Watch: Okla. Deputy Shoots Sex Offender that Stabbed Him

10-24-17 Arkansas:

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The Sequoyah County Sheriff's Office has released bodycam video of a deputy shooting a stabbing suspect.

The deputy, Christian Good, was serving two warrants for the arrest of convicted sex offender, Phillip Trammell, on Friday.

As Good searched a room, Trammell stabbed him twice with a knife. That's when Good shot and killed him.

Sheriff Larry Lane said in a press conference Tuesday this is not what an officer wants to happen, and it can be a heavy burden to bear.

Good was taken to the hospital soon after the shooting. He is expected to make a full recovery.

Oklahoma State Police are investigating the incident.

Watch the video. It does contain strong content that some viewers may find disturbing.

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Convicted Sex Offender Dead After Stabbing Sequoyah County Deputy

10-20-17 Arkansas:

SEQUOYAH COUNTY (KFSM) -- A convicted sex offender was killed after stabbing a Sequoyah County deputy in Muldrow Friday (Oct. 20).

According to Sheriff Larry Lane, a deputy was taken to Sparks Regional Medical Center with stab wounds. Investigators said he was stabbed in the arm and chest and will be released after he is treated. His name has not been released at this time.

Investigators confirmed to 5NEWS that the deputy was on duty at the time of the stabbing, and that a Muldrow police officer drove him to the hospital.

Undersheriff Greg Cox said a deputy and a Muldrow police officer went to a residence at 10th and Enid at about 4:25 p.m. to serve an arrest warrant. Phillip Trammell was wanted for forgery, child support and out of compliance with sex offender registry. The officers went looking for Trammell and found him hiding under a pile of clothes, Cox said. Trammell reportedly lunged at the officers, and after a scuffle the suspect was shot and killed, according to Cox. ..Source..

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Does new Arkansas law force women to get rapists' OK before getting abortion? ACLU thinks so

7-15-17 Arkansas:

Arkansas has some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the country, and a new one set to go into effect at the end of the month has drawn the ire of the ACLU.
The American Civil Liberties Union has sued to block the law, which it says would force a woman who's been sexually assaulted to get permission from her rapist before she has an abortion.
READ THE LAWSUIT

The law -- known as House Bill 1566, or the Tissue Disposal Mandate -- requires a fetus to be disposed of in a manner consistent with existing state law that says when a family member dies, other family members have to agree on what to do with the body. The ACLU and others interpret that as meaning that a woman would have to tell and get permission from her partner (or, if the woman is under 18, her family) if she wanted to get an abortion.

But the Arkansas state representative who sponsored the law said that's not its intention. Rep. Kim Hammer, a Republican, told CNN affiliate KNWA the law aims to ensure that fetuses aren't thrown away with medical waste.
"The intent of the bill was to separate the unborn baby from medical waste, as previous to the bill the baby could be disposed with medical waste," Hammer said.

"After that baby is dead, what do you do with the body? You can't just throw him away," Sheila Pursell, the director of Northwest Arkansas Respect Life, told KNWA. "He's not a piece of trash. He's not road kill just dispensed in a garbage dump." ..Continued..

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Disabled man released from sex-offender list

6-24-17 Arkansas:

A Pulaski County circuit judge has released a 38-year-old brain-damaged Little Rock man from an 18-year-old court order requiring him to register as a sex offender, ruling that Andrew Baxter Low is not a danger to the community.

Judge Barry Sims said after a hearing on Monday that he was persuaded by the testimony of Low's psychologist of nearly 20 years.

The psychologist said Low, who suffered skull and spine-fracturing injuries as a 12-year-old Boy Scout, is not a threat to others and has not been in trouble with the law since he was required to register when he was 20 years old.

Section 12-12-919 of the sex offender registration law allows an offender to petition the court to terminate the registration requirement 15 years after completing his sentence. Judges are required to remove them from the sex-offender roll if they can prove they are not likely to pose a threat to the community.

Low has no criminal record and has never been convicted of a sex offense.

He was required to register when he was 19 after he repeatedly touched the buttocks and leg of a 10-year-old girl who was shopping with her family in the Wal-Mart on Bowman Road in November 1998.

The girl's mother grabbed Low and held him for police, and he was charged with first-degree sexual abuse, a felony. He was subsequently expelled from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock where he had been enrolled for three semesters. ..Continued..

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Home News Transitional Housing facility near Omaha barred; Refusal to take sex offenders stops proposal

3-7-17 Arkansas:

Transitional Housing facility near Omaha barred; Refusal to take sex offenders stops proposal

A meeting about transitional housing for parolees will still be held Wednesday, but the license for a facility near Omaha has been put on a shelf because management didn’t want to take sex offenders.

Arkansas state Rep. Ron McNair told the Daily Times on Friday that he spoke with Arkansas Community Correction officials that day and was told the group opening the facility didn’t meet ACC regulations, so the license application had been pulled.

Lotus Recovery Services LLC had applied for an ACC Transitional Housing Facility License at 5035 Center Loop between Burlington and Omaha. It would accept non-violent prisoners released on parole and counsel them back to living on the outside, including securing employment for them.

When people living in that area heard about the proposal and saw the license application included accepting sex offenders, they rallied together, signing petitions to have the proposal stopped and taking to social media in droves.

McNair said he didn’t know if public outcry was a part of the ACC’s decision. ..Continued.. by JAMES L. WHITE

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Amazon won’t back down from a fight with the police over recordings that could help to solve a murder

2-24-17 Arkansas:

Amazon is continuing to resist efforts from US police to obtain Alexa data that could prove to be useful for an ongoing murder investigation, Associated Press reports.

The Seattle tech giant filed a motion last Friday — its first formal legal response on the issue — to prevent prosecutors in Arkansas from obtaining data that may have been collected by one of its Amazon Echo smart speakers.

Police are investigating the death of Victor Collins, who was found floating face-up in a hot tub at a friend's house in Bentonville in November 2015. James Bates, the friend in question and the person that reported the death, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder. Bates, who was arrested in February, claims he was asleep in the early hours of the morning when the alleged murder is thought to have taken place.

Amazon is arguing that the Benton County prosecutors haven't established that their investigation is more important than the privacy rights of its customers, while prosecutors claim that any captured audio could help them to identify who was present.

Benton County prosecutors asked a court to force Amazon to hand over the data from Bates's Echo device that may or may not be on Amazon's servers and may or may not prove to be useful in the investigation.

Responding to the request in a court filing, Amazon reportedly states that prosecutors hadn't established the need for Amazon to violate its customers' constitutional rights. Amazon believes that the prosecutors should have to prove that they can't find the information they're looking for anywhere else before it's forced to hand over any data.

"Given the important First Amendment and privacy implications at stake, the warrant should be quashed unless the Court finds that the State has met its heightened burden for compelled production of such materials," Amazon reportedly said in the court documents.

Why detectives want Amazon to comply

Detectives believe that music was being streamed to the back patio on the night of the alleged murder, possibly via Bates' Amazon Echo device.

Amazon's Echo devices are programmed to "wake up" when they hear one of the three following words: Amazon, Echo, or Alexa. They record and store audio from a few seconds before the wake word is said until they deem the command to be over.

The Echo devices don't record audio at any other times but sometimes they are accidentally awakened when they misinterpret a word for a wake word.

"Amazon will not release customer information without a valid and binding legal demand properly served on us. Amazon objects to overbroad or otherwise inappropriate demands as a matter of course," Amazon said in a statement sent to Associated Press.

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Amazon resists yielding Echo data in slaying inquiry

see also: Amazon Argues Alexa Speech Protected By First Amendment In Murder Trial Fight

2-23-17 Arkansas:

Amazon is resisting an effort by Arkansas prosecutors to obtain possible recordings from a slaying suspect's Amazon Echo device, saying authorities haven't established that their investigation is more important than a customer's privacy rights.

The issue arose in the investigation into the death of Victor Collins, who was found floating face-up in a hot tub at a friend's Bentonville home in November 2015. The friend, James Andrew Bates, has pleaded innocent to first-degree murder.

Benton County prosecutors asked a court to compel Amazon to provide data that Bates' Echo may have collected. Echo devices "listen" for a user's voice and respond to commands.

In a response filed Friday, Amazon said prosecutors hadn't established the need for Amazon to violate its customer's constitutional rights. Amazon said prosecutors must prove the information isn't available elsewhere.

Amazon also wants the court to review the recordings before turning them over to prosecutors to ensure they're relevant to the case.

"Given the important First Amendment and privacy implications at stake, the warrant should be quashed unless the Court finds that the State has met its heightened burden for compelled production of such materials," Amazon said in the court documents.

The company had previously spoken about the prosecutor's request for the information in more general terms, but this is Amazon's first formal legal response to the subpoena for audio recordings and transcripts from the night of Collins' death.

"Amazon will not release customer information without a valid and binding legal demand properly served on us. Amazon objects to overbroad or otherwise inappropriate demands as a matter of course," the company said in a statement. ..Source.. by AP

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Tonight at 9pm: Inside the Mind of a Sex Offender

9-16-15 Arkansas:

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. -- Fox16 Investigates continues in a year-long investigation we began in July 2014 with an exclusive interview to delve inside the mind of a sex offender. Our initial investigations led to immediate changes in the sex offender registry and expanded information the public is able to learn about high-risk sex offenders who might move in next door.

In July 2014, members of the Power Pack Ministries Church reached out to Fox16 News, claiming their pastor had committed forgery and had changed his name to go undetected as a convicted sex offender.

Fox16 Investigator Marci Manley dug through court records, parole records and the sex offender laws to uncover that Bishop Jacob Taylor was, in fact, a Level 3 sex offender convicted under the name of Carlos Norwood in 2004.

Manley’s investigation uncovered Taylor/Norwood had been working in churches since his release from prison, with Little Rock Police confirming he failed to report those activities to them as required by law.

Manley’s digging uncovered an oversight in the sex offender registry. The online registry is required by law to report aliases for sex offenders. But when Manley and the public attempted to search the registry for the name of Jacob Taylor, no results were found, because his sex offender profile was only linked to the name of Carlos Norwood.

Following a series of investigations, the oversight was corrected, Taylor/Norwood was sent back to prison on a parole revocation, and he faces new charges of failing to register as a sex offender.

Tonight, Manley continues her investigation with an exclusive interview with Taylor/Norwood, who dodged answering questions during the initial stories. He now wants to tell his side. He considers himself, now, a civil rights leader with plans to march on Washington, D.C.

Over the next two nights, we delve into his claims regarding a wrongful conviction a system he believes set him up and whether red flags for a sex offender assessment team that labeled him a high-risk offender should serve as red flags for the public who might come into contact with a man who believes he’s the next Martin Luther King, Jr. ..Source.. by Fox16.com

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Arkansas list on sex offenders has gaps

It never ceases to amaze me how many Lawmakers are not capable of logical thought processes. Dollars and cents alone shows the registry is a losing proposition and thats not considering other welfare costs because the registry ruins lives. Registries make society a loser..

8-13-15 Arkansas:

Arkansas is not in full compliance with a federal law on sex offender registration and monitoring, state officials said Wednesday.

At a meeting of the Criminal Justice Oversight Task Force, a risk assessment administrator and a psychologist said Arkansas is one of 33 states that fail to meet all of the requirements of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act -- federal legislation that became law in 2006. The act aims to create a comprehensive standard in how states keep track of sex offenders.

Brad Cazort, the head of the Arkansas Crime Information Center's sex offender registry, said the Adam Walsh Act has 14 requirements for states to meet to be eligible for some federal grant money.

Presently, Cazort said, Arkansas doesn't meet three of them.

The state's registry does not make public all sex offenders, just those with higher risks of re-offending; it doesn't automatically add to its public website the names of youths found guilty of the most serious sex crimes; and it allows more offenders than federal law does to petition the court to be removed from the registry after 15 years.

To meet all of the federal requirements, Arkansas' laws on sex offenders would have to be amended, officials said.

Sheri Flynn, an administrator with the state's Sex Offender Screening and Risk Assessment program, said recidivism rates for most sex offenders are about the same as for other convicted criminals.

She said that except for the most dangerous sex offenders, such as pedophiles, the recidivism rates range from 6 percent to 10 percent.

Flynn said research shows that low-level sex offenders are more likely to re-offend if they're put under the same heightened scrutiny and monitoring as high-risk offenders.

"Treating them the same as you do higher-risk offenders, there is research showing that we're making them worse," she said.

Flynn said after Wednesday's meeting that listing every sex offender on the public website would mean that people would have to wade through a lot of names to identify those who are potentially dangerous in their neighborhoods.

And Mike Wood, a state prison psychologist, cited a 2008 study from the Justice Policy Institute -- a New York-based nonprofit that researches criminal justice matters -- in saying that the cost of making the state changes to meet the federal standards could be as high as $4.6 million.

But Cazort said he wasn't aware of any additional costs the state would face. He said the Arkansas Crime Information Center already has the tools and information to comply with the federal standards. It's merely a matter of legislators changing the law, he said.

States that do not comply with the Adam Walsh Act automatically lose 10 percent of any grant funding available to law enforcement agencies and courts through a program administered by the Department of Justice.

The Justice Policy Institute's study estimated that Arkansas forfeits about $218,000 in grant money but saves millions by not meeting the federal standards.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Matt Shepherd, R-El Dorado, said he doubts that making the changes to comply with the standards would be cost-prohibitive.

"I've heard people make the claim it will cost more. I'm not certain. I'm just not sure whether that's going to be the case," said Shepherd, who serves as the task force's co-chairman. "When you're talking about something that Congress passed and federal funds are tied to, it's something we need to look at, and it needs to be considered."

During this year's Arkansas legislative session, Shepherd co-sponsored a bill with Sen. David Sanders, R-Little Rock, that would have allowed the state to meet all of the federal requirements, but Senate Bill 467 died in committee.

Wood and Flynn said some sex-offender cases have extenuating circumstances, and publicly listing the offenders in those cases would lump minor offenders in with more serious offenders, painting them all with the same broad brush.

"Just like anything to do with human nature, it's never simple," Flynn said. "Every case is different."

Wood and Flynn also said youths convicted of sex crimes are unlikely to re-offend, and that it's important to get them treatment and return them to school so they can rejoin society.

If a youth's past was plastered all over the Internet via a sex-offender website, Flynn said, the teen would be stigmatized for the rest of his life.

"There is no one in the world that thinks that's a good idea, in terms of rehabilitation, re-entry, and allowing juveniles to become decent people," Flynn said.

Flynn also said that two of the 17 states currently in compliance with the federal law are considering changing their laws because the federal standards are too onerous.

Shepherd said giving people more information about their safety trumps other worries in regard to the sex offenders.

"I'm more concerned about protecting the public as opposed to some of the other things brought up" in Wednesday's meeting, Shepherd said.

"We take these matters very seriously. We need to ... make decisions that are in the best interest of our state and protecting the citizens of our state." ..Source.. by Spencer Willems

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Bill expands DNA samples; and other sex offender restrictions

3-16-15 Arkansas:

The Senate passed SB 46 to authorize law enforcement officials to seek extended authority to monitor sex offenders.

It requires prison officials to notify prosecuting attorneys when a registered sex offender is about to be released.

Prosecutors could then seek permission from circuit court for an extended period of supervision over the sex offender, even beyond the expiration of his initial parole date. ..Source.. by Senator-elect Greg Standridge

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Proposed bill could further restrict where Arkansas sex offenders can live

3-11-15 Arkansas:

PARAGOULD, AR (KAIT) - A bill currently awaiting Governor Asa Hutchinson's signature could further restrict where sex offenders live in Arkansas.

House Bill 1164, sponsored by State Senator Linda Collins-Smith of Pocahontas, would keep violent sexual predators from living within 2,000 feet of a church.

State legislators have already approved it, as did some parents we spoke with on the matter. "I want people to feel welcome at our church; but, at the same time, we have to protect our children," Amy Gagel said.

Gagel, a Paragould mom, told Region 8 News that knowing where sex offenders are, especially where they live, is important.

"Especially if my kids are playing outside," Gagel said. "I'm gonna watch them but you just never know."

Gagel said her family is in the process of buying a new home and one of the first things they did was visit the Arkansas Crime Information Center's website.

"We went on the sex offender's registry and we checked to see if there was anybody in the certain radius of our house," Gagel said.

Already, sex offenders cannot live within 2,000 feet of a school, daycare, park or youth center. House Bill 1164 aims to further restrict where certain sex offenders can reside. Namely, near churches or other places of worship.

The bill only affects Level 4, or sexually violent, predators.

The goal is to keep kids in church safe.

For Eastside Baptist Church in Paragould, Children's Pastor Jason Lincoln said there are already a number of safety measures in place for kids.

"We have people who monitor the halls, monitor the children's halls, make sure everyone is safe," Lincoln said.

Lincoln told Region 8 News that over the years, people convicted of sexual crimes have worshiped at the church. He explained the church still wants to minister to them.

"Everyone makes mistakes, everyone is a sinner," Lincoln said. "We just have to make sure that we watch out for the innocent kids."

To do so, Lincoln explained that ground rules are laid out.

"They're not allowed to work with children or youth and we also let some of our leadership know as well just to kind of keep an eye on people," Lincoln said.

As for whether this potential new law will further keep kids in church safe, Lincoln isn't sure.

"If they've got their mind made up to commit a crime, they're gonna do it," he said.

Gagel said the possible amendment to the law just gives her more peace of mind.

"You just never know who is going to walk in off the street," Gagel said.

Of the thousands of sex offenders in Region 8, only a very small percentage are classified as Level 4 sex offenders. According to the Department of Correction, only 5-7% of all sex offenders re-offend.

Additionally, there has been no evidence to suggest that residency restrictions have any impact on whether an offender will re-offend. ..Source.. by Allison Munn

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Senate OKs bill to bar Level 4 sex offenders from living near churches

3-11-15 Arkansas:

LITTLE ROCK — The Arkansas Senate on Tuesday gave final passage to a bill to bar the highest-level sex offenders from living near churches.

Sex offenders

The Senate voted 27-7 to approve House Bill 1164 by Rep. Charlene Fite, R-Van Buren, which would prohibit a Level 4 sex offender — the classification reserved for the most serious offenders — from living within 2,000 feet of a church.

‘I present this bill to you to help us stop the worst of the worst sex offenders from, unfortunately, going after our children,” Sen. Linda Collins-Smith, R-Pocahontas, said while presenting the bill in the Senate.

Several senators spoke for and against the bill. Sen. Jeremy Hutchinson, R-Benton, one of those who spoke against it, said the bill would not affect an offender who currently owns a home within 2,000 feet of a church, but an offender living in a family member’s home near a church would be required to move.

Hutchinson said the offender would not be able to rent a home — most live with family members because no one will rent to them, he said — and would end up “roaming the streets without any supervision and without parole knowing where they are.”

Collins-Smith disagreed.

“We will be able to track them and monitor them just like we do now,” she said.

The bill passed previously in the House and now goes to the governor. ..Source.. by John Lyon

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Arkansas Sex Offender Database Violates Federal Law

If its true that Arkansas is not following AWA, I would guess they are doing something right..

2-19-15 Arkansas:

Arkansas is violating federal law with the way it tracks certain sex offenders. It has cost the state hundreds of thousands of dollars and some say is putting the public in danger.

The Adam Walsh Act was passed in 2006. Nearly 10 years later, Arkansas is non-compliant in three major areas. They are: failing to report certain juvenile offenders, establishing a process for getting off the registry and not listing all offenders online.

"There hasn't been any desire of the legislature at this point to go forward with an Adam Walsh compliance bill," said Brad Cazort, administer of the sex offender registry for the Arkansas Crime Information Center.

Cazort says non compliance has cost the state $140,000 in federal grants for local law enforcement each year since 2011.

"You limit the availability of federal funds that can enhance public safety," said Sen. David Sanders, R-Little Rock.

Sanders says this session he'll file a bill to bring the state into line with the federal law and make sure all sex offenders can be tracked by the public online. ..Source.. by KARK

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Sex Offender Registry: Address Debate

2-12-2015 Arkansas:

CONWAY, AR -- An Arkansas advocacy group is fighting to get law enforcement agencies to remove the full addresses of sex offenders on websites. The group wants the numbers blocked, but not everyone is budging.

Carla Swanson -- with Arkansas Time after Time -- sent out 900 letters to registered sex offenders with listed addresses on sheriffs' websites. She says a couple hundred came back to her because the offender no longer lived there. Swanson says that proves the system isn't very effective, but that's not her only argument.

She said, "You're putting not only him, but his entire family in danger."

Swanson says 24 sheriffs' departments in Arkansas listed full addresses, but attorneys for Arkansas Time after Time asked those departments to change it to block numbers instead...interpreting that to be the law.

17 did make the changes, Faulkner County was not one of them.

Chief Deputy Matt Rice said, "We want everybody to know exactly where they are. I think the public has a right to know that they're registered sex offenders."

What led to the misinterpretation of the law is at the Arkansas Crime Information Center, they can only post block numbers of sex offenders.

Paula Stitz, with the State Sex Offender Registry, said, "So that's what we go by."

But, there are different rules for a sheriff's office. If they believe it will protect the public, the full address can be posted.

Rice said, "We built this website for that purpose."

But Swanson said, "Can we not do the right ethical thing and not put their full information out there?"

Rice says he can not recall an incident where a sex offender was targeted by someone who pulled their address off the registry list. But, he says if it were a problem, their job would be to protect that person. ..Source.. by KARK

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Proposed Law Inspired By 2 Van Buren Sex Offenders Living Near Church

2-10-2015 Arkansas:

A bill proposed by a state lawmaker from Crawford County would prohibit Level 4 sex offenders from living near churches. The bill was inspired by two sex offenders who still live near a church outside of Van Buren.

Arkansas Rep. Charlene Fite, R-Figure Four, introduced a bill this week in the state House of Representatives that would add churches to the list of places Level 4 sex offenders are prohibited from living near. State law already dictates such sex offenders may not live within 2,000 feet of parks, daycare centers and schools.

Fite said she was inspired to introduce the bill because of an August 2013 incident near a church in Crawford County. Paul McGill is a Level 4 sex offender who had recently moved to Oak Grove Road in Van Buren. McGill was arrested that August after threatening the life of his caretaker appointed to him by the state, according to the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office.

Fite said the incident concerned some church members at nearby New Hope Methodist Church.

McGill and another Level 4 sex offender, Robert Ward, still live on Oak Grove Road near the church. They may have to move, though, if the bill is passed by the state Legislature.

The proposed law would not apply to sex offenders who already own a home within 2,000 feet of a church, although it would ban future new ownership of a home near a church. The bill would also apply to those already renting a home near a church, Fite said.

She said the bill does not prohibit sex offenders from going to church or being near a church.

The Crawford County Sheriff’s Office in August 2013 released a notice to area residents that McGill and Ward were moving to the 1300 block of Oak Grove Road outside of Van Buren. The men were set to be monitored 24 hours per day, seven days a week, by the Arkansas Support Network.

“I mean, we watch over them now. They obviously made some mistakes. We just watch them, take care of them,” Robert Lewis said Wednesday (Jan. 28). Lewis said he works for Arkansas Support Network, and has been supervising McGill and Ward for one year.

Ward was convicted of sexual solicitation and sexual indecency with a child in 2006 in Benton County, according to court documents.

McGill pleaded guilty to one count of sexual indecency with a child and terroristic threatening in Craighead County in 2012. The charges stemmed from offenses that occurred in 2011, according to court documents.

The two men were set to be escorted anytime they left their home by the Arkansas Support Network. Less than a month after they moved to Van Buren, McGill allegedly threatened to kill his caretaker with a lethal instrument, in the incident Fite said inspired her bill.

McGill faced a probation violation out of the incident, but was later released from the Craighead County Jail and sent back home. Shortly after McGill’s release, Crawford County Prosecutor Marc McCune released a post on his Facebook page that read, in part, “BAD NEWS: I was just informed that LEVEL 4 SEXUALLY VIOLENT PREDATOR Paul McGill has been released…”

Shortly after his altercation with his caretaker, McGill allegedly left his house and traveled on-foot to the nearby home of an off-duty police officer.

The off-duty officer and his wife said McGill had a weapon in his hand that looked like a large wrench and was threatening to return to the home he lived in and kill his supervisor. The police officer called the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office and deputies arrived to place McGill under arrest.

5NEWS went to the home where McGill and Ward live, but both declined to speak on camera. It is unknown if either of the men own the home, or if they are renting.

Fite’s bill has been forwarded to the House Judiciary Committee. ..Source.. by Shain Bergan and Amy Slanchik

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Bill proposes changes to sex offender reporting requirements

1-16-2015 Arkansas:

GREENE COUNTY,AR (KAIT) - A new bill could change the way sex offenders register and report in the state of Arkansas.

The bill, introduced by Senator Jon Woods and Representative Charlene Fite, would require local law enforcement agencies to take on more of the responsibilities, instead of the Arkansas Crime Information Center. Those requirements include reporting changes for addresses, employment, name and others.

Greene County Sheriff David Carter said his department already handles most of the responsibilities included in the bill. “We're probably the strictest in the state,” He said.

Sheriff Carter said he has an employee that deals with sex offender cases among others.

“We monitor ours very closely with the home visits and we go above and beyond what the state requires,” He said.

Sheriff Carter said he understands how placing additional responsibilities on local law enforcement could strain some departments.

“It might put a burden on their workload. It would be more work and they may not have the time to concentrate on that one thing,” He said.

To help combat those issues, Sheriff Carter said he plans to ask the Quorum Court about hiring a full time employee that would only deal with sex offender cases and writs of assistance. ..Source.. by Region 8 Newsdesk

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Operation Safe Scare In Sebastian County

10-16-2014 Arkansas:

FORT SMITH (KFSM) – We are just days away from ghosts and goblins, and alls things scary roaming the streets and looking for treats. But to make sure your kids stay safe, deputies with the Sebastian County Sheriff’s Office are hitting the pavement Wednesday (Oct.15) looking for real monsters.

Sixteen teams of deputies will be out on the streets checking where sex offenders live for the rest of the week. Their goal is to make sure kids stay safe when they’re out trick of treating this Halloween.

“We have so many kids that are vulnerable in this day of age,” said Captian Mike Conger. “There’s various things going on and we want to keep predators off the street.” Deputies with the Sebastian County Sheriff’s Office keep a very close eye on where sex offenders are living and what they’re doing. They do that by performing compliance checks on them throughout the year.

“We usually do it during Halloween so we let the parents and everyone know that we do this to keep kids safe and not go to a house where an offender might be, ” according to Conger. Right now, there are 69 convicted sex offenders living in county limits so to make sure the deputies know who they are and which houses are theres an offender has to check in with deputies twice a year said Conger. ” They actually have to check into the office and do paper work and re-photograph whats going on,” said Conger.

With Halloween coming up, kids are going to be out going door to door asking that all too familiar question, trick- or- treat? But for law enforcement, it’s a little scary that kids aren’t always aware of which doorbells they should’nt be ringing. So to keep kids from knocking on those doors, they have the sex offenders put up a sign to let parents know.

“We have a bright pumpkin and it has a circle with a slash through it,” said Conger. Deputies said it’s also a good idea that parents get an idea of their trick- or- treat routes before hand. “What they need to do is go online to where ever their living and find out where an offender might be living in their area or close by,” said Conger. “Its just the responsiblity of adults to take care of their kids.”

Anyone can go to the Sebastian County online website and check to see if an offender lives near you.

Deputies with the Sebastian County Sheriff’s Office will be doing the compliance check through Friday (Oct.17). If offenders don’t meet the compliance checks, authorities said a warrant is issued for their arrest and they go back to jail. ..Source.. by Meredith Marney

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Democrat running for Arkansas attorney general calls for no parole for sex offenders

Here we go again, someone wants to get elected so they play the sex offender card. "Easier for police to ID them?" Heck police run the license of anyone they stop, so they know that way; political doublespeak.

8-23-2014 Arkansas:

Democratic Attorney General hopeful Nate Steel on Thursday proposed that sex offenders no longer be eligible for parole and that the state require them to carry designated driver's licenses.

Steel, a state representative from Nashville, proposed the new sex offender restrictions as part of a series of measures he said he'd push if elected attorney general. Steel is running against Republican nominee Leslie Rutledge, who responded Thursday by questioning Steel's record on measures targeting sex offenders.

Steel said he'd ask the Legislature to end parole eligibility for all sex offenders. He also proposed requiring all sex offenders to have driver's licenses that would prominently label them as offenders, a move he said would make it easier for police to identify them.

"I think the state as a whole should make this state the worst place to be convicted if you're a sex offender," Steel said in a news conference at his campaign headquarters. "That's what I intend to do on Day One."

Rutledge accused Steel of being inconsistent on the issue, pointing to him voting "present" on a bill approved last year that banned Level 3 and Level 4 sex offenders from being at a swimming area or children's playground located within a state park. The measure was signed into law by Gov. Mike Beebe.

"He had the opportunity to protect children then, and he failed to do so," Rutledge said.

Steel said he voted present because of concerns about the measure that were raised by officials with the Crater of Diamonds State Park, which is located in his district, but said he couldn't remember what the concerns were. He said he wasn't opposed to the measure, and accused Rutledge of distorting his record by focusing on one vote.

"I've got a clear record on these issues, and to pull one bill out of thousands to say it undermines anything else is a nonissue," Steel said.

Other proposals in Steel's legislative package include increased funding for drug courts, though he stopped short of naming a specific amount and said a study would need to be conducted to determine how much more money they need. He also proposed establishing a veteran's advocacy unit in the AG's office and using updated technology to find parents who are not paying child support.

Steel and Rutledge are running to succeed Democratic Attorney General Dustin McDaniel, who is barred by term limits from seeking re-election. ..Source.. by ANDREW DeMILLO

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Do sex offender restrictions work?

5-1-2014 Arkansas;

When we talk about sex offenders emotion tends to take over. Call it a protective instinct. We don't want them living near our children or where our children go to school or play.

The thoughts are terrifying to any parent. But as we found out, those fears, don't match the facts.

"There is no data, according to my knowledge, that sex offender registry restrictions prevent sexual assault," Sheri Flynn told Region 8 News.

Only 5-7% of all sex offenders re-offend.

It's the empirical argument that flies in the face of raw emotion when it comes to where sex offenders are allowed to live in the state of Arkansas.

The law state says level 3 and 4 sex offenders cannot reside within 2000 feet of a school, daycare or public park. Level 1 and 2 offenders do not have any such restrictions.

"We're pushing sex offenders outside that net and occasionally creating pockets of sex offenders because there's only one area in a county that they may be able to live."

Sheri Flynn is with the Arkansas Department of Correction's Sex Offender Screening and Risk Assessment Program. In laymen's terms, her office determines a sex offender's threat level.

"To me, it makes more sense to base where sex offenders can be based on what they do, the crime they commit with whom they commit it with. Those are the people we don't want around our minor children."

By forcing sex offenders farther away, because of the residency restrictions, they are less likely to be part of what Flynn and others in her field call "the containment approach". A belief that circling the offender with professionals from the courts, law enforcement, treatment providers and others keeps better tabs on the most dangerous sex offenders, level fours.

"There is a small sub-group. If they have a deviant sexual arousal to forced sexual contact or children, they are more than 50% likely to re-offend and they respond very poorly to treatment."

That's where Flynn sees a weakness in the residency restrictions. Simply put, if they are forced too far out, it becomes that much harder to stay on top of a dangerous predator.

"I want to know where he is, not where he isn't."

"We don't know what he's going to do and that net disappears and those things that have been put into place by my office, by my brothers and sisters in law enforcement, we work very closely to keep an eye on these guys. When they drop off the radar we don't know what they're doing or where they are they could be up to anything."

It's a loaded question. Where should they live? But Sherri Flynn offers this: maybe when we ask legislators, or even law enforcement what to do, we're asking the wrong people.

"Sometimes I think we need to ask survivors "how does this affect you?" If your dad or grandfather got treatment, if he could get a good job would that be better? I don't know the answers to those questions, but I think we need to be asking them and try to figure it out." ..Source.. by Craig Rickert

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Sex Offenders, Experts Question Effectiveness of New Restrictions

Registry laws have a hidden unspoken agenda, that is to destroy the lives of those registered under the pretext of public safety. Principle is, sacrifice the registrant in the name of public safety.

11-7-2013 Arkansas:

LITTLE ROCK, AR -- After serving their time, some sex offenders can be on another list for the rest of their lives.

Convivted sex offenders are required to register with their local law enforcement office for at least 15 years, often much longer than that.

Now some registered sex offenders and their families are saying this branding is doing more harm than good.

"Sam," a registered sex offender who asked to have his identity concealed, calls every day a battle.

"No sooner did we move and the house was getting egged," he says. "They spray-painted on the porch that I need to move. Why keep attacking me?"

Another registered sex offender we'll refer to as "C," says he sees the same struggles.

"Two kids in the area accused me of fondling them," C says. "You want to crawl into a hole and you're afraid."

The Arkansas House of Representatives passed legislation earlier this year prohibiting level three and four sex offenders, considered the most likely to re-offend, from swimming areas and playgrounds in state parks.

They also can't live within 2,000 feet of any school, day care, public park or youth center.

These men say the restrictions, along with the sex-offender stigma, make it nearly impossible to find a steady job and safe place to live.

"Sir, many of our employees are going to be uncomfortable with your working here, so we're not going to be able to hire you," C recalls hearing from a prospective employer.

Spouses of sex offenders say these restrictions also tear apart their families, frequently hurting the most vulnerable.

"I can't tell you how many times my daughter has come home crying because children told her she shouldn't be allowed to live with her dad because he's a rapist," says Carrie Moore, who is married to a registered sex offender.

"It's been really hard. We live in a mobile home," Lynn Gilmore says. "We will never have the American Dream."

Lora Morgan, Director of Arkansas Time After Time, works with legislators to change sex-offender laws, saying current laws can force an offender to commit other crimes just to stay on their feet.

"So a sex offender, they might have done 5, 10, 15 years in prison, then once they got out, the day they're released, that's when their 15 years starts on the public registry," Morgan says.

University of Arkansas-Little Rock professor Dr. Tusty ten-Besel says there are some misconceptions about sex offenders.

"Previous research has shown us that less than 10 percent will actually commit another sex crime," she says.

Dr. ten-Bensel is interviewing registered sex offenders to also find out if current law and rehabilitation programs are working effectively.

"If these laws are helping, 'Wonderful,' that's what we'll say. If it's not, then maybe we need to go back and revisit these laws to make it more effective," she says.

It may be years before all the information for her research is gathered, but the offenders we talked to say whatever it shows, life on the list will likely never change.

"We are the low-hanging fruit on the trees," C says.

Are sex offender laws prohibiting convicted men and women from becoming a productive part of society? ..Source.. by Arkansas Matters.com

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