A North Carolina court has ruled that long-term GPS monitoring of registered sex offenders is unconstitutional because there is no evidence such tracking protects the public. As per an Associated Press report about the decision:A divided three-judge panel of the state Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that because officials presented no evidence that satellite-based monitoring … Continue reading NC court: No proof public safer when sex offenders tracked
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
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
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
