Slate Article: The Ridiculous Laws That Put People on the Sex Offender List

Slate published a similar series worth reading, see "Listed for Life" which has links to all of the articles.

8-12-2014 National:

Three maps show states that register people as sex offenders for consensual teenage sex, peeing in public, and prostitution.

On his 18th birthday, Virgil McCranie and his 14-year-old girlfriend of one year, Misty, decided to have sex. Because of their ages, that meant McCranie committed the crime of statutory rape. When Misty told her father months later, after finding out that McCranie had cheated on her, he went to the police. In 1994, McCranie struck a deal with prosecutors, pleading no contest to lewd and lascivious behavior. He avoided prison, but as part of the deal, he had to register as a sex offender.

In time, Virgil and Misty reconciled, eventually got married, and began raising four children together. “It was a mistake, it happened, I’ve been with her since, I’ve loved her before then,” he told a local news channel 14 years later.

At that moment, McCranie was a still a registered sex offender. He says that he lost 17 jobs because of his status. Worse, he couldn’t attend his sons’ games and his daughter’s dance recitals. “I wish I could take it back,” Misty told the Florida Sun-Sentinel. “Once we got back together I realized how detrimental it was to him.”

In the end, McCranie was one of the lucky ones. He applied to then–Florida Gov. Charlie Crist for a pardon and received one. Others like him, however, remain on the registries. In at least 29 states—from Alabama to Wisconsin—consensual sex between teenagers is a crime that can lead to sex offender status. “No group is out there saying that they want Romeo and Juliet to be on the registry,” Brenda Jones, executive director of Reform Sex Offender Laws, a volunteer advocacy group, told me. “But lawmakers aren’t paying attention, and we as constituents are not aware.”

As you can see in the maps below, consensual sex between teenagers is just one of several crimes far removed from violent felonies that can land one on a sex offender registry. Kansas and at least five other states require registration for some prostitution-related offences, such as solicitation or running a brothel. In Michigan and at least 11 other states, urinating in public is.*

One possible reason for the long list of registry-worthy crimes is plea bargains like McCranie’s. Lawmakers may be ensuring that sex offenders won’t escape registration by pleading to lower-level offenses. But at what cost? ..Continue to Maps.. by Chanakya Sethi

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7 Surprising Things That Could Make You A Sex Offender

10-9-2013 National:

We recently reported on a 10-year-old child who's required to register as a sex offender for abusing younger boys on an Arizona Army base.

It's hard to imagine that a sex offender registry — a public database run by states - would include anybody who wasn't an adult pedophile or a rapist or seriously dangerous in some way. But sex offender registries can ensnare and publicly humiliate people who haven't victimized anybody at all.

Here are some of the more surprising ways you can end up on a sex offender registry:

1) Taking naked photos of yourself — if you're a minor. Teenagers who take nude photographs of themselves could get charged with child pornography and be put on sex registries, according to a 2013 report from Human Rights Watch. Kids who send naked photos that are viewed in another state could be charged with a federal crime, personal injury lawyer Linda Jane Chalat has written.

A 15-year-old girl in Pennsylvania was charged in 2004 with spreading child porn after taking nude photos of herself and putting them online, according to Human Rights Watch. She was still on the sex offender registry as of 2012.

2) Visiting a prostitute. While former New York governor Eliot Spitzer does not appear to be on New York's sex offender registry, patronizing a prostitute is considered a "registerable offense" in the Empire State. Until recently, some prostitutes in Louisiana could be registered sex offenders, too.

3) Peeing in public. At least 13 states require sex offender registration for public urination, according to Human Rights Watch's comprehensive review of sex offender laws in 2007. Two of those states specify that the urination must happen in front of a minor.

4) Flashing your breasts. You can get arrested for indecent exposure in California if you flash your breasts in front of a lot of people in order to gratify yourself or offend somebody else, according to the Shouse Law Group, a group of California criminal defense lawyers. And indecent exposure can land you on the sex offender registry.

5) Having consensual sex with a teenager, even if you're a teenager, too. At least 29 states require teenagers who have had consensual sex with each other to register as sex offenders, according to the Human Rights Watch Report from 2007. In Georgia, a woman named Wendy Whitaker was on the sex offender registry for years for having sex with a classmate when she was 17 and he was 15.

6) Sleeping with your sister. Incest is not just a social taboo; it's also illegal in a lot of states. Football player Tony Washington learned that lesson the hard way after getting in trouble for having sex with his 15-year-old sister when he was 16. "I didn't know it was illegal," Washington told ESPN in 2010. Washington, who had an incredibly troubled home life, pleaded guilty to prohibitive sexual conduct, according to the Toronto Star. He was charged under a Texas law that bars sexual contact between family members. He became a registered sex offender. His past continued to haunt him.

7) Giving another child a hug. There's been momentum recently to get rid of requirements that children register as sex offenders, the Wall Street Journal reported. Five residents of Colorado who were found delinquent for sex crimes as kids recently sued the state to fight a law that forced them to register as sex offenders, according to the Journal. One of those Colorado residents had been accused of trying to hug a girl at his elementary school too much when he was 13. ..Source..

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AL- 81-year-old woman to be tried for urinating in bushes of Bienville Square

8-3-2009 Alabama:

MOBILE, Ala. -- An 81-year-old woman with a self-described incontinence problem awaits trial on a charge of public lewdness after Mobile police arrested her for urinating in the bushes in Bienville Square.

Police said that they've been tightening enforcement in the downtown square in response to complaints, but Lula Mae Battle's lawyer said his client's arrest was an overreaction.

Battle, who will be 82 by the time her case goes to trial Sept. 15, said she was having a bladder emergency the morning of June 3 while at her bank, which is adjacent to the park, but was told that the branch didn't have a restroom available to the public.

She headed for the restrooms on the far side of the park, she said, but was unable to make it and began to urinate, so she jumped for cover in the bushes surrounding a small building.

The small building turned out to be a Mobile police substation manned by a cadet. He called for an officer and had her arrested.

Battle said that she pleaded with the officer not to take her to jail, but the officer deferred to the cadet because he actually witnessed the act.

Why was he looking? Is this really a case of voyeurism?

Jay Casey, Battle's lawyer, called the decision to arrest an elderly woman with a bladder problem "ridiculously silly." She was booked into Mobile County Metro Jail, her mug shot taken, and released on $500 bail.

"This is something that should have caused pity, not anger," he said. "Another officer might have said, 'I'm sorry, ma'am, can I get you a towel?'"

Battle's arrest shouldn't be viewed in isolation, said Maj. Mike Barton. Public urination in the square is an ongoing problem, he said, and the frequent cause of complaints by the public.

In fact, the substation was built in 2006 specifically to help deal with some of the problems in the area -- from panhandling to public urination to bathing in the fountain and restrooms, said Deputy Chief James Barber.

Officers have some discretion on whether to arrest someone, Barton said, but sometimes, particularly in response to repeated complaints, "we have to take action and let a judge decide."

Public lewdness is not a charge for which officers can simply write a ticket, Barber said.

Barton pointed out that another man was arrested that same day for allegedly urinating in public. Andrece Leon Knight, 59, also was charged with public lewdness.

Knight's criminal record includes convictions for third-degree burglary and criminal mischief as well as several other arrests on charges that were eventually dropped, according to online Alabama court records.

Battle's record shows no prior arrests.

She said she's not angry with the police. She just wishes they could have understood that she wasn't trying to be rude; she just didn't have a choice.

"If you got to go," she said, "you got to go." ..Source.. by Robert McClendon, Staff Reporter

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MI- Market owner held in fatal shooting of man who urinated behind building

2-19-2009 Michigan:

The 69-year-old owner of an east side Detroit fish market is in custody after he allegedly shot and killed a man for urinating on his building.

Meanwhile, longtime business neighbors say there has to be more to the story.

“Peeing on the side of the building isn’t going to make someone that mad,” said David Short, owner of Gratiot Pelkey Auto. Short’s building shares a wall with Asian Fisheries, 13516 Gratiot, the spot of Tuesday’s 7 p.m. shooting. “There’s a lot worse things going on where we’re at,” Short said.

But investigators say that’s why a 36-year-old man died, Detroit Police spokesman James Tate said. Officials aren’t releasing the name of the alleged shooter, Tate said. But he said the suspect spotted the victim relieving himself behind the building, then told another man, “Go get my gun.” After shooting the man urinating, the suspect then took off in a tan Lincoln, and the man who got the gun fled in a black truck, Tate said.

Tanya Armstrong, who works across the street at Lewis Tool Rental, said the alleged gunman is a “gentleman.”

“That doesn’t seem like something he would do,” she said. “I get my fish and crab legs from there. He and his son are very nice people and they’ve seen their share of crime.”

“I just figured this had something to do with a robbery attempt,” Armstrong said.

Short said his neighbor, married with children and living in Detroit, at times would give away food from his fish market to those hungry for a meal.

“The man would give anybody the shirt off his back,” Short said. “He’d give homeless people dinners. People who came by that didn’t have any money, he’d give them fish dinners.

“I can assure you there’s a lot more than what we’re hearing,” Short said.

Since the fish market opened in 1998 or 1999, the neighborhood has seen its share of crime, he added. And that’s what makes Short think that someone urinating wouldn’t incite his neighbor to the point of violence.

“He’s looked the other way too many other times,” Short said. “He’s watched people stripping the copper out of houses, and said, ‘Hey, stop that.’ I’ve seen people irate at him, but him never getting out of line.”

No one was answering the phone at Asian Fisheries this afternoon. ..News Source.. by TAMMY STABLES BATTAGLIA • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER

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GA- On-Campus Public Pee Contests At UGA May Have Serious Consequences

9-30-2008 Georgia:

I’m not ashamed to admit to having some questionable judgment when ingesting large amounts of alcohol, but my idiot friends took the cake while tailgating for the UGA-Bama game.

After having to hit up the nasty messes known as porta-potties on numerous occasions on Saturday, they decided to find alternative places to go. It was hot, they were drunk, and most importantly, they were sick of waiting in lines when they HAD to go. So a few of them decided to just find places to go (usually between cars) and time themselves to see who went the longest. Both cool and classy, I’m aware.

While a friend finished timing his 1 minute, 7 second stream, he heard someone coming behind him. Unfortunately, it was a less-than-amused cop.

Although he got off with a warning, the cop informed us that during the GA Southern game he gave someone a ticket for public exposure under similar circumstances. The kid had previously been caught peeing downtown one night, and once again outside a party. That's three times and apparently there is a law that states if you are caught for public exposure on three occasions, you have to register as a sex offender.

Yeah, like one of those guys you see on hidden-camera shows. The habitual public-pisser now can’t live within a certain number of feet of schools or even bus stops, and has to register his home location at all times. He relieved himself while drunk three times and now he’s publicly known as a sex offender. And it stays with you-undoubtedly influencing what job you get, where you can live, and most importantly, your social life.

So save yourself the embarrassment and either zip up, or at least adapt the public pee game to involve some sort of watchdog. ..News Source.. by Tony

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Lawmakers: Public urination shouldn't lead to sex offender status

1-31-2008 New Hampshire:

KINGSTON - Starting next year, urinating in public could land you on the sex offender registry.

But two state lawmakers are trying to make sure that doesn't happen.

"People who are caught in a situation of public urination, as part of the complaint they're charged with indecent exposure," said Rep. David Welch, R-Kingston.

This year, that isn't a problem. But starting next year, when New Hampshire complies with a new federal law (Adam Walsh Act), anyone convicted of two indecent exposure charges within three years will have to register as a sex offender.

Welch and Rep. Stephen Shurtleff, D-Penacook, think that's wrong.

"I know there are many homeless people in New Hampshire," Shurtleff said. "There are older people with medical conditions ... and also young people may have too much to drink in a bar."

While there should be a law against public urination, he said, the penalty should fit the crime.

Sex offenders must live with numerous restrictions: they're not allowed to live near schools, they often can't coach youth sports, and they're not allowed to stay in homeless shelters, Shurtleff said.

Beyond that, a number of people have been forced, at one time or another, to relieve themselves outdoors, Welch said.

"I don't think it's a major crime wave," he said. "I think what happens is, in most cases, these things happen if the individual might have a medical reason, he just can't help himself; hunters, there's no bathroom in the woods."

That's why the two lawmakers have offered a different law - one that prohibits public urination. Violating the law would result in a violation - a fine that wouldn't leave a permanent criminal record.

Shurtleff had originally recommended a Class B misdemeanor charge, which would leave a permanent criminal record. But he said Welch convinced him the violation charge is preferable.

The issue came up when the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 was passed. A federal law, the Child Protection Act means states will have to start treating indecent exposure cases differently.

Shurtleff is on the committee tasked with aligning the new federal requirements with their New Hampshire law. When he realized that public urination - which is typically punished by a fine - could land someone on a sex offender registry, he proposed a bill to change that rule, House Bill 1294. He expects the bill to be taken up sometime next week.

Kingston police Chief Donald Briggs said these charges are pretty rare, anyway.

"We have a few incidents a year referencing indecent exposure," he said, but doubted there are more than two or three instances over a 12-month period. ..more.. by Gordon Fraser , Staff writer

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New Bill: Take the 'P' out of pervert

Urinating in public would cop a fine, not sex offender rap
1-29-2008 New Hampshire:

CONCORD — The New Hampshire Legislature is set to review a bill (HB 1294) that aims to fix a loophole that allows individuals who urinate in public to be placed on the state's sex offender registry.

According to the measure's primary sponsor, Rep. Stephen Shurtleff of Merrimack, the bill would separate public urination and defecation from the indecent exposure provision, elements that heretofore have been prosecuted together under state law. Under the proposed law, relieving oneself in public would move into the realm of a violation punishable by a fine.

Shurtleff said the bill became necessary in his eyes because New Hampshire is changing its sexual predator laws to move into compliance with federal law. If the bill does not pass, he said public-urination offenders could end up on the non-public sex offender registry if convicted twice in a three-year period.

"It's about keeping people off the registry that really shouldn't be on it. For example, you have some homeless people with varying degrees of mental problems who might (urinate or defecate in public) and it's not a sexual offense," Shurtleff said. "There's a stigma attached with the indecent exposure connection."

Portsmouth Police Chief Michael Magnant said Portsmouth doesn't use the state law on lewdness or indecent exposure when someone who urinates in public is apprehended, instead citing them for a violation of a city ordinance. He noted that the state law requires that those making use of the street as a bathroom have to have caused public alarm to be convicted under the heading of indecent exposure.

"That adds an extra element that we have to prove in court," Magnant said.

The chief said the Portsmouth Police Department monitors sex offenders closely and keeps track of where they are living. Partly because of the work involved in that, he echoed Shurtleff's view that the registry needs to be kept free of offenders who do not deserve the label.

"If you start to clutter that list, you're putting strain on a department," Magnant said.

Shurtleff said that, thus far, the bill has seen no opposition in the Legislature. He said he expects it to go up for debate on the floor in less than a month. ..more.. by Dave Choate

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