CA: Legislature Considering Changes to Tiered Registry Law

The California legislature is considering changes to the Tiered Registry Law that, if passed, would delay when eligible individuals could petition for removal from the registry.  That is, individuals would be required to wait until “on or after their next birthday after July 1, 2021, following the expiration of the person’s mandated minimum registration period.” For example, if an eligible individual’s birthday is July 4, 2021, and he is on Tier 2, he can petition for removal on July 1, 2021.  However, if an eligible individual’s birthday is June 30,…

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CASOMB Discusses Tiered Registry Implementation, Registry Increases

The California Sex Offender Management Board (CASOMB) discussed two major topics today during its monthly meeting — implementation of the Tiered Registry and continued increases to the number of individuals required to register. During the meeting, the board members were told that the California Department of Justice (DOJ) will assign all individuals required to register to a tier under the Tiered Registry Law. Information regarding the tier assignments will be sent electronically by DOJ to local law enforcement agencies no later than January 1, 2021. Registrants must request their tier…

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ACSOL Lobby Day 2/11 — please keep calling and writing

Thanks to those who showed up on the 2/11 ACSOL Lobby Day, which focused on needed changes to the Tiered Registry Law that will take effect in 2021.  Changes included new tier assignments for those convicted of felony offenses involving illegal images and sexual battery as well as creation of an off-ramp for those assigned to the highest tier. We ask that you make phone calls or send letters supporting these changes to the office where we will meet,” stated ACSOL Executive Director Janice Bellucci.  “The messages to be delivered…

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CA DOJ Releases New Information About Tiered Registry Law

The California Department of Justice (CA DOJ) has released new information regarding the Tiered Registry Law in the form of Answers to Frequently Asked Questions. A similar document was issued by the agency about two years ago. A link to a copy of the new document is below and can also be found on the website of the Office of the California Attorney General. According to the new information, registrants will be able to request their “tier notification letters” from the local law enforcement agency where they register after January…

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Janice’s Journal: When Will They Learn?

The CA state legislature began a new two-year session just last month. And in that short period of time, legislators are already heading down the wrong path. What path? The path which identifies all individuals convicted of a sex offense as dangerous and likely to commit a new sex offense. For example, Assemblymember Kevin McCarty who is known for his compassion for those who are or have been incarcerated, introduced a bill (AB 277) that would allow parolees to earn “reintegration credits” that could ultimately allow them to travel greater…

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CA: New Bill Would Expand Lifetime Registration Requirements

Assembly member Melissa Melendez has introduced a bill (AB 884) that would expand the requirement to register for a lifetime to anyone convicted of Penal Code Section 288(a) when the Tiered Registry Law takes effect in 2021. As currently written, the Tiered Registry Law authorizes individuals convicted of the same penal code section to petition for removal from the registry after a minimum of 20 years. “We must stop this bill!” exclaimed ACSOL Exeuctive Director Janice Bellucci. “If the bill is passed, at least 40 percent of the people on…

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ACSOL Leads Lobby Day 2019 in State Capitol

ACSOL led about 40 registrants, family members and supporters in Lobby Day 2019 in the CA State Capitol.  The participants were organized into 6 teams led by Team Leaders experienced in lobbying the state legislature.  Lobby Day 2019 included twenty-eight scheduled meetings in the offices of newly elected and Public Safety Committee members in both the Assembly and the Senate as well as at least a dozen unscheduled meetings in the offices of elected officials who represent districts in which the participants reside. “The two primary purposes of Lobby Day 2019…

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Janice’s Journal: Justice an Important Pillar

As we celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Day, it is important to remember that an essential pillar of his civil rights platform was Justice. ACSOL which is a civil rights organization has, in fact, adopted and advanced one of Dr. King’s best-known sayings about justice: “Injustice Anywhere is a Threat to Justice Everywhere” in our lobbying efforts in the state capitol. We credit the wisdom of Dr. King, as expressed in the saying above, as we recognize and celebrate that our efforts of 6 ½ years, as well as the…

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CA: Changing Minds: Master student’s thesis challenges views on sex offender laws

A California law that will go into effect in 2021 is set to bring about the most sweeping changes ever to sex offender laws in the state. SB384 will allow most sex offenders to petition to be removed from the public registries in 10 to 20 years after they are released from prison, as long as they have not committed another serious or violent felony. Full Article PUBLIC ATTITUDE TOWARDS CALIFORNIA’S NEW LAW TO END LIFETIME SEX OFFENDER REGISTRATION – Masters Thesis

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MO: New Law Expected To Reduce Missouri’s Sex Offender Registry Count

Missouri has about 19,300 people listed on its sex offender registry. That figure is expected to decline soon because of a law taking effect this month. St. Charles Republican State Rep. Kurt Bahr, who sponsored the provisions included in a Senate bill, tells Missourinet the changes will show three levels of sex offenders, instead of one, depending on the severity of the crime committed. “My goal wasn’t to recreate the wheel. It was simply to make sure that we are fully compliant with the federal law that is fully established…

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MA: Court: Board needs proof in sex offender reclassification

[thesunchronicle.com – 8/1/18] BOSTON (AP) — The Massachusetts Sex Offender Registry Board has the burden of proof when determining whether a sex offender should not be moved to a less dangerous classification, the state’s highest court ruled Wednesday. The Supreme Judicial Court also ruled in separate cases that indigent sex offenders have a right to legal counsel in reclassification hearings, and that those hearings must be held within a “reasonable” period of time. The board already is required to provide “clear and convincing evidence” when initially determining which of three…

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MO: SB655 changes Missouri’s sex offender list

A lot of people have been talking about how Senate Bill 655 adjusts how old one must be to get married in Missouri, increasing that age to 16. Clay County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Shannon Ryser said that is only one portion of the bill. He added that a portion also is dedicated to the sex offender registration list. “There is a much larger portion of the bill that significantly revises and basically overhauls the requirements of sex offender registration,” Ryser said. “Right now in Missouri, everybody that is convicted of…

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MO: Senate Bill 655 changes the way MO handles sex offender registry [three tier]

[fourstateshomepage.com = 5/29/18] State lawmakers sign off on a potential law changing the way the Show Me State handles its sex offender registry. Senate Bill 655 would create a three tier system, similar to the one used at the federal level. Those guilty of the least serious convictions could ask courts to take them off the list after ten years. That option is also available for convicts on the second tier -with more serious charges – after 25 years on the registry. But those with the worst offenses would remain…

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MO: Missouri’s awful choice

[handbasketnotes.blogspot.com 4/23/18] This is a terrible story about terrible legislation in Missouri, terrible legislation that offers hope to some. Almost all sex offenders in Missouri are on a state registry for a lifetime, whether they made a one-time mistake, or made repeated or extreme offenses. Rep. Kurt Bahr, R-St. Charles, wants to make it possible for certain people to petition to remove their name from the list and for the registry to be more transparent for the public. A Senate committee heard a bill that already has passed the House…

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MO: Sex offenders register for a lifetime, but a bill would let some petition for removal

Almost all sex offenders in Missouri are on a state registry for a lifetime, whether they made a one-time mistake, or made repeated or extreme offenses. Rep. Kurt Bahr, R-St. Charles, wants to make it possible for certain people to petition to remove their name from the list and for the registry to be more transparent for the public. Full Article

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ACSOL Phone Meeting Alert for March 12: CA Tiered Registry

ACSOL will conduct a review of the California Tiered Registry during a phone conference call on Monday, March 12 at 5 p.m. (Pacific). The review will include attorneys Eliza Hersh, a leading legal advocate and educator in the movement for criminal justice reform, as well as ACSOL President Chance Oberstein and ACSOL Executive Director Janice Bellucci. The conference call will include a discussion of opportunities for some registrants to be removed from the registry prior to implementation of the Tiered Registry through certificates of rehabilitation as well as the reduction…

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