2-6-2011 Texas:
Texas is in the final stages of implementing a new program that will allow some sex offenders to deregister from the lifetime list, after an, as of yet, unspecified amount of time and counseling.
The Council on Sex Offender Treatment will meet Feb. 26 to discuss the final stages of establishing guidelines and protocol to evaluate low-level sex offenders. Once the training for the counselors are in place, a spokesperson said, within months, evaluation specialists will begin seeing potential candidates.
"This is a more common sense approach, we have to balance public safety with a limited amount of funds to ensure the maximum amount of public safety," said Allison Taylor, executive director for the Council on Sex Offender Treatment.
She said about 100 new names a week are added to the sex offenders list and database, and the cost of monitoring and managing the system are becoming untenable.
Taylor said the new program will allow deregistration evaluation specialists to categorize those convicted into risk-levels. By placing offenders in risk levels, she said, the government will be able to monitor those that need it the most, rather than spreading out the limited amount of resources on all offenders equally.
"Do we really need to monitor the 19-year-old convicted of having sex with his underage girlfriend the same way we would monitor a 40-year-old serial rapist, pedophile or murder, for instance," she asked. "We need to target predators and not kids caught in the criminal justice system because of the age of consent."
While Jed Davenport, the director of the Midland Judicial District's Community Supervision and Corrections Department, said it is commendable that the agency is trying to monitor higher-risk offenders more closely, he said he isn't sure allowing lesser-offenders to deregister will help the situation.
Although he said he will need to learn more about the program and meet with the district judges before he could form a complete opinion, but said he believes savings could be found elsewhere than at the expense of the database.
"People are now able to go to the online database to find out where sex offenders live in their neighborhoods and are able to be more careful and vigilant," Davenport said. "It's basically a sense of security, especially around Halloween, when parents and kids will be walking the streets."
But not everyone convicted of a sexual offense will be able to deregister. Anyone convicted of aggravated sexual assault of a child, sexual assault, aggravated kidnapping with intent, burglary with intent, continuous abuse of a child, prohibited sexual conduct or indecency with a child under 13 years old, will be unable to deregister.
Also, offenders must not be convicted of any crime for which imprisonment for more than one year could be imposed during the registration period; offenders must not be convicted of any sexual crimes during registration; the offender must complete all treatment and must have finished all supervised probation or parole.
Typically, the supervised release, probation and parole period for a sexual offender could take around 10 years before completion.
"Once things are put into perspective, like allowing sexters or someone caught in a consensual relationship with someone underage to deregister, while increasing supervision on hardened, serious criminals, people seem to agree," Taylor said. ..Source.. by James Cannon
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Texas in final stages to allow some sex offenders to deregister from list
State may loosen grip on sex offenders
2-6-2011 Minnesota:
The possible release of two violent rapists reflects growing legal concerns over indefinite detention.
In a rare step, state officials have recommended supervised release for two violent sex offenders who are under indefinite commitment at a state treatment center in St. Peter, according to documents and authorities familiar with the cases.
The recommendations -- the first of their kind in nearly 15 years -- reflect an emerging shift in thinking among officials in charge of Minnesota's controversial sex offender program. Created in 1994, it allows the state to hold offenders indefinitely -- for years, even decades -- at highly secure facilities in Moose Lake and St. Peter.
Officials familiar with the cases contend that the state must find a new balance between ensuring public safety and acknowledging the rights of offenders who have submitted to long detention and completed therapy. The shift, which emerged from closed sessions last year, occurs against a backdrop of explosive growth in the program's population and costs. The state's offender population has tripled since 2003 -- to 605 people last year -- making Minnesota first per capita among states in confining sex offenders and third overall in offender population, behind California and Florida.
But officials, clinicians and legal experts say their main concern is that the program might not withstand new court challenges over the constitutionality of holding offenders for years without the prospect of release.
Nonetheless, the prospective release of John Rydberg, 68, and Thomas Duvall, 55, is sure to reignite debate over public safety and the effectiveness of therapy for violent, chronic sex offenders.
Rydberg and Duvall have extremely violent backgrounds, with dozens of sexual offenses that include rape by knifepoint, and they are considered high risks for sexual recidivism, according to state documents. Each has previously failed sexual treatment programs, records show, and both have been diagnosed as psychopathic personalities. If released, they would be subject to covert surveillance, lie detector tests and GPS tracking via electronic ankle bracelets.
A new direction
In two closed sessions last year, a special review board of mental health experts appointed by the Department of Human Services concluded that Rydberg and Duvall had progressed well enough after years of treatment to be provisionally discharged into strictly supervised halfway houses in the Twin Cities, according to sources and documents. The board consists of an attorney, a psychiatrist and a social worker or psychologist.
Their recommendation must be reviewed by a three-judge appeals panel appointed by the state Supreme Court. The judges will hear Rydberg's case in March and Duvall's in April.
The professionals' recommendation seems to chart a new direction in state policy and offers fresh hope to offenders who have clinically progressed to a point where they are judged to be of manageable public risk.
In 2003, Gov. Tim Pawlenty issued an executive order stripping the Human Services commissioner of authority over such releases. That shifted responsibility for the difficult decisions to the judicial branch of government, but it left many offenders feeling that they had to overcome nearly impossible obstacles to release.
Pawlenty issued the order after the Star Tribune reported that state officials were seeking ways to allow some offenders -- deemed less dangerous after treatment -- to live in community halfway houses. Rydberg and Duvall have sued the state in years past, arguing for release because they completed their treatment programs in a secured facility.
Attorneys representing offenders have argued that Pawlenty's order violated state law and interfered with the expertise of treatment specialists who rely on clearly delineated psychological and medical evaluations.
"It's clear this recommendation reflects a different policy,'' said Eric Janus, president of the William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul and an expert on the legal issues surrounding sex offender release.
"The legitimacy of the program depends on a bona fide system for determining when individuals can be returned to the community with appropriate safeguards. A system that never returns anybody into the community is unconstitutional.''
In the last days of the Pawlenty administration, then-Human Services Commissioner Cal Ludeman filed a petition asking the high court to reconsider the review board's recommendations on Duvall's release -- effectively putting his department at odds with its own panel of experts.
Last week, Deputy Commissioner Anne Barry said in a statement that the department is reassessing its position on the Ludeman petition, an indication that the department might change course and concur with its board of experts. ..Source..
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Bill aims to fix Mass. 'harmful material' law
2-5-2011 Massachusetts:
BOSTON—Prosecutors would have to show that a suspected sexual predator purposely and knowingly sent obscene electronic messages to a minor under legislation aimed at fixing a loophole in Massachusetts law first exposed by the state's highest court a year ago.
The bill is the latest effort by lawmakers to reconcile free speech rights with the desire to protect children from predators who use modern day tools such as the Internet, sexually-explicit text messages or e-mails to entice their victims. A federal judge put on hold an earlier attempt to bring the law up to date, saying that the wording was too broad.
Under the proposal, a person who purposely disseminates harmful material to a minor could be sentenced to up to five years in prison. But the legislation stipulates that a person could not be prosecuted for sending an inappropriate electronic message "unless he specifically intends to direct the communication to a person or persons he knows or believes to be a minor or minors."
The specific intent clause is critical because it is designed to satisfy concerns expressed by free speech groups -- who won the backing of a federal judge last fall -- that the current law defines "harmful material" so broadly that it could be applied to websites that contain sexual material or nudity but are targeted at adults, not children.
On Feb. 5, 2010, the Supreme Judicial Court overturned the conviction of Mark Zubiel, a Beverly man who was accused of sending sexually graphic instant messages to someone he believed was a 13-year-old girl. The justices agreed with Zubiel's argument that "harmful material" banned under the law in effect at the time didn't include instant messages or other forms of electronic communication.
The Legislature quickly passed a bill amending the law to close the loophole. But the fix itself soon ran into trouble.
In October, a federal judge granted a preliminary injunction blocking the changes. Internet content providers, the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts and other groups argued in a lawsuit that the reworded law was so broad that it could effectively ban from the Internet material that may be considered "harmful to minors," but that adults have the right to view.
U.S. District Judge Rya Zobel agreed that would violate the First Amendment.
"The world is much different now with the Internet ... and social networks," said Sen. Cynthia Creem, D-Newton, who is co-sponsoring the bill intended to correct the law once and for all.
"Predators can reach minors through a whole different mode," she said.
Creem said the measure would address issues such as 'sexting' -- the texting of nude pictures -- to minors -- without interfering with the free speech rights of consenting adults.
"We think the bill will resolve the issues in the lawsuit," said John Reinstein, legal director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts.
Reinstein cautioned, however, that the measure is only a proposal and must be passed by the Legislature before the suit is withdrawn. Plaintiffs have made clear they are not trying to block prosecution of sexual predators who use the Internet.
Attorney General Martha Coakley has listed the bill as one of her priories for the legislative session that began in January. ..Source.. by Bob Salsberg
Man denies failing to check in to sex registry
2-5-2011 Maine:
An Island Falls man facing state charges of unlawful sexual contact pleaded not guilty Thursday in U.S. District Court to a charge of failing to register as a sex offender after moving to Maine in 2009.
___, 36, was required to register as a sex offender because of a 1996 sex offense in Connecticut, according to the indictment handed up Jan. 12 by a federal grand jury in Bangor.
Because he has been unable to make the $1,000 bail set on the state charge, bail was not set Thursday on the federal charge.
Goguen also has pleaded not guilty to the state charge. He allegedly had sexual contact with a minor under the age of 12 on July 28 in Patten, according to the Penobscot County District Attorney’s Office.
He is scheduled to appear next week at the Penobscot Judicial Center on the Class B charge of unlawful sexual contact. His case, however, is expected to be continued until March.
Further details about the alleged sex crime were not available Friday.
If convicted of the federal crime of failing to register as a sex offender, Goguen faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
In addition, he faces up to 10 years in state prison and a fine of up to $20,000 on the sex charge. ..Source.. by Judy Harrison, BDN Staff
Friday, February 4, 2011
Utah Department of Corrections offers therapy to dozens of sex offender inmates
Responding to Just another SO comments: This article is only about Utah and no other state/s. And Utah offers therapy to ALL sex offenders who qualify, mentioned in the article. If Utah believed that "No SO Can Be Cured" the state would not make any therapy available. As to "Therapists were constantly being replaced," that is a grievance issue and it SHOULD be brought into court. As to therapy only in the community, here I think there is a far greater issue, being, if ALL SOs are released into the community without ANY therapy, that places the community at greater risk, than if ALL SOs had some therapy -in-prison- to control any impulses that some MAY have. Hence making the community safer, then continuing therapy in the community. Obviously the Parole Board felt that way since they rejected folks for parole who has not completed therapy. Civil commitment -following a sentence- which does not occur in Utah, is a MAJOR problem in the 20 states that do have civil commitment (scroll down that page), and on the federal level as well.2-4-2011 Utah:
Close to one-third of Utah's current prison population is made up of people convicted of sex offenses - a majority of which are crimes against children.
And while many states have a warehousing approach to incarceration, the Utah Department of Corrections offers therapeutic treatment to dozens of sex offenders each year.
The Utah State Prison is one of eight correctional facilities in the country that offers programming for convicted sex offenders.
Though it's not guaranteed, people sentenced to prison for a sex offense may be eligible to participate in the state's Sex Offender Treatment Program, or SOTP.
Steve Gehrke, a spokesman for the state's corrections system, says the prison provides cognitive/behavioral therapy two times per week that focuses on accepting responsibility, victim empathy and relapse prevention. Therapy consists of group psychotherapy, psycho-educational classes, homework and therapeutic activities with other offenders in treatment, according to the department's website.
"All offenders participating in sex offender treatment are expected to achieve satisfactory progress at both an intellectual and emotional level," said Gehrke. "Their progress is measured by observable changes - not simply by completion of assignments or time in therapy."
On average, therapy lasts 18 months, but Gehrke says some inmates progress more quickly and some take longer.
"Progress is based on how hard the offenders work, how motivated they are, and how willing they are to incorporate the changes in effort to show commitment toward rehabilitating their lives without being defensive," he said.
Michael Robinson, a program director at the prison who treats sex offenders, says the most effective treatment fosters a permanent change in thinking and behavior.
"I believe the best philosophy is to treat people with respect and hold them accountable for their choices," he said, "so that their change is lasting instead of trying to just look good, which is often what they did when they were offending."
Looking good, he explained, refers to a trait commonly found in sex offenders who carry out one life in public and a separate one in private.
"They appear normal on the outside," he said. "When they're home, inside is where they show this monstrous behavior."
Robinson says a majority of child sex offenders are not exclusively interested in children. In many cases, he said, perpetrators have a consensual adult sexual partner but simultaneously desire children. Pedophilia, he says, is a diagnosis for people who seek sexual encounters exclusively with children.
When asked how an adult can derive gratification from an underage person, Robinson says the reasons vary.
"Each individual has their own motivation for why they're offending," he said. "Which makes some more amenable to treatment than others."
Robinson says perpetrators may also target a child victim due to an inability to have appropriate adult relationships.
"Sometimes it includes a social ineptness in which they are afraid of rejection in pursuing a sexual relationship in a healthy, socially acceptable manner," he said. "It's still no excuse. It isn't an addiction, it isn't a sickness, it is a criminal choice."
He adds that most child sex crimes come from an individual's desire for control.
"Sexual abuse is a control crime; sex is the tool," he said. "It's not just physiologically sexual, it's also a gratification to have that type of power over another."
The first step in treatment requires participants to give a full disclosure of their offenses in front of their peers. Robinson says he's looking for participants to discuss how they selected their victims and to acknowledge how the crimes affected the victims.
"We're looking for their level of responsibility at the outset of treatment," he explained. "We're looking for emotional connection. Is there remorse as they're sharing this or are they just telling a story and not accepting responsibility?"
That first step, he says, can last up to three months for some inmates.
"Treatment isn't going to be easy for someone who is entrenched in deviant thinking," he added. "It will take a lot of courage to face their horrific choices and be able to recognize the effects of their choices on those that they hurt."
Next, offenders work to develop empathy for victims and focus on relapse prevention.
"Sexual abuse doesn't just happen," said Robinson. "It's planned."
Perpetrators work to develop a fundamental change in thinking and Robinson says he and other trained therapists can tell if inmates are being truthful.
After treatment, inmates are encouraged to prepare for life outside of prison and have realistic expectations of what's to come after their release. It's not uncommon for offenders to become reclusive after release, but treatment helps offenders realize a more social life can help prevent new offenses.
"Some people feel so terrible about themselves they think they need to be locked up for the rest of their lives," Robinson said. "If they don't crawl out of that, they sabotage themselves." ..Source.. Matthew K. Jensen
Average prison incarceration term for people convicted of child sex crimes
(Based on inmates released between January 2000 to December 2010)
• First-degree felony (420 inmates)
Average length of stay: 88 months
• Second-degree felony (481 inmates)
Average length of stay: 69 months
• Third-degree felony (171 inmates)
Average length of stay: 44 months
Source: Utah Department of corrections
Number of current prison inmates convicted of sex crimes involving a child
Women
Aggravated sexual abuse of a child - 3
Rape of a child - 1
Sex exploitation of a minor - 1
Sexual abuse of a child - 2
Sodomy on a child - 2
Unlawful sexual activity with a minor - 1
Men
Aggravated sexual abuse of a child - 434
Child kidnapping - 16
Enticing a minor over the Internet - 27
Lewdness involving a child - 2
Object rape of a child - 6
Rape of a child - 129
Sex exploitation of a minor - 77
Sexual abuse of a child - 449
Sexual abuse of a minor - 4
Sodomy on a child - 176
Unlawful sex conduct with a 16- or 17-year-old - 19
Unlawful sexual activity with a minor - 90
Unlawful sexual conduct with a minor (non-intercourse) - 1
Source: Utah Department of Corrections
Judge: Woman not required to register as sex offender
2-4-2011 Indiana:
BLOOMINGTON — A judge ruled Thursday that a woman convicted of battery is not required to register as a sex offender but she must follow other rules of sex offender probation.
Defense lawyer Stephanie Wong argued that ___’s conviction for battery of two minor boys does not qualify as a sex offense under state law.
Among the requirements she must follow are possible electronic monitoring of her whereabouts and documentation of her phone calls if probation officers make such requests, said Wong.
A McLean County jury acquitted her of aggravated criminal sexual abuse but convicted her of battery.
In his Nov. 12 sentencing order, Judge Charles Reynard said she must register as a sex offender. He temporarily rescinded the order in December after she reported police in Peoria and Bloomington declined to register her as a sex offender because they said the battery conviction did not qualify for registration.
In his ruling Thursday, Reynard stuck with his earlier opinion that the battery was a sexually motivated offense based on the testimony of the minors. He said he believes a sex offender evaluation and recommended treatment is appropriate for her.
Reynard also acknowledged that ___’s case is unique and that she is “certainly not a stereotypical sexual predator.”
Assistant State’s Attorney Bill Workman supported the judge’s ruling that ___’s offense was related to a sexual intent.
Wong said ___ intends to appeal the ruling. ..Source.. by Edith Brady-
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Bill to require sex offenders to register computers, e-mails advances through Ark. committee
Does this really imply or suggest that, cybercrimes are ONLY committed by former sex offenders? What about all other criminal types?2-3-2011 Arkansas:
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — A bill to require sex offenders register their e-mail addresses, user names and computers has passed out of an Arkansas legislative committee and goes to the state House for a vote.
The bill by Democratic Rep. Tiffany Rogers of Stuttgart cleared the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday. It would require sex offenders subject to lifetime registration to report all e-mail addresses, user names and screen names, in addition to computers and Internet-ready devices they have access to.
Those sex offenders would have to report changes to their technological information every six months.
Rogers says the bill adapts current law to reflect technological advances.
The state attorney general backed Rogers' proposal as a means to strengthen the fight against cybercrimes. ..Source.. KSPR.com
Errors found in Indiana state lab toxicology tests
What about other evidence processed by the same labs?2-3-2011 Indiana:
Mistakes that audit uncovered could lead to overturned verdicts
The first major report from an audit of the Indiana State Department of Toxicology further brings into question the validity of potentially hundreds of drug and alcohol tests performed at the lab in recent years.
The findings from the audit, provided to The Indianapolis Star, showed errors in about 200 of 2,000 marijuana tests reported to law enforcement as having positive results. That includes about 50 described as "a conscious manipulation of results" by lab workers.
"This is a potential mess," said former Marion County Prosecutor Scott Newman, who was hired to fix the agency. "The only thing that saves it is . . . the criminal justice system and the scientific community (being) brought together to try to make sense about how to go forward."
Newman acknowledged there is potential for numerous verdicts to be overturned and cases to be dismissed, although not every error is necessarily connected to a wrongful conviction. Some of the problems may not be significant enough to change the outcome of cases.
But Larry Landis, executive director of the Indiana Public Defender Council, called the revelations "shocking" and "inexcusable."
"If they're manipulating data, how can you rely on anything they do?" Landis said. "We're talking about people's lives."
He added that he appreciated Newman's integrity and said it "gives me hope there won't be a cover-up."
Newman said the agency is notifying lawyers involved in the 200 cases and preparing for an onslaught of inquiries, including those from defense attorneys who want their own expert to review test results.
The audit eventually will cover every case from 2007 to 2009 in which the lab reported a positive result -- more than 10,000 overall. But Newman said the initial findings are troubling enough that he probably will extend the audit back to 2006. The audit, conducted by outside scientists, is of paper records. ..For the remainder of the story.. by Mark Alesia and Tim Evans
DA wants "panty thief" crimes to be considered sex crimes
Just a thought, suppose he (or a she) took the same type of item (pertaining to men or women) from a store, would they also be a sex offender? And, do we stop at under garments? After all, swimsuits cover the body parts too...2-3-2011 Mississippi:
OXFORD, MS (WMC-TV) - An Oxford district attorney wants the man accused of raiding the homes of North Mississippi female college students and stealing their undergarments to be added to the sex offender registry.
Joseph Paul Lillo, the so-called "panty thief," was arrested in October and charged with 11 counts of burglary.
Lillo broke into Oxford, Mississippi homes through unlocked doors. He would then steal the underwear and a picture of the female who lived there.
"If he would do that, he might go a little bit farther," said mother Leslie Morris.
District Attorney Ben Creekmore is pushing legislators to pass a bill that would make crimes like Lillo's a sex crime.
"The danger here is someone who would break into somebody's house and steal panties could very easily escalate later into something different if you do not put restrictions on them," said Creekmore.
If the crime is made a sex crime, the suspect would have to register as a sex offender if convicted. They would have to let the authorities know where he is living as a way to keep up with them.
"I think breaking and entering, so that's a crime," said Oxford resident Paul Comer. "As far as a sex crime, I guess you could consider it a sex crime."
If Lillo is convicted, he would likely not fall under the new law. ..Source.. Janice Broach
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Parents of boy who admitted sex abuse file lawsuit
2-2-2011 New York:
The plaintiffs — the boy's parents and their three children, including the boy — are identified only by initials in the lawsuit filed Jan. 24 in United States District Court.
The defendants include Ontario County, the Victor Central School District, the Ontario County Sheriff's Office, Sheriff Phil Povero, Deputy Everett E. Roach, a resource officer in the school district, and Jeff Onze, a teacher in the school district.
The suit accuses the Sheriff's Office and the school district of negligent training and supervision of employees. The plaintiffs claim they suffered emotional distress, trauma, embarrassment and humiliation.
"As a direct result of the concerted actions of the Victor Central School District staff and continued media attention, the family, the accused boy and at least one victim were identified," according to the suit.
"Negative community reaction to the accusations placed the physical and emotional safety of all plaintiffs at risk," according to the 21-page suit.
The Democrat and Chronicle has never published the names of the boy, his parents or siblings, or any of the victims in the case.
According to the suit, high school teacher Jeff Onze sent messages from his school district e-mail account encouraging residents to call the Ontario County Attorney's Office, Victor Supervisor Jack Marren and the judge handling the boy's case to express outrage that the boy was allowed to remain at his parents' home, in a residential neighborhood, and that the boy might not be punished adequately.
On June 2, the boy confessed to three counts of second-degree sexual abuse, involving girls under 14. He was given two years probation, including 12 months at a residential treatment facility with 24-hour supervision.
The boy "could have benefited from a community-based treatment in the absence of public hostility," but instead was sent away from his family to a residential facility, the suit claims.
The plaintiffs claim they are still being harassed, including calls to police claiming they are failing to supervise their son even though he is actually at the court-mandated treatment facility. Because of "unbearable teasing and ostracism" the boy's sister was forced to leave Victor High School and enroll in a private school.
"The public attention generated by the media and gossip amongst (school) employees resulted in stigma and isolation of the entire family," the suit says.
The family has put their home up for sale and they plan to move away from the school district, according to the suit.
Ontario County Attorney John W. Park said the suit has not been served on any county offices or employees and he has no comment. Victor school district officials, and Onze, also said they have not been served and have no comment. ..Source.. Bennett J. Loudon • Staff writer
Victim of alleged sexual assault bludgeons suspect with frying pan
2-2-2011 Nebraska:
In Lincoln, Nebraska, a suspected rapist was attacked by a victim with a frying pan, leading the suspect to end up in a hospital for treatment.
According to Lincoln police, the incident occurred early Monday, following a get-together at an apartment, located in the 3100 block of North Hill Road.
Police say it happened when a 20-year-old woman was spending time with family members and friends at the apartment. After several hours of consuming alcohol, everyone fell asleep.
Police say that as the victim was sleeping on the living room floor, one of the get-together guests (a male) began to touch her improperly. In response, the victim constantly said “no” to the guest; however, that made the guest angrier, tearing her pants. She, then, kicked him away, and then took a frying pan out of the kitchen and hit him in the head with it four times.
The alleged assailant, identified only as a 23-year-old Lincoln man, was transported to the hospital early Monday morning to be treated for his wounds. According to CT scans, the man had sustained orbital and nose fractures. He is still in the hospital.
According to cops, citations are pending as soon as the man gets discharged from the hospital. ..Source.. by BASHIR BAKHTIARI
Senator to try to create public registry of those convicted
2-2-2011 South Carolina:
Less than 11 years after pleading guilty to homicide by child abuse in the death of his 11-month-old daughter, Daron Duane Davis walked out of prison and into obscurity – until last week.
The Greer man had served all he was required of a 20-year minimum sentence under an old South Carolina law, which has since been tightened to require some offenders to serve more of their sentences.
When Davis was released, he wasn’t on probation or supervised release. His name wasn’t listed on any public registry of people convicted in connection with the death of a child, the kind that flags the whereabouts of sex offenders.
Last week, Davis, 42, was charged with a similar offense in the death of his five-month-old daughter.
Questions by The Greenville News about what follow-up exists for those released back into society after child-death convictions revealed few safeguards.
South Carolina does maintain a central registry of child abuse offenders but, unlike some other states, it remains walled off from the public even in cases of a child’s death.
Responding to questions from the newspaper, Sen. Mike Fair, chairman of both the Senate Corrections and Penology Committee and the Joint Citizens and Legislative Committee on Children, said he would move to file legislation that would list people convicted in the death of a child in a public registry, much like sex offenders.
“Without question, you should go in a registry,” said Fair, who added that he’s interested in adding repeat child abusers to the list as well.
Public Defender John Mauldin, who is representing Davis, said Monday that the man remains incarcerated and that he has no intention of asking for a bond hearing.
Most states track cases of child abuse, but the information is typically kept confidential and used to screen potential employees for jobs that involve the care of children.
That can change when a child dies.
In 27 states and the District of Columbia, at least some of the information in the registry is disclosed to the public in cases of a child’s death or near-death, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
After an offender gets out of prison, many states also have a period of post-release supervision in which the person is barred from being around children, though the period isn’t indefinite and there are exceptions for someone’s own children, said Rami Badawy, a senior attorney with the National District Attorneys Association involved in child homicide and abuse issues.
A comparable form of follow-up doesn’t occur in South Carolina, said James Fletcher Thompson, an adoption attorney with an active knowledge of the state’s child protection laws.
Virginia Williamson, general counsel for the state Department of Social Services, said it would have been up to the criminal justice system to decide if Davis should have been released under probation.
Davis wasn't on supervised release or probation when he got out of prison because he had finished serving the required time, said Pete O'Boyle, spokesman for the state Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services last week.
Fair said one concern with the traditional methods of follow-up is that state workers have huge caseloads, and a successful check-in often amounts to a phone call.
Child advocates say it would make sense to let the public know with a registry whenever someone convicted of causing the death of a child re-enters society, though they say it would be difficult to go further – limiting a person’s right to be a parent, for example.
In Florida, the death of a child is cause for “any person” to get access to child abuse records, with only the identity of the person reporting abuse kept confidential, according to the state Attorney General’s Office.
Some states, such as Alaska and New York, require kidnappers to register publicly, much like sex offenders. South Carolina already discloses a child’s death when it happens in state custody, according to HHS.
Thompson said registries can help keep sex offenders from coming into contact with other children. He said, though, that even a previous conviction in the death of a child isn’t enough to negate a person’s constitutional right to be a parent.
It’s not about other people’s children, Thompson said, but about an offender’s own offspring.
Once a new child is born, however, the state can go to court and argue that the adult’s history of abuse is grounds for removing the child – even if the current child hasn’t been abused, Thompson said.
To do that requires someone – a relative, doctor or law enforcement officer – to trigger an investigation by reporting it to the state.
DSS didn't become aware of Davis’ new child until after she suffered the injuries that led to her death, spokeswoman Marilyn Matheus told The News last week.
“There has to be a triggering event, and that’s the problem here,” Thompson said. In Davis’ case, “That triggering event was death.”
At issue is the delicate balance between child safety and constitutional rights as well as a general stance by most states that public policy should seek to reunite families, not permanently separate them, Badawy said.
Most cases of child homicide involve a parent – not a stranger, Badaway said. And yet, he said no one can stop a person from being a parent.
At present, South Carolina’s confidential abuse registry is a statewide listing of people found to have abused or neglected a child. A person’s name doesn’t go onto the list until a court has confirmed the finding.
You could, if you wanted, find out if a person has a criminal past – such as a conviction in the death of a child – because the court records are public, but Badawy said it’s not a bad idea to put child death convictions in a registry where they are more easily found.
Thompson said the information could help a woman with a child decide, for example, if she wants to move in with a man who may have been convicted of child crimes. It wouldn’t be a costly system, he said, because it would focus on the relatively small number of worst offenders.
“The more available that information is, the safer our children will be,” he said.
Fair said he is seeking to find out how many of last year’s 12,300 confirmed cases of child abuse involved repeat offenders, or people whom he described as “just waiting for the next child.”
In the event of conviction of a child’s death, he said, there’s little reason not to notify the public.
“I’m going to give it a shot.” ..Source.. byBen Szobody • Staff writer
Bill blocks some sex offenders from living in N.D. state parks
2-2-2011 North Dakota:
Under a proposed piece of legislation, certain sex offenders would no longer be allowed to live in state parks.
House Bill 1435, introduced in the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, is being pushed by the attorney general's office after it became known that sex offenders were legally registering their address as that of a state park.
"We learned of at least one individual probably more who are registering their addresses, and appropriately registering under the current system of the law, their addresses as they're required to do, and they've been listing at state parks because that's where they were living at the time," Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem said.
No one can live in state parks for more than
14 days as it is, and under this bill, sex offenders could still live in the park for three days since that is the amount of time they have to register their address.
The bill would only apply to moderate- and high-risk sex offenders, like child molesters, as opposed to low-risk offenders, which Stenehjem described as people who committed a sexual act with someone more than four years younger in the context of a relationship.
Sex offenders are rated from low- to high-risk by the Sex Offender Registration Advisory Committee, which considers factors like employment, residence and the crime itself to judge an offender's likelihood to reoffend.
Sex offenders who follow the law often have trouble finding a place to live since many landlords don't want to rent to them. Some end up homeless.
That was the case for Timothy Profrock, who, after serving nine years in prison, was evicted from a Mandan apartment and spent the next several weeks moving from park to park with his family before ending up at Fort Lincoln State Park.
Stenehjem said the bill was not written to include local parks because he believes they should come to that decision on their own. The bill only applies to moderate- and high-risk offenders because they are the most dangerous to children or people staying in tents versus a secure structure like a house.
The committee voted unanimously to give the bill a "do pass" recommendation. ..Source.. by REBECCA BEITSCH, Bismarck Tribune
Judges Overturn Sex Offender Rule
A few reality points: This is an -as applied to him- ruling, and the court did not declare the entire registry or their sex offender laws unconstitutional. Also, this was not a class action, hence only applicable to Mr. Smith, other would have to return to THE SAME LOWER COURT to get their own ruling. This decision is subject to appeal.2-2-2011 Louisiana:
An appellate court has ruled that the state cannot require a West Feliciana Parish man to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life or carry a special driver’s license and identification card.
The ruling by a three-judge panel of Louisiana’s 1st Circuit Court of Appeal overturns a District Court judge’s ruling against Jimmy L. Smith, who was convicted of indecent behavior with a juvenile and carnal knowledge of a juvenile when he was 19.
Charles Griffin II, Smith’s attorney, said Smith served his sentence for the 1995 convictions, completed his probation and complied with post-release registration requirements for a 10-year period after he was released from prison.
Smith said authorities told him in 2009 that he would have to register again as a sex offender for the rest of his life because the law had changed after he was convicted.
Smith complied, but challenged the order in 20th Judicial District Court. Unless the state decides to challenge the ruling, Griffin said, Smith will be able to get a driver’s license without “sex offender” written on it in orange letters.
Driver’s licenses for sex offenders must be renewed annually.
The opinion, issued Friday by Judges Vanessa G. Whipple, Jefferson D. Hughes III and Jewel E. “Duke” Welch, says case records show that Smith fulfilled his duty to register as a sex offender for the period of time that was applicable when he was convicted.
The opinion says Louisiana’s version of “Megan’s Law,” has a legitimate civil purpose to alert and protect the public from sex offenders who might offend again.
In Smith’s case, however, the amendments adopted after his conviction are “so punitive in effect as to transform what was intended as a civil remedy into an additional punishment for him.”
The retroactive application of amendments to the law violates the U.S. and Louisiana constitutions, the opinion says. ..Source.. by James Minton
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Republican lawmakers shifting tough-on-crime stance as state budget problems multiply
2-1-2011 Oklahoma:
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — When Harry Coates campaigned for the Oklahoma state Senate in 2002, he had one approach to crime: "Lock 'em up and throw away the key."
Now, Coates is looking for that key. He and other tough-on-crime lawmakers across the country, faced with steep budget shortfalls, are searching anxiously for ways to let inmates out of prison faster and keep more offenders on the street.
Oklahoma's preferred answer for crime has collided head-on with a budget deficit estimated at $600 million, and prison costs that have increased more than 30 percent in the last decade. For years, lawmakers have pushed each other to lengthen prison sentences and increase the number of criminals behind bars. Not now: This week, new Republican Speaker of the House Kris Steele is expected to unveil a package of proposals that would divert thousands of nonviolent lawbreakers from the prison system and ramp up paroles.
Similar crash prison reductions are going on from coast to coast. Michigan has shuttered 20 correctional facilities and slashed spending by nearly 7 percent. South Carolina expects to reduce its inmate numbers by 8 percent by putting drug dealers, burglars and hot check writers into community programs instead of behind bars. Nationwide, the number of state inmates actually decreased last year for the first time in nearly 40 years.
"There has been a dramatic shift," said Adam Gelb, a policy specialist with the Pew Center on the States in Washington, D.C.. "The old question was simply, how do I demonstrate that I'm tough on crime?" Now, it's "a much better question: How do I get taxpayers a better public safety return on their corrections dollars?"
Other states are trying alternatives to prison time. But in no state is the philosophical U-turn more abrupt than in Oklahoma, where last year the Legislature was barreling in the opposite direction. Lawmakers introduced 26 bills creating new felony crimes and 19 increasing penalties in 2010, even as the Department of Corrections was forcing guards and other workers to take a furlough day each month to cut costs caused by rising populations.
Oklahoma's prison population has grown from 22,600 in 2000 to nearly 26,000 now, and the budget from $366 million to $483 million last year. Unless the Legislature provides $9 million in emergency funding this year, prison officials say guards will have to take three furlough days a month beginning in March, straining the inmate-to-guard ratios that prison officials say are already the most dangerous they've been in decades.
Accepting that the lock-'em-up days are finally over has been chastening for some lawmakers, especially conservatives.
"Truthfully, it's popular to be tough on crime," said Coates, a construction company owner from Seminole. "But when I saw what we were spending on corrections and who was going into our adult prisons and for what reasons . you figure out it's not exactly like you thought," he said.
Unlike previous years, Republican leaders in Oklahoma now own the problem. The midterm elections gave the GOP the governor's office for the first time in eight years and increased majorities in both houses of the Legislature.
"I have a little heartburn about reducing penalties," said Rep. Don Armes, a Republican from rural southwestern Oklahoma. But "how do I balance that with being able to pay for it?"
Steele recently joined a delegation of lawmakers, judges and legislative staffers who visited Texas to see how that state has reduced its prison costs, trusting that Texans would do it without coddling lawbreakers.
"I believe there ought to be consequences for people who break the law, but there ought to be appropriate consequences." said Steele, a minister from Shawnee.
Texas, home of the sprawling red brick complex at Huntsville that has been a symbol of tough justice, changed course several years ago after being told it would need to accommodate 17,000 new inmates otherwise. Rather than sending all lawbreakers directly to prison, the Lone Star State beefed up funding for drug treatment and started putting more drug offenders, hot check writers and petty thieves on probation. It also is giving more chances to parolees who previously were returned to prison for technical violations, like missing required meetings or falling behind on fines and fees.
Now, more Texas criminals are on probation, fewer are in prison, and the system is actually under capacity for the first time in years, said Ana Yanez-Correa, executive director of the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition.
"Things have changed drastically in Texas," Yanez-Correa said. "And nobody suffered here in terms of political backlash."
In Oklahoma, Steele helped implement a pilot program last year to divert nonviolent female offenders with substance abuse problems into treatment instead of prison, and said he hopes to expand that program this year. Oklahoma currently is the only state in the nation in which the governor must sign every parole, and Steele said he wants to limit the governor's role in the process to only violent crimes. He also wants to expand eligibility for community sentencing and look at reducing mandatory minimum sentences for low-risk, nonviolent offenses.
The theory behind this approach is supported by research that shows merely incarcerating young, first-time criminals does little to change their behavior.
Department of Corrections officials seem optimistic that new measures will be approved because they have run out of other ways to save money. "We've already cut everything internally we could possibly cut," said DOC director Justin Jones. Mess halls, shops, training rooms and storage units have been filled with bunks to accommodate inmates. Sex offender treatment was ended. Visitation and activities requiring guard supervision was cut when staff levels dropped to 70 percent of authorized levels.
Experts on national sentencing expect almost every state to adopt the new approach sooner or later — perhaps most this year because of the state fiscal crisis. The Pew Center is now working with policymakers in Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Kentucky, Texas and Washington about adjusting sentencing policies. Nationally, states spend an estimated $50 billion each year in locking up criminals — four times the amount spent two decades ago and second only to Medicaid spending — according to the Pew Center. A study released by the group last year shows the amount states spent locking up inmates grew nearly 350 percent from $11 billion in 1987 to $48 billion in 2008.
"I got pushback," said Texas Democrat Sen. John Whitmire, who authored a several reform measures. "But you've got to believe in your product, and that is in fact tough on crime. The toughest, most conservative crime package is one that lowers recidivism." ..Source.. SEAN MURPHY
