Update in Butts County GA Halloween Sign Lawsuit
The following came from a Fox affiliate in Atlanta (https://www.fox5atlanta.com/)
MACON, Ga. – In a hearing that lasted more than three hours, a federal judge heard testimony and arguments Thursday in a lawsuit by sex offenders against a middle Georgia sheriff’s office.
“It’s a balancing test and that’s what makes this case so difficult,” said U.S. District Court Judge Marc Treadwell during the hearing.
On the one hand, Treadwell said, the government has a compelling interest in protecting children, but on the other, the sex offenders impacted are no longer in jail and have paid their debt to society.
Judge Treadwell gave both sides a deadline of 5 p.m. Friday to submit any additional documents or materials for his consideration.
He must not only decide whether to grant an injunction against the sheriff’s office to stop the posting of the flyers, but also whether to grant all the county’s sex offenders class-action status. That would mean his ruling would apply to not only the homes of the three plaintiffs but all 55 registered sex offenders in Butts County.
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Hello, there’s another aspect that is a close second to compelled speech and thats is ” There has not been one single incident ever happen on Halloween to a child by a sex offender. The whole stranger danger.came from our government and the guy with his hat pulled low n wearing a trench coat with candy lurking behind a tree waiting for a child also came from our government. Here’s the information:
http://texasvoices.org/halloween-fiction-or-fact
New ruling on this (h/t: Guy Hamilton-Smith):
https://mitchellhamline.edu/sex-offense-litigation-policy/wp-content/uploads/sites/61/2019/10/2020-Summary-Judgment-Order.pdf
Per the constitution
The compelled speech doctrine sets out the principle that the government cannot force an individual or group to support certain expression. Thus, the First Amendment not only limits the government from punishing a person for his speech, it also prevents the government from punishing a person for refusing to articulate, advocate, or adhere to the government’s approved messages.
Again more and more of our rights are stripped away. Next we will have to walk around with sandwich boards that read “Sex offender”.
Also
Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. reiterated the essence of the compelled speech principle: “Some of this Court’s leading First Amendment precedents have established the principle that freedom of speech prohibits the government from telling people what they must say.
TY for the update Jacob.
Hello, from what I’ve looked up an found out there’s no law requiring registered sex offenders to have or put in there yard or in there window, and there’s no law requiring that you must comply to what ever the sherrif commands you to do unless its in the law books, so i don’t know why the judge has weigh it out, the sherrif put the signs there illegally period.
The problem with the laws is that they have such a broad way of determining who is a sex offender…. you driving away from any place to take a leak and if a cop sees you and he just might charge you for indecent exposure and if you are anywhere near homes with kids they could put you on the list. Some one that did nothing at all to kids can be on the list just depends on where you are and what happened…
What continues to bother me is that the judge did not issue a ‘temporary cease and desist order’ to the sheriff to remove the signs until judgement is rendered. So, the whole time this is going on, the registered plaintiffs have to have these signs in their yard to further humiliate them until Friday, long after halloween, even though there is no law stating that they have to be displayed. If he judges in favor of the sheriff, he will be basically giving the sheriff in Butts County a ‘Carte Blanche’ right to do whatever he wants, which could include signs year round by using the same premise as doing it on halloween, and chances are, other sheriffs in Georgia will follow suit.
The judge made his ruling on the FACTS,rather than letting emotions or bias come first. The law didn’t give the sheriff the right to put the signs out. He can try to interpret the law so it’ll support his actions but at the end of the day, he was out of line. What hasn’t been mentioned is that Sheriff Long is running for reelection & appearing tough on crime will help him get votes. If any of the 55 registrants are now eligible to vote in 2020 I suggest they be first in line to support another candidate who will enforce the law instead of trying to make it fit his agenda.
Why would a judge do that? No need for a cease & desist when there’s no law either way which means whom evers yard the sherrif put the signs in the offender can go out an yank the sign out of the yard and throw it away, no law prior to this requiring the signs be placed so the offender will not get in trouble if he pulled the sign out.
Here’s an idea: registrants who are not allowed to hand out candy to trick-or-treaters or otherwise prohibited from participating in Halloween-related activities should see about donating some Halloween candy to a local children’s hospital for kids who may not be able to participate themselves.
As for the lawsuit, I hope it is successful. These signs put people’s lives and property at risk and we should demand better of our public servants.
All this is a lifetime of punishment