Musical Sex Offenders
This is our weekly update from last week. We are posting it here so that we can share it through social media as well.
Dear Members and Advocates,
Let’s call this week’s update “musical sex offenders”. Like the children’s game where you circle chairs, removing one each time and when the music stops, one child is left without a chair to sit in and eliminated.
In musical sex offenders, the chairs are opportunities, the music is the legislature and registered citizens are the ones walking in circles waiting for the music to stop and one more opportunity to be taken away.
That has been the case with sex offender legislation since inception. Residency restrictions remain in effect as the number of available places to live, like the chairs, are eliminated one-by-one. The music starts again and when it stops, restriction on internet use comes up and job opportunities disappear. In “musical sex offenders” registered citizens are circling a consistently dwindling pool of opportunities, in constant fear that when the music stops an axe is going to fall and the only question is what will be taken away next.
Recently, the North Carolina Supreme Court upheld a ban on social media. To anyone who’s had a job since 1997, they are not exactly mailing letters or sending faxes anymore… Also, in a Texas city, they passed a law last week requiring registrants post a sign in their yard that says, “Sex Offender Lives Here”. Regardless of the fact that none of these measures have any effectiveness and only serve to further punish the registrant (and whoever lives with him), these are just more chairs that get pulled away when the music stops and for those of us who don’t live in North Carolina or Gonzalez, Texas, we’re walking in circles waiting for the music to stop. Only, in Florida, where registration is lifetime, the game is never over.
For those reading this, we’re preaching to the choir. By virtue of you receiving this email, you’re fully aware of what’s going on, you are aware that these measures do nothing to enhance public safety and only serve to further punish registered citizens irrespective of the severity of their offense. If you are getting this email, you are already aware of FAC, who we are and what we are doing to fight for reform.
What we ask of you today is to send this email to 10 friends or family members. People who know you, care about you, know you are not a monster and would be willing to help you. Invite them to join FAC, because by becoming a member, not only will the $5 a month go a long way in helping to fund our litigation, legislative and outreach efforts, but they will be educated on the facts surrounding our cause and kept informed of the latest developments and new laws that effect the rights of all citizens. They, in turn, will educate others and it’s only by getting our message out there, will we help influence public perception of registered citizens and end the game.
Sincerely,
Florida Action Committee
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I know that this is a comment on only a single facet of this article, but I am curious about NC ban on Social Media. I thought that SCOTUS had already ruled that SOs could NOT be banned because it violated our free speech rights. How can a state create a law that overrides SCOTUS?
I found this in another FAC article that should show that NC ban is illegal:
“Do registered sex offenders have a First Amendment right to access Facebook? Yes, according to a federal appeals court. In January 2013, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals struck down an Indiana law that barred most registered sex offenders from using social networking websites, instant messaging services, and chat programs. The court ruled that the law unconstitutionally limited offenders’ free speech rights. (Doe v. Prosecutor, Marion County Indiana, 2013 WL 238735 (Jan. 23, 2013).)”
It has not heard the argument yet. There’s a discrepancy between NC and Indiana but that was the NC STATE court and a FEDERAL APPEALS court. If it had lost in Federal Court it could have been appealed to the SUPREME COURT OF THE US.
The NC decision has to go up the ladder
You’ve hit the nail on the head! The continued passage of new laws which are applied retroactively (thanks to U.S. Supreme Court decision from 2003) harm registered citizens and their loved ones. Passing new laws can only be stopped if we unite together to Show Up, Stand Up and Speak Up. Two ways of doing that are to share Gail’s article and to make a donation. If each registered citizen donated only $10, there would be plenty of money to challenge the laws that continue to punish. Do it TODAY!
Thank you so much Janice!