California politician proposes bill to ban sex offenders from using social networking sites

[alp227]

The San Francisco Chronicle reports that Assemblywoman Norma Torres (D-Pomona, Ca.) introduced Assembly Bill 2208 to make it a crime for registered sex offenders to use any social networking website (such as Myspace and Facebook). The bill "is similar to legislation passed last year in Illinois, but doesn't go quite as far as a New York state law that additionally requires sex offenders to register their e-mail addresses and online aliases with state authorities, who can then turn over the names to the companies that run the social networking sites." San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris sponsored AB2208.

Of course convicted and registered sex offenders should not go on Facebook stalking kids! However, depending on whether California prosecutes teenagers who engage in "sexting" as sex offenders, this seems tantamount to cruel and unusual punishment. It's bad enough that residency restrictions for sex offenders are forcing sex offenders to be homeless or live in crummy household after serving prison time already. Methinks that the more rights that get taken away from sex offenders post release, the more chance of recidivism. Why not just keep those sex offenders in prison if they're such a threat to society that they can't live near schools or use Facebook?

[slackmaster]

1. How about keeping them in prison instead?

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/02/psychiatrist-urged-long-sentence-in-sex-offenders/

[alp227]

3. Hell yeah. Keep sex offenders in prison, let out the bud smokers!

What kind of bleeped up justice system do we have in America that smoking some ganja while blasting some Bob Marley classics in your own room is just as harmful (or more) to society as exposing your privates to a kid or having inappropriate physical contact with someone?

[Duer 157099]

8. And make the drug offenders register!

Just so everyone knows where to find the local connection...

[wilt the stilt]

2. unfair to republicans

how else are they going to meet underage children.

[the other one]

4. What about murderers?

Or white color criminals? Wouldn't it help keep those bastards from finding new victims?

Or is this guy a political hack who is trying to gain votes by capitalizing on Americans fear of sex?

[arbusto_baboso]

5. How exactly would this be enforced?

NOT POSSIBLE.

[slackmaster]

6. Good point

Touche.

The only way to enforce it is to keep them in prison.

[kirby]

7. We will all have to register our usernames with law enforcement...

Not sure how else...

[Newsjock]

9. This is the type of uninformed bill I would expect from the GOP

It's always "for the children." We walk direct into the buzzsaw of every nanny-state accusation leveled against us.

Yes, sex offenders are not cool. But try to distinguish the creepy 45-year-old serial rapist from the 18-year-old guy who had one consensual night with a slightly younger girl.

Or, worse yet, this also includes all of the elderly gay men who were branded as "sex offenders" for "crimes" as trivial as holding hands in the park half a century ago.

Bad idea, and the Democrats can and should do better.

[The Defendant Mother]

10. Real Victims

I am mother of 2 a 7 year old daughter and an 18 year old son. I am also a rape victim. Both my children are very striking and have always drawn a lot of attention, particularly my son. It really opened my eyes to the fact the boys are just as likely to be subjected to considerable unwanted 'sexual' attention, not just women and girls. It seems that in our gallant need to protect 'women and children' we've gone to to point of creating a new class of victims: Men and teenage boys. The number of young men and boys on the the sex offender registry for engaging in behavior, or 'allegedly' engaging in behavior that most of us have probably been a party to at some point is outrageous. An example a young man at a house party at 3am gets tired of waiting for the bathroom to free up relieves himself in a shrub beside the house, police come due to noise complaint, young man is cuffed and prosecuted as a school is 4 doors down. The fact that it is 3am on a Saturday night is irrelevant, in this jurisdiction, I will learn ALL cases or fully prosecuted with or without evidence. As someone who passionately worked to ensure that the world was a safe place for women I am ashamed of what has become of that work. What most people don't know is that rape cases require NO corroborating evidence, thousands of dollars are spent on forensic exams that are never processed and if they were in cases of non-stranger rape allegations are completely inconclusive, (no you can't tell if it was consensual or not, it's not like on TV that's why countries like Australia have sought to ban it's use in the courts as non-scientific). Due to the rape shield laws no mention of prior false claims of rape are allowed, in fact no mention of the alleged victims history or character are allowed to be mentioned at all. It is virtually impossible to defend yourself if you can't say anything about your accuser. This is not the case for any other crime. Legislature has been passed and is de facto law in many places barring the use of polygraphs in investigations as it is "offensive" to 'victims' Yet it is matter of routine with parents whose children go missing?! Additionally, accusers are allowed to have 2 support people with them while they're on the stand. A privilege we do not afford victims of any other crime. For example those who were witnesses at Columbine, even those who were minors would not have been afforded this support if made to testify in court. My point is WE HAVE GONE WAY TOO FAR. My reason for going so in depth? My 18 year old son, who is not yet shaving and still has 2 baby teeth is on 23 hour a day lock-down for his own protection facing a 6 year sentence for rape. His accuser is a 22 year old women who supplied him a 5th of whiskey, a women who has a history of predatory behavior toward young boys, and making numerous outrageous claims of victimization spanning over nearly a decade and is in fact presently on social network sites 'chatting' with 16 year old boys, where she invites them out to 'have some beers in the woods' come see her 'sexy booty shorts' and she has plenty of free time and money to do so as she hasn't had to work in 6 months due to receiving disability from the victims fund, while she goes out several nights a week gets drunk and hangs on boys and post pictures of her behavior. The solution is not restricting those convicted of sexual offenses, the real predators will always find a way, just as this women has (she has 23 online personas that I know about) The solution is getting real about who the victims are, who the predators are and who benefiting from the state sponsored witch hunts that are swallowing up our men boys and likely guaranteeing a sexual assault is in their future while in prison, and no one is going to make any effort to stop that impending sexual assault. ENOUGH! Say no to this legislation, tell Kamala Harris and Norma Torres you rather spend our resources and energies on things that would actually benefit our children, education and after school enrichment for example.