Other States

The Michigan Supreme Court has ruled that people who committed sex offenses before July 2011 cannot be required to follow the state’s current sex offender registry law. The unanimous decision says applying the 2021 law to older cases would add punishment after the fact. The ruling does not affect people whose offenses happened on or after July 1, 2011. They

I must admit, when I saw the title, “Stop Predator Dumping Act,” I got hopeful. Someone might finally want to put safeguards in place to prevent “dumping on” people forced to register. Stop the vigilantism! Stop the shaming! And stop treating human beings like hazardous waste! But I was wrong. U.S. Congressman George Whitesides (CA) is proposing legislation to address

According to Montana Department of Justice data, Montana’s registered sex offender population grew from 5,292 in 2022 to 5,718 in 2026 — an increase of 426 offenders, or 8.1 percent over five years. That’s a pretty remarkable number when you consider that Montana recognizes that registration is not lifelong for everyone. Under Mont. Code Ann. § 46-23-506(3), Level 1 offenders

During a recent information session, representatives of the Monongalia County Sheriff’s Department said the county’s 20 Flock Safety license plate reader cameras captured some 572,370 unique license plate images over a 30-day period. The department gets a number of hits through the NCIC that it never investigates because the plates are tied to known sex offenders and not an active

A man in his 70s, convicted in 2023 of a sex offense involving a minor, was approved by his probation office to volunteer at a local church. It’s the kind of stable, supervised community connection that reentry research consistently shows reduces reoffense risk. His probation condition was that he have no direct contact with minors. Somewhere between that condition and

Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker has signed legislation increasing compensation for people who were wrongfully convicted. The new law allows exonerees to receive compensation not only for years they spent in prison, but also for years they were wrongfully subjected to parole, probation, or required to register as a sex offender. That raises an interesting question. Governments across the country have