Not Punishment… it just feels that way.
Three years ago, a federal judge ruled that such consequences amounted to cruel and unusual punishment of three men who challenged their treatment under Colorado’s Sex Offender Registration Act. Last week a federal appeals court overturned that decision, saying the burdens imposed by registration do not even qualify as punishment, making the Eighth Amendment irrelevant.
While that conclusion might seem counterintuitive, it comports with the U.S. Supreme Court’s understanding of sex offender registration, which it views as civil rather than punitive. Even though there is no evidence that publishing information about people convicted of sex offenses protects public safety, that is what legislators claim they are trying to do. And since their goal is prevention rather than retribution, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit ruled, any harm inflicted by this policy is incidental.
That is not how it looks from the registrant’s perspective.
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Will this effect the Florida ex post facto case? If so how? Thank you for any info given.
Well what needs to be done is there needs to be a group of individuals collecting and disseminating judges, legislators personal information..all of it… telephone numbers (private and work),vehicles used and borrowed,all internet monikers and addresses….it may appear as punishment BUT it really is not..Its a community service, a civil service..They work for the public so its the publics best interest to have 24/7 access to them..build it like pirate Bay so every time they take it down it springs up in ten new places…I wonder how long it will be before they understand what punishment looks like then ..lol
I wonder if the plaintiffs are going to be able to certify the 6th circuit opinion as being in conflict with the 10th’s and other State Supreme court opinions resulting in similar conclutions.
Mark, we don’t want that registry to be the one challenged all the way to SCOTUS! The CO registry does not have near the restrictions Alabama, TN, Florida, or MS has. We need the most onerous, most debilitating registry with the most restraints/disabilities to fight all the way to SCOTUS. We need one that’s so over the top with restrictions that the court will be pretty much forced to rule it punitive.
Thank you for the correction. I hope they all went out and had a beer and congratulated themselves together after the decision. They’ll look like heroes in the morning paper.
Below this article, some very good comments.
It’s obvious the judge had made up his mind as to how he or she was going to decide this case before it ever began. He just had to figure out how he was going to twist the laws around to keep from looking like a complete idiot. You failed Judge.
It’s a panel of judges. not one.
From oral arguments, it’s not obvious that judges were going to rule this way. Plaintiff-appellees’ lawyer unfortunately made it a little easier for them to do so.
The lawyer defending judge Matsch’s decision stammered and stuttered a lot and didn’t sound all that confident to me in the first place. I listened to the oral arguments.
Also, consider this….LEGISLATORS CAN MOST LIKELY GET BACK DOOR EX PARTE ACCESS TO JUDGES WHENEVER THEY WANT TO, SO YOU KNOW SOME POLITICAL ARM TWISTING WAS ENGAGED IN.
Usually there’s one judge that stands out steering the pack I would certainly like to know who that was.