The problem with these laws affecting RSOs is that they have an underlying premise, that a "social networking" website is one that allows one to setup a profile and communicate with other persons, and that RSOs are the only ones who will solicit minors on those sites. Besides the fact that it makes too many assumptions, and everyone knows how to spell ass-u-me, it prohibits political and religious expression on the Internet on social networking sites. Lawmakers and religious folks have MySpace and Facebook accounts and urge folks to visit them there to learn about many things political and religious in nature, including how to vote, these laws prohibit RSOs from exercising such political and religious endeavors. These laws are over-broad and as such will be the downfall of them, but not until a good lawyer decides to attack them. Where is that lawyer?
4-27-2009 North Carolina:
Starting in May, new laws will place more restrictions on sex offenders living in North Carolina.
In Cumberland County, the Sheriff’s Office will be responsible for enforcing those laws.
One makes it illegal for a registered sex offender to use a social networking Web site accessible to minors. The second requires sex offenders to provide officers with their e-mail addresses and user IDs and is similar to federal legislation passed in late 2008.
The latter bill takes affect May 1, and Debbie Tanna, spokeswoman for the Sheriff’s Office, said the department is preparing to handle the influx of information.
Registered sex offenders who don’t comply can face penalties of a year or more in prison.
Although the new laws require offenders to provide lawmen with more information, investigators say the new data is not likely to result in more arrests.
Tanna said there’s no way to ensure offenders comply.
But the threat of jail time will be motivation enough for some.
Internet monitoring
Sgt. Greg Mills, of the department’s Special Victims Unit, said that those likely to use the Internet to prey on juveniles will probably not comply with the new laws.
He already uses the Internet to find child predators by posing as a juvenile in chat rooms and on social networking sites.
Mills, who is 48, is a teenage girl to those who frequent the Internet.
On a recent Tuesday morning, his online persona cut class and joined an online chat room. After logging in, Mills crossed his arms and sat back in his seat. Within seconds, he was bombarded by requests to chat. Most of the conversations ended abruptly when Mills said his persona’s age — 13. But within 15 minutes — and with little to no prodding — one man who identified himself as being 30 years old and from Fayetteville was asking for the measurements and sexual history of Mills’ online persona.
“I pretty much let them lead the conversation,” Mills said. “You just kind of fish.”
On Tuesday, it didn’t take him long to get a bite.
“o u looking to get into trouble huh?” the unidentified 30-year-old man typed. “so u a virgin?”
Mills has conducted similar undercover operations for the Sheriff’s Office since 2006. He said he’s been targeting predators on social networks for about two years.
“It doesn’t matter where you go to. You’re going to get hit on by somebody,” Mills said. “It’s not rocket science.”
The difficult part, he said, is keeping up with changes in Internet trends and new technologies, such as improved cell phone cameras and mobile Internet capabilities that make it harder to shield juveniles from tech-savvy predators.
“It changes constantly,” Mills said. “Staying on top of it is the hardest part.”
Rise in arrests
A national study released in March shows that as Web use has risen among youth, so have arrests of online predators.
The Internet is the new frontier for sexual predators, and legislators and lawmen have pushed for more controls to combat the problem.
Mills said the focus is typically on the better-known social networks, such as MySpace or Facebook.
But, he said, there are hundreds of others. According to the law, a social networking site is any site or service where users can make a profile and interact with others. That includes popular chat applications such as Yahoo Messenger and AOL Instant Messenger.
According to the study from the University of New Hampshire’s Crimes Against Children Research Center, more than 3,000 arrests were made in 2006 after online predators solicited undercover lawmen posing as juveniles. That compares with 644 arrests in 2000.
The study looked at nationwide arrest data related to online predators.
It found that most arrests come after predators solicit lawmen. In 2006, 615 predators were arrested for soliciting juveniles. That represented a 21 percent increase from 2000, but the study points out that over the same period, Internet usage by youth grew between 73 percent and 93 percent.
At one time, worries about sex offenders were limited to who was living in the neighborhood.
But with the Internet, law enforcement, parents and lawmakers also have to be concerned about the countless number of sex offenders who live across the world.
Keeping track
The Sheriff’s Office has two deputies who work on keeping track of sex offenders. Tanna said they have begun to put an emphasis on locating sex offenders on the Internet.
Despite the staffing challenges, Tanna said the department wasn’t looking to hire more investigators to keep pace with the extra workload.
“We have to work with what we’ve got,” she said. “We do a pretty good job.”
She said deputies are already stretched thin, especially with the department overseeing police duties in Spring Lake. If any adjustments are needed once the new laws take affect, the department will have to get creative, Tanna said.
Tanna said investigators have already found several registered offenders on social networking sites and they expect to find more once the offenders are required to submit their information.
One of the biggest challenges will be tracking down registered sex offenders who use fake identities online, Tanna said.
For that, investigators will rely on the cooperation of parents and others, Mills said.
He encouraged anyone who suspects his child is falling victim to a predator or who knows of a registered sex offender using a social networking site to notify the authorities.
“How are we going to catch these guys?” he said. “It’s going to depend on the public.”
‘A parent’s nightmare’Attorney General Roy Cooper has made it a priority to address the issue of sex offenders on the Internet, specifically those who use social networking sites frequented by youth.
Cooper said the emphasis he’s placed on the issue comes from his dual roles as chief law enforcement officer for the state and a parent of three girls, including two teens.
“It’s a parent’s nightmare to have a predator solicit a child or lure that child out of the house,” he said. “The Internet gives predators the opportunity to groom several children at the same time.”
The two largest social networking sites, Facebook and MySpace, have each taken steps to combat the abuse of their networks and supported federal legislation to help combat misuse by keeping registered sex offenders off the sites.
Facebook spokesman Barry Schnitt said the steps were preventative and not in response to any problem.
“We have not yet had to handle a case of a registered sex offender meeting a minor through Facebook,” he said. “We are working hard to make sure it never happens.”
According to the University of New Hampshire study, arrests for online predators in 2006 constituted about 1percent of all arrests for sex crimes against children.
The study said there was no evidence that the Internet was fueling an epidemic of sex crimes against youth, and there was no evidence of predators using social networking sites to stalk or abduct unsuspecting victims.
Cooper said it was important for parents to be involved in their child’s Internet use.
He said that parents shouldn’t spy, but they should place the computer in a central location and develop a level of trust with their child. He also advocated the use of parental controls that are age-appropriate.
Web sites’ responses
With more than 300million users between them, representatives from Facebook and MySpace said the companies have responded to safety concerns.
MySpace has partnered with an online identity and background verification company, Sentinel Tech Holding Corp., to improve its ability to find and remove sex offenders.
“We are committed to keeping sex offenders off MySpace,” said the Web site’s chief security officer, Hemanshu Nigam, a former federal Internet crimes prosecutor and child safety advocate.
The company also has put a number of barriers in place to limit an adult’s ability to search for juveniles.
Facebook also searches for registered sex offenders and monitors its users for suspicious activity.
“Protecting our users, especially the many children who use our site has always been a top priority for Facebook,” said Schnitt. ..News Source.. by Drew Brooks, Staff writer
April 27, 2009
NC- Policing social networking for sexual predators
AZ- Mooning leads to mistrial in Willcox murder case
Hummm, well thats one way to get a new trial, but what a price to pay given the sex offender registry is the likely result!
4-27-2009 Arizona:
SIERRA VISTA - A Cochise County judge has declared a mistrial in a murder case because the defendant's brother dropped his pants, gestured and made threatening comments in the presence of jurors.
Judge Wallace Hoggatt ended the trial on Friday after jurors reported seeing and hearing acts by Steven Kastner outside the courtroom.
Kastner was attending the trial of his brother, 28-year-old Jonathan Arthur Ramil. Ramil is charged with first-degree murder for the June 2008 slaying of 43-year-old Patrick Gleason in a Willcox home.
Kastner admitted he pulled down his pants when questioned by Hoggatt, but said he did so as a joke and didn't realize jurors were nearby. He denied making a gesture that a juror reported or making remarks that another juror overheard.
Hoggatt reset the trial for June 1 and barred Kastner from the courthouse. ..News Source..
ME- BATTLING INJUSTICE
4-27-2009 Maine:
AUGUSTA -- James E. Mitchell represents 15 people, all known as John Doe, who are bucking the requirements of the state's Sex Offender Registry Act.
"It wasn't something I searched out," he said. "I thought what I saw was unfair."
In the state court case, Mitchell challenges the extent and the retroactivity of the law's lifetime registration requirement.
Injustice rankles the 67-year-old attorney from Vassalboro who also holds the part-time post of judge of probate in Kennebec County.
Mitchell, who once challenged the U.S. Immigration & Naturalization Service to get a Cambodian and Vietnamese family released from an immigration jail in Bangkok, will be recognized formally for his support of civil liberties at the American Civil Liberties Union's annual Scolnik Dinner, 6:30 p.m. May 6 at the Harraseeket Inn in Freeport.
The president of the ACLU, Susan Herman, a centennial professor of law at Brooklyn Law School, will be the featured speaker at the dinner. Herman wrote two books and numerous articles on civil liberties issues, including the USA Patriot Act, socioeconomic rights and equality, and the First Amendment, according to an announcement about the dinner.
"I was surprised" to be recognized, Mitchell said in an interview at his law office at Winthrop and Sewall streets. "It wasn't something I expected or campaigned for. It's quite an honor to be chosen by that group. I have a high regard for them and their practice of standing up for people who would otherwise have no one on their side."
Mitchell and Jed Davis have been partners in the law firm Mitchell & Davis since 1977, and there are two other Mitchell attorneys associated with the firm: Mitchell's daughter, Emily Mitchell; and Mitchell's wife, Elizabeth "Libby" Mitchell, who is president of the Maine Senate.
Mitchell's son, Charlie Mitchell, also is an attorney who now works as a lobbyist for the Maine Community College System. He was previously national security counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union in Washington, D.C., and currently serves on the board of the Maine Civil Liberties Union.
"I was not on the nominating committee, but I voted for him," Charlie Mitchell said.
The Scolnik Dinner is named for Maine Civil Liberties Union founder, former Maine Supreme Court Justice Louis Scolnik. Scolnik himself is expected at the dinner, according to a staffer at the office of the Maine Civil Liberties Union.
Mitchell came to Maine from his native Arkansas to serve as federal-state coordinator in the administration of then-Gov. Kenneth Curtis and also served as chairman and director of the Maine State Housing Authority.
Years later, his wife held the same housing authority post.
Mitchell has been probate judge in Kennebec County -- an elective post -- since January 1979.
"We oversee people and property who can't oversee themselves," Mitchell said. The court generally deals with guardianship, adoptions, estates and trusts.
The Mitchells have four grown children and six grandchildren. ..News Source.. by BETTY ADAMS, Staff Writer
SD- 'Sexting' case in hands of authorities
These parents have no idea what they have done to their children. Clearly they should have handled it without involving the police as these cases should be handled, absent further dissemination of pictures.
4-27-2009 South Dakota:
BROOKINGS, S.D. (AP) Authorities in Brookings say the parents of two teenagers reported their children after the young people were caught using their cell phones to send nude pictures of themselves to each other.
Brookings police say the investigation continues in the case involving a male and female, ages 16 and 17. The state's attorney will decide whether charges should be considered.
Police say young people don't understand the ramifications that the practice, which has been dubbed 'sexting,' can have.
Some courts have ruled that such pictures constitute child pornography.
According to one study, 22 percent of girls and 18 percent of boys say they have electronically sent nude or semi-nude pictures of themselves and 39 percent of teens have sent sexually suggestive text messages or e-mails. ..News Source.. by KX.net
FL- For innocent convicts in Florida, legal project is a lifeline
4-27-2009 Florida:
TALLAHASSEE — The letters come, sometimes eight to 10 a day, filled with everything from indignation to outrage to humble pleas for help.
Amy Kochanasz, a 25-year-old graduate student, retrieves them from her mail slot in the laid-back law office where she works. She admires the flashy, graffitilike handwriting of some; thinks others would make good movie scripts; wonders about the ones who try to sound like lawyers.
"I believe that I am totally innocense, and it's further believed that I was set up," one convict wrote.
It's up to Kochanasz and others at the Innocence Project of Florida to figure out whether that's true.
The Innocence Project was founded in 1992 by New York defense lawyers Barry Scheck and Peter Neufeld; it has since expanded into a network of more than 50 groups across the country. For years these lawyers specialized in using DNA evidence to exonerate people wrongly convicted of crimes from rape to murder. They have exonerated 237 people across the country, including 10 in Florida.
Lately the organization has branched out into cases involving bullet analysis, glass comparisons, palm prints and evidence-sniffing dogs. The National Academy of Sciences has cast doubt on these forensic tests, providing an opportunity for the Innocence Project and the inmates they represent.
The Florida office — a few rooms in an old wood-frame house — has four full-time lawyers, an investigator and a dozen students and interns who help with the cases. It is funded by grants and foundations.
Recently, the staff let a reporter inside to see how they choose their cases.
The process is a lot like sifting for gold. Of the 3,000 inmates who have asked for help since the office opened six years ago, 90 percent have received rejection letters. Rarely do the lawyers find someone like Wilton Dedge or Alan Crotzer, both wrongly convicted of rape.
Still, every letter gets a look. Each represents a person's last shot at freedom.
• • •
The four lawyers and three students gather in a bare room with mismatched chairs. Just about every one of them — even the lawyers — is wearing jeans.
On the table for review: the case summaries of eight men who say they are innocent.
These cases have already made it past Kochanasz and the other intake specialist, a lawyer who has gathered trial transcripts, court documents and lab reports, and made a recommendation. Now the cases are ready for a decision.
All of these men have been convicted and sentenced to decades and, in some cases, life in prison. But to the folks at the Innocence Project they are — once again — innocent until proven guilty.
They begin with an exterminator convicted of strangling an elderly woman with a dress in her bathtub. The only physical evidence against him: a partial palm print on the bathtub. It could have gotten there when he did his job. Forensic analysts created a full print from the partial one that supposedly matched his hand, but was it really his?
This will be their first palm print case if they take it. A step toward the unknown. But can they get the case thrown out with just that?
They're willing to give it a try.
"I like this case," executive director Seth Miller says. "I'd like to know if they have the print available to look at and a good explanation of what they did to it."
They move on to a pair of rapists. The cases seemed promising when they came in. But the staff turned up lab reports showing that the male DNA found on the raped women belongs to the convicts. These men will get rejection letters: "We're sorry we can't assist you further. We wish you the best of luck in your efforts."
Next: a guy convicted of shooting a restaurant manager making a bank deposit. A witness produced a box of bullets that supposedly belonged to the shooter. And the FBI said the lead from the bullets in the box matched the lead in the bullet that was fired in the crime.
They'll take this one for sure.
The FBI first used comparative bullet lead analysis in the Kennedy assassination, and over the years it became common practice. But in 2004, the National Academy of Sciences said linking a bullet to a specific box of bullets is a dubious business. A year later, the FBI stopped using the process and is informing prosecutors around the country of their about-face.
The Innocence Project knows of about 20 people in Florida who were convicted at least partly on comparative bullet lead analysis; several have become clients. One, Jimmy Ates, a Baker County high school teacher convicted of killing his wife in 1998, won a new trial recently, the first in the nation to do so.
"The next one," said lawyer Kitty Farias, flipping a page, "is a sad and strange tale."
This man has been in prison since 1995 for trying to rape a woman in a ditch behind a convenience store. The only physical evidence against him is a cap that resembled one he was wearing. It turned up a few feet away in the wet ditch. And someone saw him with wet pants soon after the crime.
Farias says she has tried to find the hat so she can have its brim tested for his DNA.
"But everything in this was destroyed," she says glumly. The evidence is gone.
Miller pipes up. "One point of caution," he says. He tells Farias not to reject this case until she makes sure the evidence was really destroyed.
"Ask for proof," he says.
Sometimes, as Miller knows through experience, evidence that appears to have been lost still exists.
• • •
On a recent Tuesday afternoon, Alan Crotzer stops by the offices of the Innocence Project of Florida carrying a McDonald's lunch. He makes the rounds with the lawyers, the intake clerks, the college students who are working up more Alan Crotzers on their computers.
He's a regular here, and a living example of what innocence lawyers can do.
Crotzer, 48, was accused, with two other men, of raping a woman and her 12-year-old daughter in Tampa in 1981. For years he insisted he was innocent, but by the time the Innocence Project looked into his case, all of the evidence seemed to have been destroyed.
Then one of his lawyers from New York located an old filing cabinet in the basement of a Florida Department of Law Enforcement lab in Tampa.
Inside: DNA slides from his case.
Crotzer was exonerated with a DNA test three years ago and now works for the Department of Juvenile Justice in Tallahassee.
He stops by the Innocence Project from time to time, to say hello and offer encouragement.
"I want to give hope and pride," he says, "to those involved in this." ..News Source.. by Leonora LaPeter Anton, Times Staff Writer
Woman to woman: Consequences for sexting could be missing the mark
4-27-2009 National:
Should we decriminalize the sending of racy photos via call phones by teenagers?
Good news. Our courts are going after child pornographers with a vengeance, using technology such as cell phones and social networking sites to locate and trap these heinous criminals and throw the book at them. The only glitch is that the scum appears to be our kids.
Youthful hormones and high-tech communication have dovetailed, and the result is sexting: sending racy pictures via cell phone.
Think this dangerous and vile behavior is part of an edgy subculture? A recent survey by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy claims that 20 percent of our teens are involved in sexting activities.
"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity," Einstein once said, making me wonder if he saw this one coming.
I'm shocked by how widespread this activity has become and grateful to live in a community filled with adults who are on it in a big way, from academic and home life consequences to strict monitoring of teen behavior. Still, I'm more shocked by the way the law has swooped in to label young, impulsive teenagers as child pornographers.
Really? That's how we fix this? A boy in Texas is arrested on child pornography charges for simply having a racy photo on his phone. A 14-year-old New Jersey girl posts explicit pictures of herself on MySpace and could be forced to register as a sex offender under Megan's Law.
Even Maureen Kanka, Megan's mother, is appalled. "This shouldn't fall under Megan's Law in any way, shape or form," the mother of raped and murdered Megan Kanka declared, understanding that the MySpace exhibitionist needs help, not an avalanche of legal restrictions that will ruin her life forever.
Legislators in Vermont are trying to stop the madness, creating a bill that would remove the most serious legal consequences for sexting kids, such as a lifetime on the state's sex offender registry. However Vermont's governor is disinclined to support such a bill, feeling that decisions about these charges should be left up to prosecutors.
Either Gov. Jim Douglas hasn't been reading the same stories I have, or he thinks the best way to deal with teens is to brand them child pornographers and sex offenders. Makes me kind of wonder if it's our legal system that has exceeded our humanity.
Andrea Cornell Sarvady is a writer and educator in Atlanta. She received a bachelor's degree in English from San Francisco State University and a master's degree in counseling with an emphasis in marital and family therapy from the University of San Francisco. Her writing career developed in tandem with her nonprofit and educational endeavors, including teaching developmentally disabled adults.
Making young teens register as sex offenders is foolish, but decriminalization is not the solution - especially for those who pass along sexual images without consent. Let's not ignore the most relevant question: Is this new and exploding behavioral trend good, bad or neutral for those involved and for the public at large?
Many must believe it is neutral or even trivial, if they prefer no systematic consequences. But it is flat-out wrong and dangerous, often with life-impacting consequences for those involved. Especially for the female subjects who are left with their reputations in tatters and futures in doubt, while the teen male traffickers get off scot-free.
As Vicki Courtney, author of "Five Conversations You Must Have With Your Daughter," said: "Girls often are convinced to do this for the guys to get their attention. Then in a breakup situation, the guys often use it against them later. If you legalize sexting, the guys come out as the clear winners. The girls pay."
One of the main reasons teens do this is that they don't think it's a big deal. And how will they ever recognize that it is without systemic consequences?
Most of these same kids never would steal a DVD or some other item from a store. They may be tempted to do so, but they know it is wrong and that if they get caught they will be punished. Being 15 years old and stupid is no excuse.
Passing along someone else's sexual image is far worse than stealing, yet Andrea wants to make being young and impulsive a legal free pass.
By contrast, Kari Glemaker, national director for iCare, an initiative of the National Coalition for the Protection of Parents and Families, said: "If you shoplift as a minor, there is still a consequence, just not as big as for an adult. Similarly, my county is looking to define sexting as a misdemeanor, without jail time if there is no other criminal background, possibly with a fine or community service, as well as awareness classes. To say there should be no legal consequence until age 18 is ludicrous."
Andrea and those other parents agree that sexting is a big deal, but they are saying that we shouldn't treat it as such. I say if we don't treat it as the big deal it really is, then teenagers will never realize it is one.
Shaunti Feldhahn began her career as an analyst on Wall Street and became a best-selling author and speaker who also writes a weekly opinion column for the online edition of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. A graduate of the College of William and Mary with a bachelor's degree in government and economics, she earned a master's degree from Harvard University in public policy. ..News Source.. by Shaunti Feldhahn
April 26, 2009
OH- State bill looks to more closely monitor released sex offenders
4-26-2009 Ohio:
Columbus -- Violent sexual offenders would face civil commitments after completing prison terms and be required to wear electronic monitoring devices after their final release in the community, under legislation introduced in the Ohio Senate.
The bill, sponsored by Sen. Keith Faber (R-Celina), also would require offenders to pay for the cost of monitoring them with global positioning systems.
"This measure will aid in alleviating administrative cost and shifting the burden onto the appropriate entity, the perpetrator of the crime," Faber told the Senate's criminal justice committee April 22.
The legislation includes provisions requiring the state's director of mental health to provide for the "control, care and treatment in a secure facility" after offenders deemed to be violent sexual offenders are released from prison.
The bill is aimed at the worst of the worst offenders -- those most likely to commit other sexual offenses after their release, Faber said.
"Civil commitment provides a unique way to continue the rehabilitation and confinement of these high-risk individuals," he said. "While civilly committing these prisoners will have costs associated with it, there are also significant costs associated with the premature release of these individuals.
"Aside from the steep costs sexual predators place on law enforcement and the courts, there are also the incalculable emotional and societal costs associated with these crimes." ..News Source.. by Marc Kovac
MD- Registries for sex offenders vex states
4-26-2009 Maryland:
Maryland asks for extension
Maryland lawmakers are at odds over how to keep track of hundreds of juvenile sex offenders even though a 3-year-old federal law requires that they be registered in a national database.
The statute, called the Adam Walsh Act after the slain son of "America's Most Wanted" host John Walsh, establishes a national online registry for both juvenile and adult sex offenders and organizes them into three categories, according to the severity of their crime.
Tier-one offenders must update their whereabouts every year for 15 years, while tier-two offenders must do so every six months for 25 years. Third-tier offenders are required to check in every three months for the rest of their lives.
The act was signed into law by President Bush in 2006, and states have until July of this year to become compliant or face cuts in federal funding. To date, no state has become fully compliant. Last month, Maryland joined 30 other states in applying for a one-year extension.
State lawmakers say they have encountered pitfalls because the law runs contrary to the state's legal philosophy of protecting the records of juvenile offenders from public view.
"It puts the state in a difficult bind," said Delegate Michael D. Smigiel Sr., Cecil Republican, a member of the House Judiciary Committee. "It's easy just to say, 'Lock them up and throw away the key,' but there is a matter of balancing of our own public policies and making sure all these individuals are listed, and sometimes that's easier said than done."
So far, Maryland has revised its existing registry laws so offenders must provide a copy of their driver's license, e-mail address, former names, nicknames and computer log-in or screen names.
Legislation also was passed in April to ensure certain juvenile offenders are registered.
According to a task force set up in 2005 by the state Department of Juvenile Services, in 2004 there were 195 juvenile sex offenders in residential placements in Maryland, and 275 offenders were living at home and being treated in their communities.
Delegate Jill P. Carter, Baltimore Democrat and a defense lawyer, said it was unfair for a juvenile to be faced with the "humiliation" of the sex-offender label.
"I'm not inclined to support sweeping up children into this mandate. A lot of times juvenile offenders are victims of abuse as well, and sometimes charges are overblown. I think it's unfair," she said.
Lawmakers are also concerned with the retroactive application of the act, saying that many offenders could be stigmatized for offenses committed decades earlier.
"Sometimes the point is lost when you try to group everyone all in the same category. It's definitely a balancing act," Mr. Smigiel said.
Parole and probation agents agree with the tougher restrictions, however, even when it comes to juveniles, and they do not see why the state has been slow to comply with the act.
"It's a travesty that we haven't gotten our act together on this," said Rai Douglass, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union, Local 3661, which represents parole and probation agents in Maryland. "Juveniles or not, people have a right to know if a violent sex offender lives next door."
Maryland has not been alone in its static posture. Currently, no state has become fully compliant, while only a few, including Ohio, Florida, Delaware, Louisiana and Oklahoma, have adopted the act's key provisions.
Sen. Patrick J. Leahy, Vermont Democrat and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said in a letter to the Justice Department that most states could not become compliant because of "unforeseen difficulties," such as the fact the department's final guidelines were not issued until June 2008.
"A situation where all states are unable to comply ... and suffer penalties as a result does not help the vital goals of the act," Mr. Leahy said.
Many states are also hesitant to commit to legislation as numerous legal challenges to the act have crept up in the last year.
In September, U.S. District Judge James Mahan ruled that Nevada's adoption of the act was unconstitutional because it violated due process, and the state has yet to consider legislation related to the statute since.
Last month, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, in Florida, ruled that the act's registration requirement was constitutional because it fell under the Commerce Clause powers of the U.S. Congress.
On April 20, the 9th District Court of Appeals also upheld the law as applied retroactively to sex offenders in the state.
States that are not compliant face a 10 percent reduction in a federal funding grant for state law enforcement agencies, which in the case of Maryland amounts to about $2 million.
State officials say losing the funds would be a critical blow for agencies already suffering from cutbacks owing to the state's $2 billion budget shortfall.
"This is a challenge," said Kristen Mahoney, executive director of the Governor's Office for Crime Control and Prevention. "It's an important grant and every penny counts, especially now." ..News Source.. by Michael Drost
WA- Wash. lawmakers approve less offender oversight
4-26-2009 Washington:
The state would save millions of dollars by cutting back supervision of released criminals — including murderers and rapists — under a bill that has passed the Washington Legislature.
Lawmakers are scrambling for virtually every dollar they can find to patch a $9 billion deficit, and the trimming of community supervision could save about $48 million through mid-2011.
The measure calls for the state to supervise fewer criminals when they're not behind bars, and cut the maximum length of supervision for those who are watched. Senators passed the bill Saturday on a 26-23 vote, sending it to Gov. Chris Gregoire for final approval.
Supporters said the changes will make supervision schemes more efficient, eliminating practices that are not shown to improve public safety. But minority Republicans, including some who supported earlier versions of the reforms, found the version approved Saturday unacceptable.
Sen. Mike Carrell, R-Lakewood, read from a list of crimes for which community supervision could be cut, including murder, manslaughter, assault, kidnapping and rape.
"The number one thing that we should be doing is public safety," Carrell said.
Sen. Jim Hargrove, D-Hoquiam, countered that studies show no significant effect on crime rates under the kind of supervision changes spelled out in the bill. Hargrove also pointed to support from prosecutors and sheriffs for the changes.
"At some point in time, all of these heinous crimes you are talking about, people will be off supervision," Hargrove said. "We do not supervise them for life."
The bill would remove the current blanket requirement for community supervision of anyone sentenced to probation in superior court for a misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor.
The measure also would remove the requirement that Washington's Department of Corrections oversee released felons who rank in the two lowest risk categories for committing other crimes.
Instead, the state would supervise:
_Sex offenders, whether convicted of a felony or misdemeanor.
_High-risk felons and felons serving indeterminate sentences.
_Offenders considered to be dangerously mentally ill, and those required to be sentenced under agreements with other states.
_Criminals subject to alternative sentencing programs for drugs, sex crimes and first-time offenses.
_Those convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence, if they have certain prior convictions.
Community supervision also would be assigned as a flat term, rather than in a range of time set by corrections officials.
For example, sex offenders would be supervised for three years, rather than a range of three to four years. Serious violent offenders would get a flat three years of supervision, rather than the current two to four years.
..News Source.. by CURT WOODWARD
