CA - California shows once again the sex offender laws are all about punishment, homelessness, joblessness and forced exile!

Original Article

This is yet more proof that the laws are all about punishment, forcing people into exile, homelessness and joblessness, due to their own mass hysteria. Nothing like exploiting children and the elderly for your own political campaign, but that's politics folks!

02/28/2013

By Angel Jennings

Using restrictions under state law, officials are building a small park in Harbor Gateway to force 33 offenders to move out of a nearby apartment building.

On a tiny sliver of land in Harbor Gateway, the city is beginning construction on what officials believe will be the smallest park in Los Angeles.

At one-fifth of an acre, the pocket park will barely have room for two jungle gyms, some benches and a brick wall.

But the enjoyment the park will give children is a secondary concern for officials. They are building the park for a different reason: to force 33 registered sex offenders to move out of a nearby apartment building.

State law prohibits sex offenders from living within 2,000 feet of a park or school. By building the park, officials said, they would effectively force the sex offenders to leave the neighborhood. This section of Harbor Gateway has one of the city's highest concentrations of registered sex offenders: 86 live in a 13-block area.

Los Angeles plans to build a total of three pocket parks with the intent of driving out registered sex offenders; two will be in Wilmington.

The action marks the latest campaign by local governments to drive sex offenders farther into the fringes of society. The state law already bans offenders from living in huge swaths of urban areas, pushing them into industrial districts and remote towns and into neighborhoods like Harbor Gateway that lack schools and parks.

Communities in Orange County have passed laws barring sex offenders from county parks and beaches. There is a new push at Los Angeles City Hall to ban offenders from living near day-care centers and locations that house after-school programs.

Backers of the park plan say it's a novel way to move out offenders while providing more recreation space.

"I want to do everything in my power to keep child sex offenders away from children," said City Councilman Joe Buscaino (Facebook, Google+), who represents the 15th District, which includes Wilmington and Harbor Gateway. "We have to look at some solutions and in comes the pocket park idea."

The effort, however, has others questioning whether these restrictions make communities safer and whether they infringe on the rights of offenders.

A California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation study released in October (PDF) showed that about 2% of convicted sex offenders are sent back to prison on a new sex-abuse offense. The study covered data from 2008.

"People are running around with hysteria when they don't know the facts," said Janice Bellucci, president of California Reform Sex Offender Laws, a nonprofit organization that advocates for the rights of those convicted of sex crimes. "I understand that sex offenders are not a popular part of society, but they have constitutional rights."

The restrictions on where offenders can live has resulted in a proliferation of group homes in acceptable areas that house large numbers of them. In Harbor Gateway, up to five offenders share one room, according to the National Sex Registry website.

On Flint Avenue in Wilmington, a former hotel has been converted into housing that caters to sex offenders. Young children often walk through the neighborhood on their way to a nearby elementary school. Some residents refer to the area as "pervert row." There have been several reports of indecent exposure, according to LAPD Officer Brian Cook.

See Also:

• How Los Angeles parks built to drive away sex offenders could backfire

Read the entire article here


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This is America!

This is so true. People have been using "For the children" politics for many, many years, and it continues to this day.

WARNING: ADULT LANGUAGE!

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MT - Political uses of sex offender list not uncommon

Original Article

It's not just politicians who exploit sex offenders, children and fear for their own gain. The media, organizations and people selling products have done this for as long as politics has been around.

11/28/2012

By ANDY HUDAK

As chairman of the Montana Sex Offender Treatment Association’s legislative committee, the last three legislative sessions have created experiences that I could have never predicted. Personally, I backed into successfully evaluating and treating sex offenders in the early 1980s and co-founded our state organization in 1986.

Besides the personal satisfaction that our members get from upholding community safety when necessary for the high-risk sex offender, there is also the rewarding healing journey of the lower risk recovering sex offenders. There is also the huge personal frustration when politicians and political operatives attempt to manipulate people’s understandable mama grizzly bear response towards anyone that hurts our precious children for their own personal agendas.

This type of political self interest at the expense of the truth has been common for years now.

The public becomes unnecessarily frightened. Even more tragic — the generally unknown “good news” regarding my specialty fields’ accomplishments with sex offenders is buried. Knowledge of our continued progress in determining the risk (to reoffend) of a sex offender, as well as the implementation of successful specialized treatment with low reoffense rates (checked by polygraph), are just two casualties.

One of the most offensive examples of this cynical manipulation of the public occurs when politicians and their supporters play the sex offender card in order to win political races. Though both parties have been guilty of these tactics in our attorney general and governor races, the recent campaigns waged by the supporters/campaigns of Rick Hill and Tim Fox reached an all-time low.

The American Traditional Partnership provided a shocking specific example. These are the same folks that support the concept that corporations are people and money is speech when they went after Montana’s campaign financing limits law. They will also most likely be investigated for illegally coordinating with candidates.

While visiting a Web site, I saw a link for the sex offender registry with thumbnail pictures of several registered sex offenders. I noticed that one of the thumbnails was actually a picture of Bullock. The link that purportedly went to the registry deceptively took me to a negative campaign page where they distorted Bullock’s record by falsely implying that 25 percent of Montana’s sex offenders are currently missing, then, based on this distortion, outrageously asserted that Bullock had endangered Montana’s families.

The facts: As of Oct. 31, 2011, of 3,742 registered sexual offenders, there were 275 (7.4 percent) Montana sex offenders who were “not compliant.” A year later, on Nov. 1, 2012, that number was 92 (2.5 percent).

Now, common sense tells us that some would be normal administrative errors after a move, death, etc., so the actual number is inevitably even lower. So it looks like Bullock and Bucy did a great job cleaning the registry up with the help of local law enforcement and the registry folks.

Bullock and Bucy had helped craft legislation in our previous sessions that, though going a bit overboard, helped Montana’s state-of-the-art monitoring system to be more accurate than it would have if they caved completely to the federal attorney general’s and legislative suggestions. They did incredibly well within the context of this political fear “gotcha” environment.

Make no mistake — both political parties have historically engaged in the playing of the sex offender card including (ironically) both Bullock and Bucy. For future purposes, we are calling on Rick Hill, Tim Fox, Steve Bullock, Pam Bucy to call out their supporters’ (PACS) unethical spreading of misleading information that unnecessarily frightens Montanans if it reoccurs.

Montanans deserve accurate information regarding this and other emotional policy issues. Current administrative rules for the registry include some, especially for adolescents, that have a good chance of having the opposite impact from its intention — increasing noncompliance and even re-offenses.

Effective public policy is derailed when the unscrupulous employ this type of manipulation of our understandable fears, especially when displacing facts that are actually positive, no matter which party, organization or Machiavellian operatives.

Let’s continue to work together based on facts to both protect community safety and promote healing for those walking a path of accountable redemption.

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The most honest three and a half minutes of television, EVER...

WARNING: ADULT LANGUAGE, DISCRETION ADVISED!


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SC - Peter McCoy up for re-election so out comes the sex offender (vote getting) issues!

He's up for re-election, so like clockwork, out comes the sure fire way to get elected, exploiting ex-sex offenders!

Posted to his Facebook page

Facebook | Website

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GA - Want to get elected? Do what Dick Perryman does and attack someone everybody hates!

Politicians have for many centuries exploited fear and children for their own personal gain. Now, due to the moral panic spread by the media, politicians and others, they've added a new weapon to their arsenal, ex-sex offenders. When will the American people wake up and see these people will do and say anything to get your vote, even if it means exploiting others? It's politics as usual!

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In the videos below, Mr. Perryman claims he will treat everyone the same, which is something we should NEVER do! People are not all the same! I guess all DA's are corrupt idiots because a couple are? Of course they are not.

And with him being a DA, he should know that you do not have to touch or have sex with a child to be given the label "child molester," but who cares about the facts, as long as they get elected, right?

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MN - Executive director (Dennis Benson) of the Minnesota Sex Offender Program - We will never depoliticize this program!

Original Article

06/01/2012

By Amy Forliti

MINNEAPOLIS — The outgoing executive director of the Minnesota Sex Offender Program said this week that the state has a long way to go in making policy changes to improve the program, one of the state's most controversial.

In an interview with the Associated Press, Dennis Benson said he is proud of the strides his clinical team has made in "cutting edge" treatment for sex offenders and claimed dramatic progress in program operations during his tenure.

But, he said, it's incumbent upon lawmakers to review everything from how offenders are referred for commitment to whether the state can provide alternatives to the extremes of civil commitment or release.

"These are very, very difficult issues, and they take time," he said.

Benson advised lawmakers to take a serious look at a 2011 legislative auditor's report (PDF) that he said provides recommendations and a road map for improving the program in the future.

"We will never depoliticize this program. It is a highly, highly political area of discussion," he said. "But we should do everything we can to depoliticize the process, of who comes in and who goes out."

"Hopefully we can keep this program constitutionally sound and keep us out of harm's way with respect to the eyes of the court."

Benson will retire from his job at the sex offender program June 5, after 38 years of working for the state. He began his state service as an officer with the Department of Corrections and served as a corrections deputy commissioner for 12 years before going on to lead the sex offender program in 2008.

The program allows the state to pursue civil confinement for the most dangerous sex offenders deemed likely to strike again. As of April 1, there were 641 people in the program.
- And how many have actually been released?

The program faces constitutional challenges from critics who claim it's little more than a life sentence disguised as treatment. This year, the program saw its first provisional discharge in more than a decade, but Benson said the discharge of one person is not an indicator of success.
- So, out of 641 people admitted, 1 has been released?  Doesn't sound like a very good program to me.

"Quite frankly, I don't think one is enough. But it is a beginning," he said.

He applauded his clinical team and said the percentage of offenders participating in treatment has improved during his tenure.

Treatment for sex offenders is costly because it is tailored to each individual, but Benson worked to reduce the per-diem cost by about $100, to $298 a day.
- So, if all 641 people are attending, that is $191,018 per day and $69,721,570 per year.  Sounds like a huge waste of money to me.  Of course it doesn't cost this much because I'm sure not every person is attending the treatment, but it just shows how much they'd be spending if they were.

Benson said lawmakers need to question why Minnesota has one of the largest number of civilly committed sex offenders per capita. He also said policymakers could create other options for offenders, so judges aren't faced with the extremes of either civilly committing someone or turning an offender out on the streets.

"For the most part, the people that are in our program are very, very difficult people," he said. "But I think it's much more complicated than saying, 'Well, let's just not civilly commit somebody.' One of the problems in Minnesota is you are either civilly committed or you are released to the streets."
- I am willing to bet there is many who have been committed to the program who are not real threats.  It's just, like the man said, all political.  Nobody wants to release an offender and find out they commit another related crime, so they commit them.  I know they don't commit all, but I wonder how many they have committed who don't really belong there?

He said there have been discussions about possible changes in sentencing of sex offenders.

In addition, he said, the state must not lose sight of the importance of prevention, to keep people from committing sexually violent acts in the first place.
- Yes, and if you look at the facts, most ex-sex offenders do NOT go on to commit another sex related crime, they are usually re-arrested for some technicality due to the insanity of the laws.

He said the staff he's worked with over the years truly care about these marginalized populations and work hard to do the right thing while balancing the need for public safety.
- Somehow I doubt that, but that is just my opinion.

While he acknowledged that this year, an election year, wasn't the time to get policies changed, he said he has confidence in the legislative process.

"It can be frustrating at times, but I have been impressed with leadership on both sides of the aisle with respect to this issue," he said. "I believe ultimately the state of Minnesota will make good decisions on how we manage this."

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CANADA - What Police and Safety Experts Say About Hudak's Scheme

Original Article
All Related Articles

09/14/2011

TORONTO - Tim Hudak is at it again. He found a bumper sticker slogan and talking point to clutch to, but there's not much substance there. Here's what police and safety experts are saying about his latest scheme to put our communities at risk by driving sex offenders underground:

"We don't want these people to go underground as well, and the more public exposure they get—there's been a lot of debate about whether or not the public should have access to the registry. We believe not, because it could create more non-compliance, if you will, where people don't want to be exposed and all of that." - Julian Fantino, OPP Commissioner, March 20, 2008, Standing Committee on Public Accounts

"We believe the current protections, which leave the decision on the public release of information up to local police in those circumstances, are the appropriate approach... Some of you know that there is a substantial element in the community out there that lobbies me, and perhaps many of you, on the notion that the sex offender registry should also include public access, not just police access. I have determined and the government has determined that this is perhaps not wise." - Hon. Peter Van Loan, Public Safety Canada, October 22, 2009, Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security

"It's our responsibility to not only protect society but to create the conditions for all individuals to rehabilitate themselves. Rather than have offenders trying to stay ahead of information on the Internet, I'm satisfied we've found the appropriate balance." - Hon. Vic Toews, Public Safety Canada, March 29, 2011, London Free Press

"I don't think the public should have access to that information at all...If that weren't the general thinking, sex offenders would simply not register and say, 'Forget it, I am not going to put my name on a register if the people in my hometown have access to that registry… Public access would be self-defeating to the general public and to law enforcement officers in general." - Jim Stephenson, father of Christopher Stephenson, who the law creating the Sex Offender Registry in Ontario is named in honour of, June 7, 2011, Canadian Press

"If I could speak to that, I know a little bit about the U.S. registries. I've met a few colleagues down there. There are certain things that are nice, but they have other things that I think we should stay away from. For instance, from the RCMP's perspective, the public access is a mistake, but they do employ that down there." - Inspector Pierre Nezan, RCMP, April 21, 2009, Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security

"Those hyper vigilantes accessing the U.S. registries are doing more harm than good and creating hysteria. It has the reverse effect. It will drive these people underground and we won't know where the offenders are." - Staff Sgt. Adam Alderson, OPP, London Free Press, March 28, 2011

"Today, we have a premier sex offender registry in Ontario, with a 97% compliance rate, one of the highest rates of any sex offender registry in all of North America. The OSOR is not accessible to the public, and this contributes to the high offender compliance rate." - Superintendent Ron Gentle, OPP, April 14, 2011, Standing Committee on Justice

"We do not see a lot of re-offending. . . they all know they are being watched and that we have a great deal of information on who they are, where they live and who they associate with... the registry seems to be working." - Inspector Ron Van Dam, Sarnia Police Services London Free Press, March 15, 2011

"We know that in the U.S. experience, far fewer sex offenders will register because of the public access to the information. In Ontario, for example, the registration rates are relatively high in comparison because the registry is a law enforcement tool only. We support the continuation of that initiative." - Steve Sullivan, Federal Ombudsman for Victims of Crime, April 15, 2010, Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affair

Tim Hudak knows his scheme won't make communities any safer. Yet he clutches to the talking points anyway. Our community safety is more important than Hudak's cynical game.

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CANADA - Tim Hudak, exploiting ex-offenders, fear and children to get elected

Tim Hudak

Original Article

Of course he is, he knows a good plan when he sees one, exploiting ex-sex offenders, fear, and the usual "for the children politics" to get elected! Politicians do it all the time, he's just joining the bandwagon!

09/14/2011

By Rob Ferguson

LEAMINGTON - Ontario’s police don’t like the idea but Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak is sticking with his plan to make the province’s sex offender registry public if he wins the Oct. 6 provincial election.

Hudak sat with parents and grandparents in a children’s playroom at a community centre in this Lake Erie town near Windsor, where a convicted sex offender named Sarah Dahle was recently found living next to a school while on parole. She left for the London area last week after months of protest from Leamington parents.

“Our right to security for kids, should it come ahead of the right to privacy for child predators?” Hudak asked on his second day in the riding of Essex, which the Conservatives consider up for grabs after the sudden death of Liberal MPP Bruce Crozier a few months ago.

Hudak said he would make the registry public so that parents know where sex offenders are living in their communities and can take “responsible” action to protect themselves and their children.

“I’m not looking to harm them, I just want to know where they are,” said Paula Pimiskern, a mother of four who sat beside Hudak around a table as the issue was discussed before a phalanx of television cameras.
- What about all other criminals?  Why aren't you also pushing to have them on an online registry so we all know where they live as well?  You are just using the usual "vote getter" by exploiting ex-sex offenders and children to get elected, IMO.

“If we knew where, we would tell our kids not to linger.”
- And ever if you knew where, if a person is intent on harming a child, or anybody else, they probably will.  This is just politics as usual!

OPP Commissioner Chris Lewis has warned making the registry public could lead to vigilante action — even killings — by citizens against convicted sex offenders living in the community.

“I totally disagree with Mr. Hudak on this,” Lewis said recently in a television interview. “In the U.S. states where they do it, it doesn’t necessarily lend itself to greater adherence to the legislation. We have almost 100 per cent compliance rate in this province with our sexual offender registry because they’re not online.”

There have been cases in U.S. states with public registries where “people have hunted people down because they saw their face on a registry and went out and killed them,” Lewis added.

In Ottawa, Liberal Leader Dalton McGuinty said it’s a little rich for Hudak to be carping on crime given his proposal to put work gangs of prisoners out in the community.

“He wants to take prisoners who are safe and secure away from the general population and release them into our communities…it puts our communities at risk,” McGuinty told reporters.

“Our police…tell us this particular approach is not going to lead to more public safety so I’m with them,” he added.

Hudak would also put GPS bracelets on sexual predators and other high risk offenders so police could monitor their movements, at a cost of about $50 million a year.

At a campaign rally in the nearby town of Kingsville on Tuesday night, Hudak lumped McGuinty and NDP Leader Andrea Horwath together in accusing them of “coddling” criminals as the Tories look to win the Essex riding which is held federally by Conservative MP Jeff Watson.

See Also:

• Putting GPS trackers on sex offenders ineffective says provincial NDP candidate
• Hudak sex offender plan may spark vigilantism, society says

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IL - State of the State - Sex offender legislation is often more about politics than justice

Jamey Dunn

Original Article

So instead of doing what is right, and constitutional, they go with the flow out of fear they will be looked at as soft on crime or pro-sex offender! Wow, no wonder new laws pass with ease all the time (nothing we did not know already!). They don't mind stomping on some, just to save their own butts! Like the old saying goes, "If it isn't broken, don't fix it!" And they continue to try to fix or add to a broken law, eventually it will be so overloaded, that it comes crashing down! This brings a couple quotes to mind:

"If you have ten thousand regulations you destroy all respect for the law." - Winston Churchill

"It will be of little avail to the people that the laws are made by men of their own choice if the laws be so voluminous that they cannot be read, or so incoherent that they cannot be understood." - James Madison

"The strictest law sometimes becomes the severest injustice." - Benjamin Franklin

"The best way to get a bad law repealed is to enforce it strictly." - Abraham Lincoln

09/2011

By Jamey Dunn

Unless you spend time in the state Capitol, you would likely never imagine that lawmakers spend a good portion of their time debating a single issue: sex offenders.

A cursory search of the General Assembly’s website shows two dozen bills that deal with sex offenders were introduced since the current legislative session began in January. They include bills requiring sex offenders to register with a university if they are students or workers there, and legislation that pushes the areas where they are allowed to live farther and farther away from places such as schools and parks.

There is a collective groan and eye roll from many Statehouse observers when some of these bills come up for floor debate, not because they think Illinois should take it easy on sex offenders — it would be a difficult task to find anyone who feels that way. It is because the passage of these bills is so politically charged that lawmakers fear voting against them — even bills that are nearly impossible to implement —because they do not want to get labeled as soft on crime by a political opponent during a campaign.

“Illinois for a long time has every new set of legislators come in, and they pass bills on crime because it looks good when you go back home and you say, ‘I’m tough on crime.’ So what happens is, we’re now layered with bill after bill after bill,” Rep. Rosemary Mulligan, a Park Ridge Republican, said in the last days of the spring legislative session while debating a bill that pertained to sex offenders. “Most of us will vote for it because it looks bad if you don’t, which is a mistake that happens when we continue to pass these kinds of laws.” Mulligan and 90 of her House colleagues voted in favor of the bill.

When I started out at Illinois Issues as an intern, one of my wry classmates observed that sex offenders were the only group with so much legislation concerning them that did not have a lobbyist. Apparently the idea was not a new one. Illinois Issues reported in June 2005 that future Senate President John Cullerton remarked after several such bills came up in a committee hearing: "It seems like every other bill deals with sex offenders. If they had any money, they should hire a lobbyist." Since then, at least one registered pedophile has come to Springfield to testify in committee about a piece of legislation that would affect sex offenders. And juvenile justice reform organizations lobby lawmakers if they think proposed penalties for minors are too punitive.
- So, was the man truly a pedophile as deemed by a panel of experts, or is that your opinion? Without knowing his crime, are we to just take your word for it? We all know the media, politicians and others throw that term around all the time, when it should not be.

However, because the issue is such a political hot potato, little public debate takes place over which ideas are workable and what penalties might hurt those who do not easily fit the description of a pedophile.
- This is the problem, most all in congress think all sex offenders, if not most, are pedophiles, when the opposite is the truth. Most are not, by definition, a pedophile, only a few are.

“The big thing is, nobody wants to be seen as being soft on sexual perversion,” says Rep. Jim Sacia, a Republican from Pecatonica. A former special investigator with the FBI, Sacia sponsored a bill that would give judges discretion when sentencing offenders in so-called Romeo and Juliet cases. Such cases involve young people who had consenting sexual contact — often within the context of a relationship — but one of the two is under the legal age. People in these cases have been labeled as sex offenders, sometimes for a decade or more, for something they did when they were young that was not a predatory act. “The registry is such a joke, in my opinion anyway, because we continue to treat Romeo and Juliet crimes the same way we do a sexual deviant,” Sacia says. “I literally have five couples that I know of in my district that the man is married to the woman now.” Sen. William Haine, an Alton Democrat, sponsored similar legislation in the Senate, and like Sacia’s bill, it also could not get the necessary support to pass. Haine, a former state’s attorney, says such offenders should not escape punishment but should not have to register. “Those cases should be prosecuted, and people should be deterred.”

Both lawmakers say they will continue to push legislation to change the registry policies. “We’ve had attempts in the past to change this, and they’ve come to naught because of the political fear of voting on anything,” Haine says. It is an indicator of the climate surrounding the issue that two legislators with law enforcement backgrounds and tough-on-crime records — both spoke passionately against the repeal of the death penalty during floor debate — cannot rally support behind such a measure.
- So, if you are going to be "tough on crime," and stomp on sex offenders just to save your own careers and reputation, why not get "tough" on all the other criminals out there?

One legislator points to a recent audit as an indicator that lawmakers must start thinking about how the bills they pass will be implemented in the future. “I’m as tough as anybody on these offenders, but we need to make sure what we are doing actually does something,” says Rep. Jack Franks, a Marengo Democrat. He says an audit of the Sex Offender Management Board (SOMB) is a prime example of good intentions that go nowhere in practice.

Auditor General Bill Holland found that the board, whose responsibilities went into effect in 2004, was far from fulfilling its primary goals of tracking sex offenders after they are released from prison. The board has not created a tracking system and does not have a solid plan or timeline to do so. According to the audit, 10,039 sex offenders in Illinois are currently eligible for board monitoring. The audit found that the board was impeded by a lack of staff and funding and by a lack of any laws supporting its efforts.

“Current Illinois law makes it extremely difficult for the SOMB to develop a system to follow the progress of offenders who have completed their sentence,” the audit states. “Under current Illinois law, registration as a sex offender does not require either supervision or monitoring. Approximately two-thirds of registered Illinois sex offenders are not under any form of supervision. Thus, the law does not require that the vast majority of convicted sex offenders who have served their sentence be subject to any mandated supervision or monitoring. As a result, the SOMB faces significant challenges in devising a program to evaluate the treatment progress of sex offenders who are under no legal requirement to report this progress or even cooperate in a minimal way with the SOMB.”
- Those who have been convicted, sentenced and served their jail/prison time, as well as parole/probation, should now be free to do as they wish. If they commit another crime or any nature, punish them accordingly.

Franks says, “Sometimes the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing.”

He suggests that lawmakers create a commission to look at sex offender laws with a critical eye and make suggestions for clearing out redundancies and concepts that are not being used in practice.
- This is an impossible dream, as you can see from the above!

Some lawmakers say a bill to bring Illinois in line with federal legislation would be one way to make the system more coherent, but even Haine, a sponsor of such legislation, warns that such a change should be done with deliberative care.
- Yes, you all have a reputation to defend, instead of doing what is right!

The federal government is pushing states to pass their own versions of the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, also known as the Adam Walsh Act, which would create national requirements for how states deal with pedophiles. If states sign on, it would allow for the sharing of registry information on a national scale.
- Look, sex offender and pedophile are not the same thing, so stop using the terms as if they are. Also, the law is called the "Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act," which was originally passed because it was said to protect all children who are abused, now it's basically the "Adam Walsh Sex Offender Punishment And Vengeance Act!" If it was implemented, as it was originally intended, then we'd also have a child abuse registry, and other registries for those who harm children in any way, but they called it one thing, then implemented it another way, after it passed, as most laws these days are.

But the plan has run into controversy. Ohio, the first state to comply, saw thousands of legal challenges from offenders who were ordered to spend more time on the registry than they were originally told. Some of them had already completed their required time and were told they had to start registering again because their crimes had been reclassified. In the end, the state’s supreme court threw out provisions of the bill.
- And not everyone in the world, has $150,000 or more, to defend themselves either. My question is, why isn't the ACLU and other so called civil/human rights organizations doing all they can to get these unconstitutional laws repealed? Like others, they don't want to look pro-sex offender? So it's a win/win for politicians, so they can exploit fear and sex offenders just to make themselves look "tough on crime," while actually doing neither.

Alabama, Delaware, Florida, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, South Carolina, South Dakota and Wyoming have all signed on to the federal standard. CNN reported that the number of offenders on Wyoming’s registry increased from 125 to 1,450 after the state moved to federal registration guidelines. Activists for juvenile justice reform and civil rights across the nation have voiced opposition, saying the plan paints with too broad of a brush and does not allow law enforcement officials to focus limited resources on those most likely to reoffend.

Those are some of the reasons that Haine says he put the brakes on his Illinois legislation. “I held the bill until October … so we can have people come in and offer their views before we take this leap.”

States were required to comply by the end of July or lose some federal funding in 2012. However, the Illinois State Police submitted the state’s compliance paperwork by the deadline. The feds say it will take about three months to sift through the entries and find out which states made the cut. Haine and a spokeswoman for the state police both say they are not concerned that the state will lose funds. “The federal government’s going to have to wait until we pass it,” Haine says. State lawmakers should be reluctant to take such sweeping changes handed down from the federal government, he says, without first seriously reviewing them. “In some instances, Congress adds things that some congressman dreams up from who knows where, and it may or it may not be a good idea.”

Haine says that when Illinois originated its sex offender registry, lawmakers did not consider some of the potential outcomes, such as the Romeo and Juliet cases. “This wasn’t well thought out a number of years ago when we started down this registration path. … It was a good thing to do, but it wasn’t done with critical thought.”
- And this shocks people? Hell, most laws are not thought out, they just see the title, some person reads through the bill (real quick), or a portion of it (the portion they want to use, so it gets passed), then they vote on it to pass it, all without reading the bill and thinking about it as well as all the potential consequences. Like Nancy Pelosi once said, "we have to pass the bill so you can find out what is in it," but once the bill is passed, they spend a lot of time going back fixing problems, or fighting law suits.

Sacia agrees: “The devil’s in the details. … We keep striving for perfection … but how many times do we create unintended consequences?”

Haine warns that the politics makes a future rollback next to impossible. “Once we pass these things, and they are signed into law, it is very difficult to go back into the law.”

Haine says when sentencing is the topic of legislative debate, he likes to dust off a quote from former Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis. “He said, ‘The hallmark of the law is reasonableness.’ … And that’s what we’re trying to do here. It shouldn’t be based on an unthinking emotional reaction or a harsh vindictiveness. It should be reasonable.”

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CA - Politics of 'three strikes' law

Original Article

05/08/2011

By John Diaz

The "three strikes and you're out" law passed in the aftermath of the awful 1993 kidnapping and murder of 12-year-old Polly Klaas was advertised as a way to keep violent predators in prison. But the initiative passed by California voters was laden with unintended consequences - and cannot be changed in any significant way without another statewide vote. More than half of the third "strikes" that have triggered a 25-to-life sentence involve neither serious nor violent felonies. Even shoplifting can be escalated to a third-strike felony - bringing life imprisonment - for those with prior convictions of petty theft.

The law may be absurd, but it's proving difficult to change, as Gloria Romero knows all too well.

Prisons were built for the Richard Allen Davises of the world. Every cent spent keeping folks with his record of unrelenting violence segregated from the rest of society is well spent.

But the "three strikes" law has also led overzealous prosecutors, particularly in Kern and Riverside counties, to seek and receive life sentences against sad-sack or drug-addicted offenders whose crimes would otherwise merit probation or short incarcerations.

Then-Sen. Romero was working with Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley in 2006 to curb the costly injustices of the "three strikes" law when she ran into resistance from fellow Senate Democrats. Their issue was not with the substance of her Senate Bill 1642, which would have asked voters to require that the third strike be either a violent or serious felony and would have eliminated certain lower-level crimes (petty theft, possession of small quantities of drugs) as strikes. Their worry was with the political consequences for two Democratic senators in tough primary races for lieutenant governor (Jackie Speier) and secretary of state (Debra Bowen).

"They did not want to be painted as 'soft on crime,' " said Romero, who described the blowback from her Democratic colleagues as "full-blown assaults." Cooley said he was "persona non grata" with some of his fellow district attorneys for several years because of his efforts on three-strikes reform.

SB1642 died in the Senate.

About 8,700 California inmates are now serving life sentences under the "three strikes" law. One of the most potent arguments for not tampering with the law is that it has kept down crime. In the broadest sense, it's possible to argue that locking up people with criminal records for the rest of their lives will reduce crime.

Let there be no doubt: The state is a safer place because some of them will be tucked into their cell beds until well into senior citizenship. But their danger to society is anything but universal.

Violent crime rates are at half-century lows almost everywhere, including the state of New York, which does not have a "three strikes" law. Criminologists have found no meaningful statistical distinctions between California counties that aggressively pursue "three strikes" sentences and those that do not.

This law comes with a considerable price, both in dollars and in the equity of our system of justice. California is the only state among the 23 that have "three strikes" laws that does not require the life-sentence-triggering offense to be a violent or serious felony.

"Worst criminal law in the country," said Michael Romano, a Stanford law professor whose students have been working on behalf of "three strikes" inmates. One of them stole two faucets from Home Depot as his third strike; another was caught in possession of a stolen cell phone; another tried to steal a car radio on the day the "three strikes" law was signed. Each is serving a life term, at a cost of more than $40,000 a year to taxpayers, with the tab certain to rise greatly as inmates age and health costs rise.

The U.S. Supreme Court fell one vote short of declaring the law to be cruel and unusual punishment in the 2003 ruling against Leandro Andrade, whose third strike was the theft of nine videotapes (combined value: $153) from two Kmart stores. Because Andrade had previous convictions of petty theft (defined as less than $400) it was classified a felony.

One of the "cruel ironies" of the Andrade case was that if his previous crimes had been rape and manslaughter, the maximum sentence he could have received for the videotape thefts would have been one year in jail, noted Erwin Chemerinsky, the UC Irvine School of Law dean who argued Andrade's case before the high court.

Since the 1960s, sentencing law has been a "one-way ratchet" upward, Chemerinsky noted during a symposium on the "three strikes" law in Los Angeles last week.

At some point, Californians need to reassess the sanity and efficacy of allegedly tough-on-crime laws. The existence of a $20 billion-plus deficit and overcrowding conditions that are inviting federal court intervention should be strikes one and two against an initiative that went too far and, too often, in curiously wrong directions.

Evolution of California's 'three strikes' law

April 1993: Assembly Public Safety Committee rejects a "three strikes" law crafted in response to the killing of 18-year-old Kimber Reynolds in Fresno by two repeat offenders. Outrage over bill's defeat leads to initiative drive.

October 1993: While petitions for "three strikes" initiative are circulating, knife-wielding career criminal Richard Allen Davis, right, kidnaps 12-year-old Polly Klaas from her Petaluma home. She is sexually assaulted and strangled. Davis had served only half of his most recent sentence (16 years for kidnapping, assault, burglary) and was wanted on a parole violation. Proposition 184 becomes the fastest-qualifying initiative in state history.

March 1994: Gov. Pete Wilson signs AB971, a "three strikes" law that passed by huge margins in the Assembly and Senate. Initiative backers are undeterred: They want to lock in enhanced punishments with an initiative that could not be weakened by legislators.

November 1994: California voters approve Prop. 184, 72-28 percent.

August 1996: Davis is sentenced to death. Today, he remains on San Quentin's Death Row.

March 2003: U.S. Supreme Court upholds California's "three strikes" law on a 5-4 vote.

November 2004: Prop. 66, which would have required that the "third strike" be a serious or violent felony, is rejected by California voters after a late surge of advertising warned that it would result in the release of thousands of dangerous convicts.

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Politics of Insanity, Media Hype and Fear

Original Article

12/09/2010

By alaskalive

All across this nation politicians seek to garner votes from the people. In times past, the goal for working in government was for the betterment of our nation. Could it be the playing field rules have changed and now politicians do their deeds for the sole purpose of gaining a paycheck?

Many studies have shown using the Public Sex Offender Registry to banish people from society to be counter productive in protecting society from sexual abuse.

Given this knowledge, politicians still seek to push states into implementing federal law,

Congress plans hearing on ignored sex-offender law

WASHINGTON - Congress intends to examine why most states have failed to adopt a federal law meant to help track the nation's 700,000 convicted sex offenders, including 100,000 who have fallen off the radar screen.

The newly named chairman of the House Judiciary Committee said Wednesday that he wants to hold a hearing on why 46 states have busted deadline after deadline set in the 2006 Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act.

The law was intended to tighten oversight of the nation's convicted sex offenders by, among other things, requiring states to adopt uniform reporting standards.

Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, an original co-sponsor of the measure who will chair the powerful committee when Republicans take over in January, said the delays in implementing the law are troubling. Ohio, Florida, Delaware and South Dakota have complied with the law. The other 46 states have missed 2009 and 2010 deadlines. A third deadline is now set for July 2011. SOURCE

Using inflated figures to scare the public into financially supporting their agenda, politicians like the ones listed above are refuted by professionals:

Dr. Jill Levenson, Dr. Andrew Harris, Dr. Alissa Ackerman, and Dr. Kristen Zgoba are currently embarking on a series of research projects exploring the make-up and utility of U.S. registries as well as the intended goals and outcomes of the Adam Walsh Act. In a recent article submitted for publication to a reputable social science journal, we analyzed data on 445,127 registered sex offenders obtained directly from the public registries of 49 states, Washington, DC, Puerto Rico and Guam. In contrast with the homogenized perception about registered sex offenders that permeates much public discourse, the analysis illuminated the wide diversity of registrants across a range of demographic, offense-related, registry status, and risk-oriented variables.

Specifically, we attempted to clarify the repeatedly cited statistic that 100,000 sex offenders are "missing." Curiously, we were able to identify only 17,688 RSOs who were designated by states to be transient, homeless, absconded, non-compliant, or whose address or whereabouts are otherwise unknown. Nationwide, a total of 5,349 offenders were officially listed as absconded; 1,264 were listed as missing/unable to be located and 4,152 were listed as having failed to comply with registration requirements. We had no way of specifically confirming the number of fugitive sex offenders, since states had a wide variety of methods for classifying absconders, registration violators, and others whose locations are uncertain. Despite the NCMEC report that "at least 100,000 sex offenders are noncompliant and no one knows where they are" (National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, 2007), we have been unable to ascertain NCMEC's formula for their calculation of missing sex offenders. Using the data downloaded directly from public registries, and utilizing the inclusive figure of 17,688 offenders described above (approximately 4% of our total sample), we found no evidence to support the notion that one-sixth (or about 17%) of the nation's sex offenders are missing or unaccounted for.Politicians using Hype to sell their products

Professionals from around the nation have shown in many reports these laws are not only ineffective at protecting society, but also waste the tax payer's hard earned money.

Patty Wetterling has a background in sexual abuse and is nationally know as a speaker on sexual abuse laws and justice.

My son Jacob was kidnapped on Oct. 22, 1989. Neither his brother nor his friend saw the man's face. He was masked, he had a gun and he ordered them to run to the woods. By the time they looked back, Jacob was gone and so was the man. Since that day, I have been on a journey to find him and to stop this from ever happening to another child, another family. Patty Wetterling

We need better answers. We need to fund prevention programs that stop sexual violence before it happens. We need to look at what can help those released from prison to succeed so that they don't victimize again -- and that probably means housing and jobs and treatment and community support. Given that current laws are extremely popular, taking truly effective measures may exact a high political price. But that's surely not too much to pay to prevent the kidnap, rape or murder of another child. SOURCE

Patty Wetterling lives in St. Joseph, Minn. She and her husband are co-founders of the Jacob Wetterling Foundation, which works to prevent sexual violence against children. She wrote this for Human Rights Watch, 350 Fifth Avenue, 34th Floor, New York, N.Y. 10118-3299; Web site:www.hrw.org. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.

Congressman Bobby Scott has stated that basically once a person is placed upon the public sex offender registry, their life is over.(VIDEO LINK)

If the government knows full well the Public Sex Offender Registry dooms all who are on it to having their life ended.. why do they continue to allow for the existence of such a demoralizing, humiliating, banishing public machine?

I will tell you my opinion. There is huge amounts of money to be made from all aspects of adding people to the registry.

1. Politicians Gain Votes and a Paycheck for submitting new laws to Punish Sex Offenders.
2. States can request more federal money to support their efforts to implement sex offender laws.
3. Companies like Secure Alert are seeing their profits skyrocket as new laws require states to implement their products and services, GPS TRACKING HARDWARE, SOFTWARE AND SERVICES. (How much does Secure Alert stand to make if the Adam Walsh Act goes National?)
4. All the regulations and laws which are applied to those who are labeled Sex Offenders and placed upon the registry insure those on the registry will become JOBLESS, HOMELESS, FRIENDLESS and inevitably sent to prison for new charges.. FAILURE TO REGISTER... Any violation of the sex offender registry will net the person this charge.. failure to register which carries prison sentences.. up 10 years. (shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 10 years, or both. SOURCE)

The registration of a person as a sex offender carries considerable social stigma that can make it difficult to find a home, form personal relationships or obtain employment.

The charge of "failure to register" is sometimes made in circumstances in which registration may not be required or may already have been done. Moreover, it is not uncommon for this charge to be filed against you without your knowledge. SOURCE

Not all who are on the public sex offender registry have raped women or molested children, but that is what the many in the media and many politicians would have you think. There is huge money in publishing Sex Offender Articles and pushing for Tougher Sex Offender Laws.

Twelve Thousand people die each year on our streets in America due to Alcohol. Do you see politicians going about the nation GETTING TOUGH ON DRUNK DRIVERS.... Writing legislation to CLOSE LOOPHOLES on Drunk Drivers? Having U.S. Marshals going about the nation Herding Up and Doing Compliance Checks on Drunk Drivers? Do you see a Public Shaming Registry for all who have driven drunk and killed anyone? Why not?

I will tell you why not.

1. Alcohol turns billions of dollars in profits both to individuals who own the companies and those who own stock and all related industries.
2. The government is making a killing in taxes for alcohol being legal.
3. Sex sells on any platform.. Television, Radio, Print, the Internet and IN POLITICS. Whole campaigns have been won simply by running on a platform to protect society from sex offenders.

I recently came across a petition to Abolish the Sex Offender Registry:

The National Public Sex Offender Registry, Sex Offender Registration Notification Act, (SORNA) and the Adam Walsh Act is counter productive to the safety of men, women and children in society.

Placing the name, age, address, crime, place of employment and many pieces of information on a Publicly accessible website creates a state of constant instability for the ex offenders and their families.

EMPLOYMENT FOR EX-OFFENDERS

Employment is basically not an option as all job applications ask if the prospective employee has ever been convicted of a sex crime. Not only that, but employers do not want to wear the stigma of having an employee listed on the public shaming sex offender registry as working at their business. Employers fear loss of customers due to the stigma.

HOUSING FOR EX-OFFENDERS

Anyone who is on the public sex offender registry faces huge challenges when seeking to rent housing. Not only is there residency restrictions which make it almost impossible to find suitable housing in many cities but also many rental applications ask if a person is on the registry...once that is disclosed.. the applicant is denied.

EFFECTS OF THE PUBLIC SEX OFFENDER REGISTRY ON THE INNOCENT CHILDREN OF EX-OFFENDERS

The innocent children of ex offenders suffer great amounts of pain and humiliation due to their parent being on the registry. The registration laws were created to protect children from being raped and molested. But in fact, the very registration laws created to protect children are the tools used by government and state law enforcement to rape and molest innocent children with their laws.

Children of ex offenders have been found to not only be bullied, ostracized, ridiculed, humiliated, excluded and treated as lepers by fellow students and neighbors in their communities but also have suffered by having to live sub standard lives economically due to the parent not being able to find employment or start their own businesses due to the stigma of being on the registry.

The innocent children of ex offenders should not have to undergo all the stigma of their parent being on the registry. But they do.

BIGGER GOVERNMENT AT TAX PAYER'S EXPENSE FOR LAWS WHICH ARE PROVEN TO BE NOT ONLY INEFFECTIVE AT PROTECTING SOCIETY BUT ALSO INCREASE THE POTENTIAL FOR RECIDIVISM OF THE EX-OFFENDER

SORNA and the Adam Walsh Act seek to expand the Public Sex Offender Registry and all the attached laws and regulations. SORNA and the Adam Walsh Act seek to increase the number of support staff nationwide and have YOU the tax payers fund it.

What the proponents of these laws do NOT tell you is that on every level they are a failure. The public registry is a failure. Residency restrictions are a failure at protecting society. GPS Monitoring has NEVER protected a single person from a crime being committed. These laws are like a huge balloon which is ever increasingly becoming larger while the citizens become less safe due to the ineptness of these laws in protecting society.

Everyone who knows anything about GPS monitoring knows it protects NO ONE. The only thing GPS monitoring can do is tell you where a person has been. It cannot tell you what they have been doing. Many cases where people were on the registry, wearing GPS tracking devices and still raped and murdered people. The registry, residency restrictions and GPS tracking did NOTHING to protect those victims. Nor will they protect YOU.

ALL WHO ARE ON THE REGISTRY ARE OPEN TARGETS FOR VIGILANTES, MANY HAVE ALREADY BEEN KILLED AND ASSAULTED FOR SIMPLY BEING ON THE REGISTRY

Anyone who can use Google or Bing can find news stories of law abiding citizens who were on the registry but were murdered or beaten or assaulted for simply being on the registry. Nobody who is on the registry is safe from anyone who seeks to do them harm. Being on the registry is an open invitation for murder and assault. This extends to the innocent family members of the ex offender. Innocent women and children who reside in the homes of ex offenders can be burned alive, shot, assaulted just because their parent happens to have his or her name, address and place of employment listed on the national shaming public sex offender registry. SOURCE

If we are to increase public safety in the area of preventing sexual abuse we need to go in a totally different direction when it comes to laws concerning those people who have been convicted of sexual offenses.

Those who abuse others need to be dealt with by our Criminal Justice System. If the job of catching, trying and sentencing a person for their crime is done properly, there is no need for a public sex offender registry.

Dangerous people should not even be sent back out into society in the first place.

Releasing a person from prison then branding them as an outcast, a leper and heaping so many regulations and laws upon them that they are Setup to Fail.. is not humane nor is it Justice. SOURCE

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AK - Miller Campaign Claims Tape Shows Reporters Trying to Connect Him to 'Child Molesters'

Original Article

10/31/2010

Alaska Senate candidate Joe Miller's campaign claims it has audio proof of local reporters scheming about ways to connect the Republican nominee to "child molesters."

The Miller campaign blasted out an e-mail overnight containing a transcript and audio recording of what it claimed were reporters at CBS affiliate KTVA discussing story ideas. The conversation, according to the Miller campaign, was recorded on spokesman Randy DeSoto's voicemail apparently by accident after an assignment editor with the station called him and mistakenly left his phone on instead of hanging up.

KTVA confirmed the authenticity of the tape Sunday but rejected as "absurd" the suggestion that reporters were trying to "fabricate" a negative story about Miller.

The recording is garbled and occasionally cuts out. But one woman can clearly be heard saying, "child molesters," after another suggests they "wait until you see" who shows up -- at an event the Miller campaign claims was a rally last week.

The message, circulated by Miller and posted on YouTube, gets choppier after the opening exchange. Miller's campaign claims a woman says that, of all the people that show up at the event, "at least one of them will be a registered sex offender."

The individuals identified by the campaign as reporters also discuss sending a "Twitter and Facebook alert" if there is "any sort of chaos" at the event, which somebody on the call compares to the incident at a debate last week when a supporter of Kentucky GOP Senate candidate Rand Paul stepped on the head of a protester.

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, in an interview with "Fox News Sunday," said the conversation on the call was "sick."

"We have the tape that proves it -- that the CBS reporters, the affiliate in Alaska, conspired to make up stories about Joe Miller," Palin said. "Those are corrupt bastards. ... That's what is wrong with the media today."

The Miller campaign said in a written statement that the reporters in the tape "openly discuss creating, if not fabricating" stories about the Republican candidate.

KTVA General Manager Jerry Bever issued a lengthy statement Sunday calling the recording "unfortunate because it does not accurately reflect the journalistic standards of our newsroom." But he said Miller's analysis and transcript of the recording are "inaccurate," noting that the recording only captured newsroom personnel talking at the end of a "coverage planning meeting" regarding the Anchorage rally last Thursday.

"The group of KTVA news personnel was reviewing potential 'what-if' scenarios, discussing the likelihood of events at the rally and how KTVA might logistically disseminate any breaking news," Bever said.

"The perception that this garbled, out of context recording may leave is unfortunate, but to allege that our staff was discussing or planning to create or fabricate stories regarding candidate Miller is absurd. The complete conversation was about what others might be able to do to cause disruption within the Miller campaign, not what KTVA could do," he said.

He added: "Have we had internal discussions about the level of professionalism we need to bring to our conversations, internally and externally? Of course we have, this is a lesson to learn from."

The campaign said the voicemail was first authenticated by KTVA when the assignment editor sent a text message to Miller spokesman Randy DeSoto saying, "Damn iPhone ... I left you a long message. I thought I hung up. Sorry."

"Frankly when I first heard this I was shocked," DeSoto said. "Though a bit garbled at times, there are disturbing comments in this (conversation) that never should have occurred."

Miller is running against independent candidate Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Democratic nominee Scott McAdams.

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AK - Gov. Sean Parnell exploiting the sex offender moral panic for votes!

Original Article

Like usual, it's election time, so out comes the sex offender fear campaign for votes.

10/08/2010

By Ted Land

ANCHORAGE - Gov. Sean Parnell has a new plan to toughen laws for cyber-crimes and conduct a statewide sweep of the sexual offender registry. He announced the reforms Friday morning, as he plans for what he hopes is another term in office.

Parnell says he thinks there's widespread support in the Legislature to continue toughening laws -- but he'll only see those reforms beyond November if he can get re-elected.

“I just want it known from Alaska that we intend to take down anybody preying upon our children through any means,” Parnell said.

Among his proposals: toughening penalties for those who produce child pornography and entice children online, banning stalking through spyware and cell phones, and strengthening laws that protect seniors.

“I anticipate strong support from legislators; they were very supportive this past year on the Choose Respect initiative,” Parnell said.

“It seems to me if he's unrolling these plans three weeks before an election, he could have done this months and months ago,” said Democratic gubernatorial candidate Ethan Berkowitz.

Berkowitz says the state needs better resources and staffing beyond what Parnell proposes in order to make tougher laws work.

“What's not a good solution is to just offer up empty rhetoric and then pretend that it's a legitimate solution to a complicated problem,” Berkowitz said.

Berkowitz also continues to question Parnell’s campaign finances. Spending reports released this week show Parnell's running mate, Mead Treadwell, carries a debt of nearly $180,000 left over from before the Republican primary.

Treadwell says he's planning to pay down the debt himself separately from the overall campaign fund, which reports raising nearly $180,000 since the primary.

Berkowitz and his running mate, Diane Benson, have raised more than $200,000 since the primary. They say Treadwell's debt is a sign of shared irresponsibility.

“I think the concern that Alaskans ought to have is if this is how he runs his campaign, it's a pretty good indication of how he'd run the state if he had the chance to do it,” Berkowitz said.

“As far as I know, the Parnell-Treadwell campaign is meeting our obligations, and we're continuing to raise money to finish this race,” Parnell said.

“To suggest the governor does not know how to budget is ludicrous. While the governor was cutting the budget as co-chair of Senate Finance, when oil was $9 a barrel, Ethan Berkowitz was leading the charge to add millions of dollars,” said Parnell’s campaign manager, Michelle Toohey.

For now, Parnell says he's focusing a full sweep of the state sex offender registry. He's directed law enforcement to track down people whose information is outdated or incorrect.

In regards to the timing of his announcement, Parnell says what some consider politics he sees as his duty to make sure Alaskans are protected.

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OK - Punishment should fit crime

Original Article

07/22/2010

Stephen Skacall, independent candidate for State House District 61, released the following statement today in response to an announcement that District Attorney [Mike] Boring intends to prosecute several Texhoma residents, two of whom are minors, for their involvement in “sexting:”

“We have, as a society, reached a point in time where our technology is advancing at a pace far exceeding our laws. Current Oklahoma law gives prosecutors no options when it comes to “sexting.” The only laws that are close to applying to this situation are existing child pornography laws. These laws demand harsh penalties for anyone convicted under them, as they should. However, the teenagers involved here are not the dangerous sexual predators that these laws were designed for."

“These people are victims of a broken system. Every single person involved in this situation who has been arrested or charged with child pornography charges is, in fact, a victim. At best, their reputations will be tarnished. At worst, these teenagers could end up as registered sex offenders for the rest of their lives. They will be denied many opportunities that are openly offered to the rest of society. They will be told where they can and cannot live, where they can and cannot work, and quite possibly denied educational opportunities as well.”

“When the nature of their actions is fully considered, these teenagers did harm to themselves. But the greater harm has been done not at their hands but at the hands of our government. For many years, the Legislature has sought to enact ‘one-size-fits-all’ laws against sex offenders. Typically, these laws have protected our community. In this case, however, the laws that our Legislators created have come back to devastate Texas County and the community of Texhoma by treating these teenagers like hardened criminals.”

“Do these teenagers deserve to be punished if they are convicted of a crime? Of course. But the punishment should fit the crime. Our legislators have created a tangled web of laws that may very well destroy the lives of young people who are simply acting on hormones and teenage foolishness. This is senseless and unjust.”

“I call on Representative Gus Blackwell to immediately begin working with District Attorney Boring to see that justice is served to everyone involved. Additionally, I encourage all residents of Texhoma and all of Texas County to contact the District Attorney’s office and join me in asking that these people be given their lives back.”

“As a candidate for State Representative, I give my word that if I am elected I will work with Republicans and Democrats to push for an overhaul of our sex offender laws and that I will do my very best to ensure that, in the future, the punishment fits the crime.”

Stephen Skacall is a resident of Goodwell and is running for State House District 61 as an independent.

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CA - Kamala Harris Attack Ad: Steve Cooley a Sexist Coddler of Child Molesters

Original Article (Listen)

06/22/2010

By Peter Jamison

San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris today released an online ad targeting her Republican opponent in the race for state attorney general. The ad assails Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley, in so many words, as a sexist coddler of child molesters.

The video attacks Cooley for comments he made at a University of Southern California crime forum in 2009. Said Cooley, "You know what gets an initiative passed in California? Name it after a female... Jessica's Law, stuff like that." He was referring to a California law, similar to legislation enacted by other states, that imposes tougher penalties and residency restrictions on sex offenders. The law is named after Jessica Lunsford (PDF), a Florida girl who was raped and murdered in 2005.

Cooley opposed the ballot initiative that enacted the law, arguing that limits on where sex offenders can live would make it more difficult to track them. Asks Harris' new ad, "What does he have against laws named after 'females?'" The other two "questions" in the spot criticize Cooley's handling of environmental crimes in L.A. and his opposition to national health-care reform.

What can you say? It's never to early to play the gender card and exploit irrational fears of sexual predators in a big election, particularly since Harris is likely to face serious questions about her crime-fighting record in San Francisco.

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IL - Just the usual politician riding the backs of victims and sex offenders to help himself!

Well, politicians have found their way to get elected or laws passed, exploit victims of sexual abuse and sex offenders. This is why I have always hated politics, they are just a bunch of blood sucking ticks.

In the first video, Michael took a study out of context, like usual, and picked only the portion which helps him look better. Read the entire study, in it's full context, below. See the last video, which explains it all!

Web Site | Video Link | Actual BJS Study


Video Link | Jasmine's Law (PDF)


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