Uhm.....Call me a Moonbat, but I agree with this judge...
On Fri, Nov 5, 2010 at 2:28 PM, Travis <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > > > > > > Unbelievable! This goes with the recent one that an illegal who used > someone else's SSN to buy a house, vehicle and to work did not commit a > crime...Ferg > > > Law restricting where sex offenders can live is unconstitutional, L.A. > judge > rules<http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/11/law-restricting-where-sex-offenders-can-live-unconstitutional-la-judge-rules.html> > > November 4, 2010 | 8:07 am > > > http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/11/law-restricting-where-sex-offenders-can-live-unconstitutional-la-judge-rules.html > > Saying sex offenders are being forced to choose between prison and > homelessness, a Los Angeles judge issued an opinion this week blocking > enforcement of provisions a state law restricting how close those offenders > can live from parks or schools. > > Superior Court Judge Peter Espinoza issued the 10-page ruling after four > registered sex offenders petitioned the court, arguing that the legislation > known as Jessica's Law was unconstitutional. > > He said the court had received about 650 habeas corpus petitions raising > similar legal issues, and that hundreds more were being prepared by the > public defender's and alternate public defender's offices. > > "The court is not a 'potted plant' and need not sit idly by in the face of > immediate, ongoing and significant violations of parolee constitutional > rights," Espinoza wrote. > > Proposition 83, which is better known as Jessica's Law and was > overwhelmingly passed by state voters in 2006, imposes strict residency > requirements on sex offenders, including requirements forbidding them from > residing within 2,000 feet of any public or private school or park where > children regularly gather. > > Before the law passed, those residency requirements were imposed only on > offenders whose victims were children. > > Civil rights attorneys have argued that provisions of the law make it > impossible for some registered sex offenders to live in densely populated > cities. > > Nearly all of San Francisco, for example, is off-limits to sex offenders > because of the number of parks and schools close to housing. Los Angeles > officials also said that there are few places in the city where sex > offenders can find housing that meets Jessica's Law requirements. > > The California Supreme Court ruled in February that registered sex > offenders could challenge residency requirements in the law if it proves > impossible to avoid living near parks and schools. > > State corrections officials said Wednesday that they could not comment on > the specifics of Espinoza's ruling, but said they would continue to ensure > residency restrictions are imposed in cases where there is a valid reason to > continue enforcing them. > > "There are other tools that the Department of Corrections and > Rehabilitation can and will continue to use to further public safety, > including residency restrictions specific to each offender," said the agency > spokesman Luis Patino. > > In his opinion, Espinoza cited comments by Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie > Beck that the Jessica's Law restrictions had resulted in "a marked increase > of homeless/transient registrants." The judge noted that in 2007, there were > 30 sex offenders on active parole in the city of Los Angeles. By September > of this year, that number had jumped to 259. > > "Rather than protecting public safety, it appears that the sharp rise in > homelessness rates in sex offenders on active parole in Los Angeles County > actually undermines public safety." wrote Espinoza, who is the supervising > judge of the Los Angeles County criminal courts. "The evidence presented > suggests that despite lay belief, a sex offender parolee's residential > proximity to a school or park where children regularly gather does not bear > on the parolee's likelihood to commit a sexual offense against a child." > > LAPD officials said they were reviewing the court decision and had no > immediate comment on its specifics. > > Last month, in a briefing for the Los Angeles Police Commission, Det. Diane > Webb, who heads a unit responsible for tracking the whereabouts of sex > offenders, said there are about 5,100 registered sex offenders living in the > city. > > Of those, about 20%, or approximately 1,020 people, are on parole for > felony crimes and are prohibited by state law from living near a school or > park where children gather, Webb said. > > She said that some of the city's sex-offender population has come to Los > Angeles from surrounding cities that have passed additional sex-offender > laws that make it next to impossible for offenders to find a place to live > and push them to look elsewhere, but that Los Angeles does not have any > additional laws on its books, making it a feasible destination. > > -- Andrew Blankstein > * * > > > > > > > > -- > Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. > For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum > > * Visit our other community at > http://www.PoliticalForum.com/<http://www.politicalforum.com/> > * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. > * Read the latest breaking news, and more. -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more.
