Writing Sex Offender Laws Based on Fake Recidivism Numbers Is Rational, Court Says
The Illinois Supreme Court unanimously upholds a law banning sex offenders from public parks.
Sex Offender Registry
Should We Abolish the Sex Offender Registry? A Debate.
Watch sociologist Emily Horowitz debate legal scholar Marci Hamilton at the Soho Forum.
Should the Sex Offender Registry Be Abolished? A Live Debate.
Watch Sociologist Emily Horowitz vs. Marci Hamilton of CHILD USA at the Soho Forum.
"All Sex Offender Registries Should Be Abolished": Debate, 2/12
Tomorrow's Soho Forum/Reason debate asks whether well-intentioned laws to protect victims do more harm than good.
Sex-Offender Registries Do More Harm than Good: Live Debate 2/12 in NYC
Reason/Soho Forum debate in New York looks at the unintended consequences of a popular mandate. Tickets available or watch online.
4th Circuit Approves Imprisonment of Sex Offender Convicted of a Nonexistent Crime
Although his conviction was invalid, the appeals court says, his civil commitment as a "sexually dangerous person" remains legal.
Under Alabama Law, Roy Moore's Alleged Encounter With a Teenager Is a Serious Crime With Lifelong Consequences
The Republican Senate candidate would still be paying for his actions four decades later.
Scarlet-Letter Passports Are Unjust and Irrational
The new "unique identifier" for sex offenders stigmatizes people who pose no threat.
Young Man Arrested for Underage Sex Was Re-Arrested for Sharing a Pizza with a 17-Year-Old
The witch hunt against Zach Anderson continues
Will SCOTUS Let Fear of Sex Offenders Trump Justice?
Two cases give the Court a chance to reconsider its counterintuitive conclusions about commitment and registration.
19-Year-Old Girl Has Sex with Underage Teen; Years Later, She's a Mom and a Sex Offender for Life
Sex offender registries are cruel and unjust.
'I'm Appalled,' Says Source of Phony Number Used to Justify Harsh Sex Offender Laws
Claims of "frightening and high" recidivism rates, endorsed by the Supreme Court, have no basis in fact.
Florida's Joe Arpaio Threatens to Imprison Irma Refugees If They Have Warrants
Polk County's hurricane shelters will not be open to all.
For Sex Offenders, Registration Is Punishment
A federal judge rules that Colorado's online database violates the Eighth Amendment.
Cops Dig Desperately for a Picture That Can Send a Harmless Old Man to Jail
Prosecutors say the former professor poses no threat but should be locked up anyway.
Pennsylvania Supreme Court Recognizes Sex Offender Registration As Punitive
The court says retroactive application of the requirements violates the constitutional ban on ex post facto laws.
SCOTUS Unanimously Rejects Law Banning Sex Offenders From Social Media
The justices say the law's "unprecedented" and "staggering" scope violates the First Amendment.
14-Year-Old Boy Facing Assault Charge, Sex Offender Registry for Sex with 12-Year-Old Girl
"He loved her. They were boyfriend-girlfriend."
The Unjust, Irrational, and Unconstitutional Consequences of Pedophilia Panic
The fear and disgust triggered by this subject help explain why laws dealing with sex offenses involving minors frequently lead to bizarre results.
The Lingering Impact of Justice Kennedy's Trumpesque Claim About Sex Offenders
Courts assume a "frightening and high risk of recidivism," based on an unsupported claim in Psychology Today.
20-Year-Old Deported for Sex with 16-Year-Old, Which Isn't Even Illegal in 43 States
The Supreme Court is set to rule on the case.
SCOTUS Seems Likely to Overturn Law Banning Sex Offenders From Social Media
"This has become a crucially important channel of political communication," Justice Elena Kagan observes.
Teen Girl Sent Teen Boy 5 Inappropriate Pictures. He Faced Lifetime Registry as a 'Violent Sex Offender' or 350 Years in Jail.
Welcome to the world of teens, computers, and prosecutors who want to look tough on sex offenders.
The State Has Stopped Trying to Wreck a Teenage Boy's Life Because He Sexted His Girlfriend (For Now)
Austin Yabandith won't go to prison or register as a sex offender. But his mistreatment isn't over yet.
The Idea of a Hate Crimes Offender Registry Is Absurd
Let's not come up with new reasons to continue punishing ex-cons after the fact.
Two Federal Courts Call BS on Banning Sex Offenders From 'Child Safety Zones'
Rulings deem Indiana and North Carolina laws unconstitutionally vague and unjustifiably wide.
Listening to Sex Offenders
Their stories are stereotypical and repetitive in ways we've all heard a million times, all our lives-and mostly not from sexual offenders.
SCOTUS Will Consider Challenge to Ban on Social Media Use by Sex Offenders
A man arrested for using Facebook argues that North Carolina's law violates the First Amendment.
Judge Dismisses Challenge to Special Sex Offender Passports
The plaintiffs argued that the newly mandated stigma is unconstitutional.
Sex Offenders Say Idaho's Retroactive Registration Requirements Are Unconstitutional
Idaho's law is similar to Michigan's, which a federal appeals court recently deemed punitive.
Romeo and Juliet and Sexting: 17-Year-Old Faces Child Porn, Assault Charges for Consensual Sex with Girlfriend
'They said that all they were going to do was delete the photos from the phone, so I blindly signed a paper allowing them to access it.'
Probation for Sex With Another Teenager, 3.5 Years in Prison for Failing to Register
The 9th Circuit upholds retroactive application of Arizona's registration requirement for sex offenders.
Brock Turner Should Still Be in Prison, Not on the Sex Offender Registry
His punishment is too lenient and too harsh.
The Perverse Penalties of Leper Lists
A federal appeals court finds little evidence that the burdens imposed by sex offender registries are justified.
6th Circuit Says Mich. Sex Offender Registry Is Punitive and, Not Incidentally, Stupid
Concluding that retroactive application of the law is unconstitutional, the appeals court also questions its rationality.
When Sex Is Not a Crime, Why Should Sexting Be?
Rather than create new misdemeanors, states should take a page from statutory rape laws.
Federal Judge Stops Nebraska From Forcing 13-Year-Old to Register as a Sex Offender
He committed his offense when he was 11.
Lawsuit Says 'Scarlet Letter' Passports for Sex Offenders Are Unconstitutional
A new law imposes an international stigma on people who pose no threat to public safety.
Male Teen Takes Nude Photo of Himself, Charged with Making Child Porn
The kid, 15, could be placed on the sex offender registry.
Obama Could Still Stop 'Megan's Law' From Making Sex Offenders Get Special Passports
For the first time in U.S. history, some citizens may be singled out for scarlet letters on their passports.
Why America Puts 9-Year-Old Kids on the Sex Offender Registry for Life
Living in fear of exaggerated dangers.
Government Wants to Brand Sex Offenders on Their Passports
Shameful and unnecessary.
Why Isn't This TSA Agent Who Groped a 10-Year-Old Being Charged with Sexual Battery?
Little girl gets patdown for accidentally smuggling a juice box past airport security.
Top Massachusetts Court Rejects Local Banishment of Sex Offenders
Judges say Lynn ordinance is pre-empted by state law but also note "grave societal and constitutional implications."
