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September 28, 2007
Intriguing article on fishy criminal registries
Thanks to an SSRN e-mail, I see an interesting looking piece about criminal registries for reading this weekend (when I am not busy rooting for a four-way tie in the National League). The article by Ofer Raban is entitled "Be They Fish or Not Fish: The Fishy Registration of Nonsexual Offenders" and is available at this link. Here is the abstract:
The article deals with a bizarre but common phenomenon: the registration of nonsexual criminals in sex offender registries. The practice has been challenged in a number of cases, but there is much disagreement among courts — often within the same jurisdiction — on its constitutionality, and on the analysis it entails. The issue has recently picked-up steam — reaching some state Supreme Courts (Florida's and Illinois'), and appearing in the popular news media. The article offers a comprehensive analysis of the Substantive Due Process issues involved, showing why registering nonsexual criminal in sex offender registries is a violation of the federal Constitution (both on the part of the States and on the part of the federal government). It also shows that the registration of nonsexual criminals in sex offender registries is a first-rate case-study for negligent policy-making (supported by faulty data), which frequently received a stamp of approval from an often-poor judicial reasoning, itself supported by an impoverished constitutional jurisprudence.
September 28, 2007 at 02:45 PM | Permalink
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When the registry is mistaken. Sentencing Law and Policy points to a law review article by Professor Ofer Raban about this growing problem: The article deals with a bizarre but common phenomenon: the registration of nonsexual criminals in sex offender [Read More]
Tracked on Oct 2, 2007 11:01:29 PM
Comments
While it has nothing to do with sentencing law, it does relate to the parenthetical: ... go Rockies!
Posted by: DEJ | Sep 28, 2007 7:22:49 PM
How can the state of Minnesota give any jail time for failing to register as a sexual predator if the law is civil and not criminal? Should'nt being forced to register void the contract of having to register, since the bill is civil with relative duties. Also does the Department of corrections have the right to tell someone that has expired their sentence to go to sex offender treatment if their current charge has nothing to do with a sex offense. Are they over stepping their bounderies and jurisdiction. Please respond. thank you.
Posted by: phillip, student | Dec 7, 2007 11:38:44 PM