A federal judge has found the state of Montana has no valid reason to require a man to register as a sex offender based on his conviction for having gay sex in Idaho in 1993.
U.S. District Judge Dana Christensen on Tuesday prevented the state from requiring XXXXX XXXXX of Butte to register as a sex offender under Idaho’s Crimes Against Nature law.
“None of the governmental interests in maintaining a sexual offender registry are served by XXXXX’ inclusion,” Christensen wrote. “Engagement in intimate sexual contact with a person of the same sex, without more, cannot be said to render someone a threat to the public safety.”
The state was wrong in not allowing XXXXX to challenge the registration requirement even though his conviction in Idaho was for actions that are now constitutionally protected, the judge found.
“ After hearing arguments on the case, Christensen found the registration requirement was an ongoing violation of Menges’ rights to due process, equal protection and privacy.”
If one reads the article carefully, this IS a huge win.
Was the objection to being registered because it is a form of punishment. If it’s not punishment than why would anyone bother with the time and experience to fight it. That point needs to be highly emphasized.
IMHO, “Huge Win” is a wild exaggeration. It only applies to this one guy in Montana.
I had no victim and no sex, gay or otherwise, but am required to register for life in Floriduh.
Please explain the “Huge Win.”
Removed the Huge Win since it offended so many.
FAC
It did not offend me at all but was kind of misleading. Too many post lately are labeled HUGE WIN then we come on here all excited and it is a small win for a slim group of people . A HUGE win would be a story like what happened in Michigan where the registry was halted for the time being.
Having said that, the story does show just how far states ,jurisdictions and law enforcement are going to label groups of people as sex offenders. What that man and his (I guess) of age lover do in private is between them. None of the states business.
“Huge Win” ? One defendant wins his case and that affects how many more of us? Glad he can salvage what’s left of his life now but can’t see it as a huge win for anyone but him. Thanks for passing along the info on his victory.
Of course, the state must protect the “integrity of the system.” Even if the system has no integrity.
I saw “Huge Win” & 1st thought, a FL Fed judge granted our motion or something.
How pervasive is registration for nothing more than gay sex?
The govt used electric shock “therapy” to “cure” homosexuals of their “illnesses” in the past. Back then, being gay was considered to be an illness that needed government involvement to treat and cure. Have things really changed that much in 50 or so years given the government still uses chemical castration and civil commitment laws to “cure” us?