Q: What is a Sexually Violent Predator?A: A person unlikely to commit another sex crime.State laws that allow sexually violent predators to be locked up even after they have served their sentences are based on questionable assumptions that they continue to pose a danger to society, according to a study published in the American Criminal Law Review. The … Continue reading Did California Suppress Research on Sexually Violent Predators?
Appeals court won’t delay $28 million Beatrice Six verdict
The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals said it won't delay a jury's decision against Gage County, awarding $28 million to six people falsely accused of raping and murdering a Beatrice woman in 1985. The "Beatrice 6" collectively spent years in prison before they were exonerated.The decision came Tuesday, a week after the appellate court denied … Continue reading Appeals court won’t delay $28 million Beatrice Six verdict
Expert: Crime registries turn people into pariahs with "very little to lose"
Another good article explains why registries are a bad idea. In a column at The Appeal, Jessica Pishko writes that public crime registries -- including sex offender registries -- do not work and are even harmful, even though they are popular with the public and politicians.While public sex offender registries are now required by federal … Continue reading Expert: Crime registries turn people into pariahs with "very little to lose"
Judge upends Pennsylvania sex offender registration
Pennsylvania lawmakers made changes to the state's Sex Offender Registry law after the old law was found unconstitutional. It appears the new law isn't faring much better with the state's judges, as exemplified by a recent case.WEST CHESTER >> A Common Pleas Court judge has ruled that a West Goshen man convicted of forcing himself … Continue reading Judge upends Pennsylvania sex offender registration
Two years after court ruling, no changes to Michigan registry
Two years after a federal court ruled parts of Michigan's Sex Offender Registry Act unconstitutional, the state legislature has still made no changes to the law.Michigan Public Radio talked with an attorney for the ACLU of Michigan and a Michigan State Senator about what changes are needed and why they haven't been made yet.The American … Continue reading Two years after court ruling, no changes to Michigan registry
York City Council drops residence restriction proposal
Some good news from Thursday's York City Council meeting.YORK – An ordinance that would have banned convicted/registered sex offenders from living within 500 feet of a school or child care facility in York was given a second public reading and then dropped for good.More heartening were comments by various council members as to why they decided … Continue reading York City Council drops residence restriction proposal
York City Council considering residency restriction ordinance
The Omaha World-Herald article does not say how many of the 31 non-incarcerated registrants in York would be subject to the residency restriction ordinance.YORK, Neb. — The York City Council is considering the creation of residency restrictions for convicted/registered sex offenders and has already held the first of three readings of an ordinance that would … Continue reading York City Council considering residency restriction ordinance
