Reform Sex Offender Laws, Inc.

Reform Sex Offender Laws, Inc.
Formation 2007
Type Non-profit organization
Purpose Civil rights advocacy, Reforming sex offender laws
Headquarters Cambridge, Massachusetts
Chair
 Paul Shannon
Executive Director
 Brenda Jones
Website nationalrsol.org

Reform Sex Offender Laws, Inc. (RSOL) is a national level civil rights and justice reform organization based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with 38 state affiliates.[1] RSOL and its affiliates are part of the growing movement to reform sex offender laws in the United States. They assert that while sex offender registries in the United States were originally well-intentioned and for the most heinous and dangerous sex offenders only, their reach has exponentially widened to include petty offenses such as teen sexting and consensual relations between young people.[2][3] RSOL has generated media attention by arranging multiple annual conferences in several large cities including Albuquerque,[4] Los Angeles[5] and Dallas,[6] and by being involved in numerous lawsuits.[7][8][9]

Purpose

While RSOL believes that offenders should be held accountable in court of law, it criticizes current sex offender registry laws in the United States. RSOL asserts that current sex offender laws are not based on scientific evidence.[3][10][11] These claims are supported by scientific research[12][13][14][15] and professional organizations such as Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers have presented similar critiques.[16][17]

Support Hotline

RSOL originally began a Support Hotline to offer support and encouragement to registrants, families, and others affected by current sex offender laws.[18] The Hotline later was managed by SOSEN (Sex Offender Solutions and Education Network),[19] and is now run by Women Against Registry (W.A.R.). It is an all volunteer project staffed by private citizens concerned about the damage sex offender laws impose on registrants, families, and friends of registrants. Currently the Support Hotline is entirely funded and maintained by Women Against Registry.[20]

Lawsuits

RSOL's Californian chapter CA RSOL challenged ordinances governing registered sex offenders in federal court across the state of California.[6][7][8] During 2014 over 20 municipalities has been sued by RSOL.[21] As of October 11, 15 of the lawsuits had been settled, 38 cities had avoided litigation by revoking their sex offender ordinances, and 6 cities had chosen to discontinue enforcing the ordinances. At the time, sex offender ordinances were under review in 18 additional cities.[22] These efforts culminated in March 2015 when Supreme Court of California declared residency restrictions unconstitutional citing their unfairness and counterproductive effects.[23] Similar lawsuits by the RSOL's Texas chapter forced some Texas towns to ease their residency restrictions in early 2016.[24]

RSOL's Maryland chapter, FAIR (Families Advocating Intelligent Registries)[25] has played a significant role in reversing the retroactive application of registry laws in the state of Maryland. They were part of the Amicus Curiae cited in the March 2013 Court of Appeals decision Doe v. DPSCS[26][27] which declared that Maryland's existing sex offender registry laws are punitive in effect, and therefore could not constitutionally be applied retroactively to persons whose crimes pre-dated registration. This decision was further solidified in 2014 with the "Doe 2" decision.[28] The full impact of these decisions in Maryland is still being affected.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "My Son, the Sex Offender: One Mother's Mission to Fight the Law". NBC. 8 May 2014.
  2. ↑ Sethi, Chanakya (12 August 2014). "The Ridiculous Laws That Put People on the Sex Offender List". Slate. Retrieved 24 November 2014.
  3. 1 2 "Assertions". Nationalrsol.org. Reform Sex Offender Laws, Inc. Retrieved 15 November 2014.
  4. ↑ Zakalik, Lauren (Aug 29, 2012). "National conference aims to soften, reform sex offender laws". KOAT. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  5. ↑ Lovett, Ian (October 1, 2013). "Restricted Group Speaks Up, Saying Sex Crime Measures Go Too Far". The New York Times. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  6. 1 2 Blow, Steve (17 July 2014). "We can do better on sex offender laws". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  7. 1 2 Belluci, Janice (21 July 2013). "CA RSOL Challenges El Dorado County Sex Offender Ordinance". In Eldorado County News. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  8. 1 2 Howes, Rebecca (April 24, 2014). "Attorney files sex offender lawsuit against Lompoc". Lompoc Record. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  9. ↑ Case, Stephanie (September 19, 2013). "City of Orange Sued Over Sex Offender Halloween Restrictions". KTLA 5. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  10. ↑ "Education is Key". Nationalrsol.org. Reform Sex Offender Laws, Inc. Retrieved 15 November 2014.
  11. ↑ "Are We Looking at Sex Offender Management Backwards?". Nationalrsol.org. Reform Sex Offender Laws, Inc. April 15, 2013. Retrieved 15 November 2014.
  12. ↑ Prescot, J.J. (2011). "Do Sex Offender Registration and Notification Laws Affect Criminal Behavior?". Journal of Law and Economics. 54 (1): 161–206. doi:10.1086/658485.
  13. ↑ Agan, Amanda (2011). "Sex Offender Registries: Fear without Function?". Journal of Law and Economics. 1 (54): 207–239. doi:10.1086/658483. JSTOR 10.1086/658483.
  14. ↑ Hanson, R.K.; Morton-Bourgon, K. (2004). "Predictors of sexual recidivism: An updated meta-analysis.". Public Works and Government Services. Ottawa, Canada.
  15. ↑ Hanson, R.K.; Harris, A.J.R. (1998). "Dynamic predictors of sexual recidivism.". Ottawa: Department of the Solicitor General of Canada.
  16. ↑ "The Registration and Community Notification of Adult Sexual Offenders". Atsa.com. Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers. April 5, 2010. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  17. ↑ "Sexual Offender Residence Restrictions". Atsa.com. Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers. April 5, 2010. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  18. ↑ Yoffe, Emily (16 January 2014). "Help! I Want to Kill Myself So My Family Gets the Insurance.". Slate. Retrieved 24 November 2014.
  19. ↑ "SOSEN, Inc.". Sosen.org. Retrieved 16 December 2014.
  20. ↑ "Registrants and Families Support Line". Nationalrsol.org. Reform Sex Offender Laws, Inc.
  21. ↑ Johnson, Shea (Oct 21, 2014). "County sued over sex offender ordinance". Daily Press. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  22. ↑ Nelson, Joe (10 November 2014). "SPECIAL REPORT: Pair seeks repeal of sex-offender laws in California". Daily Breeze. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  23. ↑ "Housing Restrictions For Sex Offenders Unconstitutional, California Court Rules". The Huffington Post.
  24. ↑ "20 Texas towns ease restrictions on sex offenders". KFOR.com. 7 February 2016.
  25. ↑ "FAIR". Fairegistry.org. Retrieved 16 December 2014.
  26. ↑ "John Doe v. Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, Case No. 125, Plurality Opinion by Greene, J." (PDF). Mdcourts.gov. Retrieved 16 December 2014.
  27. ↑ "CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE" (PDF). Mcdaa.org. Retrieved 16 December 2014.
  28. ↑ "STATUTORY INTERPRETATION – SEX OFFENDER REGISTRATION AND NOTIFICATION ACT ("SORNA")" (PDF). Mdcourts.gov. Retrieved 16 December 2014.
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