Now starts the fun, Missouri enacted this Halloween law, and provided NO METHOD of notifying registered offenders of the requirements of the law. ALL sex offender laws MANDATE that the State notify the registrant BEFORE prosecuting them for violating such laws. So sayeth the U.S. Supreme court. With that said, here is the first report of Missouri violating RSO rights by arresting them:
11-1-2008 Missouri:
It was not a very happy Halloween for more than a dozen registered sex offenders in Christian County.
They are spending the night in jail for violating Missouri’s new and first law that restricts their activity on this holiday.
Despite a federal judge's ruling earlier this week that called parts of the law unenforceable; it was all being enforced.
Christian County law enforcement went door to door, but they weren't collecting candy.
They were collecting registered sex offenders who failed to comply with the new law that restricts their activities.
“They know we're out checking and they are required to come to the door and talk to us,” explains Officer Derek Hill with the Ozark Police Department.
But the law isn't exactly black and white.
“Every circumstance is different; every case is different."
Hill tells KSPR that while there's a 5 to 10:30 curfew work is a valid excuse not to be home.
Of the three houses we hit, three offenders were home, and all three were non-compliant.
While all of the men had their outside lights off, none of them had up a visible sign reading "no candy or treats at this residence."
Since this is the first year the law has been put into action a lot of aspects have been called into question this Halloween.
For example, what constitutes a sign?
A standard sized piece of paper is the absolute minimum a sign can be in order to qualify.
To be fair, police said no exceptions, but is the law fair?
“It would depend on the original offense. I don't know these guys, the sex offenders, but it definitely takes out a variable about something that could happen,” says Hill.
All of the sex offenders arrested tonight will be held for 24 hours in the Christian County jail.
The class a misdemeanor is punishable by up to a year in jail.
The offenders who were not home will be charged only if their outside lights were on and there wasn't a sign. ..News Source.. by KSPR News, Joanna Small
Christian County arrests 18 sex offenders for not following Halloween law
Law enforcement officials in Christian County arrested 18 of the county’s 56 registered sex offenders for noncompliance with a new law that forbids offenders from any participation in Halloween activities, said Sgt. Brent Grey, deputy with Christian County Sheriff’s Department.
Another 10 were considered noncompliant, but law enforcement did not make contact with them either because they were at home and did not answer the door or were not at home, said Grey.
“I was surprised” the non-compliance rate “was that high with all the media attention we’ve had in the last several weeks,” said Grey.
The sheriff’s department worked with law enforcement in Ozark, Nixa, Billings, Clever, Highlandville, Sparta check to see if offenders were in compliance with the law.
The law requires registered sex offenders to stay in their home from 5 to 10:30 p.m. on Halloween night unless they have “just cause” to leave, such as work or a medical emergency. They must also keep lights off and post a sign saying they aren’t giving out treats.”
“We didn’t actually catch a sex offender passing out candy, but under statute they cannot participate in any Halloween activities,” said Grey. “The majority (of non-compliance) was where the sign was not posted.”
They also found cases where candy was being distributed from an offender’s home by someone other than the offender while the offender was home, or cases where the lights were on, or the home had Halloween decorations.
The American Civil Liberties Union has argued that the law is unclear, and left offenders unsure about what they can and cannot do on Halloween. On Thursday a federal appeals court said the law could be enforced this year. ..News Source.. by Cory de Vera • News-Leader staff
November 1, 2008
MO- Police Trick Or Treat For Sex Offenders
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2 comments:
This country is getting VERY CLOSE to a new Holocaust and Death Camps like Auschwitz, Sobibor and Treblinka.
The Federal Courts (if not the United States Supreme Court itself) need to be very careful with their own personal interpretation of the Constitution, and instead, give credence to the writings as they were originally framed.
The U.S. Constitution was created to give rights to the "INDIVIDUAL" as a citizen of this once great nation.
We have let this government (especially as of late) take our rights away. We now "demand" this current political administration "give them back"!!!
The article claims:
"For example, what constitutes a sign? A standard sized piece of paper is the absolute minimum a sign can be in order to qualify."
This is what the statute says:
"Post a sign at his or her residence stating, "No candy or treats at this residence";
So now LE get to arbitrarily define the statute at their whim.
The article continues:
"Another 10 were considered noncompliant, but law enforcement did not make contact with them either because they were at home and did not answer the door or were not at home, said Grey."
So, without further investigation, the offender has automatically violated the law. The registry already has information about their employment, so they know who should have been at work. The statute implies not to answer the door if one is home, so even if the police identified themselves, with no outside lights available, how can one tell it's the police?
Being non-compliant is the same as being a fugitive. So expect some of these people to be arrested at work by a task force.
Another part of the article:
"The offenders who were not home will be charged only if their outside lights were on and there wasn't a sign."
So offenders who are at work, or in the hospital still have to post a sign, and jeopardize the security of their home and family by having the lights off. The agenda is clear and it has nothing to do with protecting children.
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