NH - They’re killing sex offenders

Original Article

06/20/2014

By Chris Dornin

I was pleased to see a recent Sentinel editorial declaring the Internet sex offender roster punitive. My nonprofit group Citizens for Criminal Justice Reform filed an amicus brief in December supporting John Doe, a former sex offender challenging the New Hampshire sex offender shaming list as an unconstitutional ex-post-facto punishment.

At the oral arguments in May, all four justices asked questions suggesting they viewed the registry as an added criminal penalty applied retroactively. If Doe wins, he will blow some serious holes in the targeting registry. Citizens for Criminal Justice Reform is raising money to pay expert witnesses for a follow-up class-action suit that is ready for filing.

But your editorial should have gone further in its criticism of sex offender laws. Keene has lately become the New England epicenter of vigilantism against this demonized group. _____ of Keene, a registrant and invalid, was shot dead at his front door last December. A front-door bludgeoning in October left _____ of Westmoreland with major head trauma. His attacker was looking for someone else, according to State Police. The next-door neighbor was a registrant.

It’s pretty easy to connect the dots here. But Keene and State Police have refused calls from Citizens for Criminal Justice Reform to take down the registry as a precaution, or even warn registrants they may be in grave danger. Worse, to my knowledge, the Keene police are the only ones in New Hampshire who post a user-friendly Internet map of sex offender registrants to help neighbors find them.

I must respectfully disagree with this part of your editorial:

“Given the recidivism rates involved in sexual assault cases, especially those victimizing children, there’s a lot to be said for keeping the public informed of legitimate threats. There does need to be some way for the public to be informed.”

That passage is bad advice and reinforces the dangerous myth that sex offenders have high recidivism rates. Former Assistant Safety Commissioner John Stephen urged the Senate Judiciary Committee in 2002 to post our registry online, saying only 16 of the 717 people who had been on the non-public registry to date had been arrested for new sex crimes, including three for indecent exposure and one for criminal restraint. Stephen assumed publishing the list would lower the rate even more.

Dozens of research articles confirm that sex offenders have the lowest same-crime recidivism rate of any ex-prisoners, a cumulative 1 to 5 percent in the first three years out of prison, depending on the state. The rate per year plummets after that.

There is also extensive research showing the public registry does nothing to lower recidivism, but makes registrants unemployable and homeless. The widespread vigilantism against them makes them even more likely to re-offend. It costs them wives and support systems. It keeps them on the run. It pressures landlords to drive them out.

Lawrence Trant repeatedly stabbed a Concord registrant in 2004 and tried to burn an apartment building with another seven registrants.

“I hope I’ve done a service to the community,” Trant told the Boston Globe. “These guys are sexual terrorists.”

A chanting Manchester mob burned a scarecrow on the wooden porch of registrant _____ in 2006. Huot was away, but her roommate watched from inside their home with her two young sons and a baby. That is life on the registry.

Victim advocates in Ohio see the problem. Rape crisis centers in Texas and Cleveland filed an amicus brief supporting the successful Williams vs. Ohio challenge to the Ohio public registry. Margie Slagle, the lawyer for the women, argued the shaming list perpetuates dangerous myths, creates a false sense of security, misuses police resources, harms and destabilizes former offenders and thus increases the risk of recidivism.

“Any argument,” Slagle wrote, “that Ohio’s (Adam Walsh Act) is simply a remedial law designed to protect children and the public from sexual abuse and sex crimes is seriously flawed. Ohio’s AWA is not based on empirical evidence or proven research, but on fear and misinformation.”

The Ohio law was similar to New Hampshire’s.

Chris Dornin

Founder

Citizens for Criminal Justice Reform

P.O. Box 3492

Concord

NH - State's sex-offender registry overreaches

Original Article

05/20/2014

The N.H. Supreme Court is pondering the fate of a man convicted, several decades ago, of sexually assaulting his teenage stepdaughter. The man has served out his prison sentence, undergone years of counseling and been deemed “rehabilitated” by the court. Now in his 60s, he is disabled.

None of which would be fodder for the state’s highest court, except that since he was released from prison in 1990, the state has repeatedly enacted laws calling for those convicted of sexual assault against children to register with the police, so a legal — and public — eye can be kept on them. And yes, such laws include those who were sentenced long before the new laws were enacted.

The man now before the Supreme Court seeking relief from these laws has been dubbed John Doe to protect his anonymity. It’s ironic that Mr. Doe can hide his identity from the public in court, because the reason he’s there is that he can’t hide it anywhere else. Thanks to these laws — both state and federal — John Doe and others must allow not only the police to know where they are, they must let everyone know, by keeping their current address in a database accessible to anyone online.

And in many cases, they must do so for life. There is no mechanism for getting off the list, and failure to keep the information updated carries harsh penalties in itself.

If all this seems over the line of reasonable punishment, in many cases we agree. However, the state has argued inclusion on this public online registry is not a punishment, but a regulatory matter.

We think that reasoning is absurd. Clearly, it is a punishment, tantamount to those on the list being forced to wear a large letter “P” pinned to their chests in public.

And while belling the cat may be a good idea for those whose crimes indicate they will continue to pose a threat, there are some crimes designated as sexual in nature that may not, such as public urination.

This is not to ignore the real danger posed by sick minds — the hardcore predators who will never be rehabilitated. Given the recidivism rates involved in sexual assault cases, especially those victimizing children, there’s a lot to be said for keeping the public informed of legitimate threats. There does need to be some way for the public to be informed.
- What recidivism rate?  You mean that sex offenders have one of the lowest recidivism rates of any other ex-felon?

Hearing the arguments of the John Doe case earlier this month, the justices seemed taken aback by the logic of the laws. One argued a paraplegic on the registry who now poses no threat to anyone could himself become a victim of vigilantes who look up his address online. If that seems far-fetched, consider the case of Stephen Marshall, who in 2006 killed two men whose names and addresses he’d looked up on Maine’s sex-offender registry.

We, too, worry that inclusion on a public registry could make a target of people who have otherwise served their sentence for crimes committed. We hope the court’s review will result in a close look at the state’s sex-offender registry, including how long someone who has been deemed rehabilitated by the courts should be on it and whether the list of crimes for which one qualifies needs to be culled.
- It also puts the lives of family members (innocent people) in danger as well, not just the ex-offenders!

NH - House committee passes bill prohibiting restrictions on where sex offenders can live

Original Article

01/29/2014

By ANNMARIE TIMMINS

A House committee easily passed a bill, 18-1, prohibiting restrictions on where sex offenders can live yesterday, noting that judges have twice ruled residency restrictions unconstitutional. Still, lawmakers predicted a tough fight in the Senate, which has rejected similar bills before.

“There is a perception that this bill is being soft on crime,” said Rep. Steve Vaillancourt, a Manchester Republican who voted for the bill. “All of us who have heard (this debate) know the benefits of the bill. But we’re going to need to explain it.”

Rep. Al Baldasaro, a Londonderry Republican, cast the lone vote against the bill, saying he didn’t want to tell his constituents they couldn't determine where sex offenders could and could not live.

As many as 11 communities have residency restrictions for sex offenders, said Rep. Renny Cushing, a Hampton Democrat. Londonderry is not one of them, according to the town’s website. Locally, Tilton, Northfield and Boscawen have such restrictions. Both Northfield’s and Tilton’s ordinances prohibit people convicted of sex crimes against children from living within 2,500 feet of schools, child-care centers and playgrounds. Boscawen’s ordinance was not available yesterday.

Tilton adopted its ordinance in 2007 and added this explanation to it: “Acknowledging that sex offenders who prey on children are at a higher risk of re-offending, the town of Tilton has a compelling interest and responsibility to protect the health, safety and welfare of its children by restricting access to areas where there (is) a high concentration of children.”
- Once again a law passed based on lies and not the facts.  Recidivism among sex offenders is lower than any other criminal, except murderers.

However, two judges have found otherwise. In 2009, a district court judge in Dover ruled that city’s residency restriction invalid because the city had not shown a “substantial relationship” between the ordinance and the protection of children. In 2012, Merrimack County Superior Court Judge Larry Smukler came to the same conclusion when the New Hampshire Civil Liberties Union appealed Franklin’s ordinance.

Cushing, a member of the House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee, said the bill prohibiting residency restrictions is necessary because it will take costly legal fights to undo the 11 ordinances still in place across the state. “The simple thing that can be done is to pass a bill that incorporates the . . . courts’ decisions.”

Cushing also argued that restricting housing for sex offenders pushes them “underground,” in campgrounds, under bridges and to other places the police cannot monitor. He said communities are safer if the police know where sex offenders live and require yearly registration with the local police.

Baldasaro said he was concerned that if a sex offender moved into a Londonderry neighborhood, “everyone else wants to move out.” He added, “I want to support this bill, but I have to go back to neighborhoods in my district. Who is going to protect the neighbors?”
- It is not up to the government or police to "protect" anybody, it's their job to enforce laws and respect the Constitution and the rights of others, not pass unconstitutional laws to help themselves look tough!

Rep. Larry Gagne, a Manchester Republican, responded to Baldasaro.

“My first term, I was pretty much a hard-liner,” he said. “I said, ‘Put (sex offenders) in outer space. Put them all on an island.’ But I changed my mind after a (police) sergeant came in and said, ‘If they go underground, we can’t find them.’ ”

Rep. Roger Berube, a Somersworth Democrat, questioned why the state Senate has rejected several similar bills from the House in previous years. “How can they get away with that?” he asked. “It doesn't appear the Senate is actually listening to the . . . court.”
- And it appears you are not obeying your oath to defend the Constitution and the rights of others!

To that, Rep. Laura Pantelakos, chairwoman of the committee said, “Sometimes the Senate doesn't listen to anybody.”

NH - Bill seeks to fight sexual abuse through education

Emily Murphy

Original Article

Education is the key to putting a dent in sexual abuse, and we support that, but not bogus statistics and fear mongering to get elected or to look "tough" on crime.

01/27/2014

By Suzanne Laurent

In an effort to empower school-age children to recognize the signs of sexual abuse — and to break the silence surrounding it — Sen. David Watters, D-Dover, will introduce a bill Tuesday to establish a commission to study sexual abuse prevention education from kindergarten through grade 12.

Senate Bill 348 (PDF) will bring together parents, educators, representatives of state education, health and law enforcement agencies, legislators, and experts from Sexual Assault Support Services of New Hampshire and the New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence to make recommendations to the legislature.

“President Obama recently reported that 20 percent of undergrads are victims of sexual assault,” Watters said by phone Monday. “We need to start prevention at an earlier age.”

The White House Council on Women and Girls' “Rape and Sexual Assault: A New Call to Action,” reported earlier this month that nearly half of female survivors were raped before they were 18, and over one-quarter of male survivors were raped before they were 10.
- Where is the White House Council on Men and Boys site?

College students are particularly vulnerable with one in five women sexually assaulted while in college, the report stated.

“As a father, I have my own feelings about these numbers,” Watters said. “Our neighboring states, Vermont and Maine, have passed laws or established commissions or task forces to provide age-appropriate education about sexual abuse.”

Watters said these laws were inspired by the advocacy of Erin Merryn for “Erin's Law,” first adopted in her home state of Illinois. The mission of Erin's law is to get education in all 50 states on the prevention of sexual abuse by empowering children with their voice instead of allowing sex offenders to silence them. 


Watters said the bill was drafted when he was approached by Jessica Paradis, a constituent from Somersworth. Paradis is a long-time volunteer at Sexual Assault Support Services, or SASS, who advocated for the bill.

SASS, based in Portsmouth, serves 42 cities and towns in Rockingham and Strafford counties. For more than 25 years, SASS has offered prevention programs in an effort to keep children safe from sexual victimization.

In 2009, SASS merged its prevention education efforts with A Safe Place and created a comprehensive Safe Kids Strong Teens program.

“But we are only reaching 10,000 children in grades kindergarten through 12,” said Kathy Beebe, executive director of SASS. “There are 40,000 school-aged kids in this coverage area.”

SASS has two full-time educators during the school year, AmeriCorps volunteers and interns who go out to the schools to administer the prevention curriculum. But SASS is at its capacity and doesn't have the resources to expand.

“We are excited at the possibility of this commission,” Beebe said. “It will explore the best practices for bringing more uniformity across the state, more awareness and possibly funding.”

Under Senate Bill 348, New Hampshire's Commission would study the current practices and legislation in other jurisdictions regarding sexual abuse prevention education in elementary and secondary schools.

It will also identify model evidence-based curricula for sexual abuse prevention education and make recommendations for utilizing trained professionals to implement this curricula as well as training for reporting of sexual abuse in schools.

“Teachers are already overburdened,” Watters said. “We will study who would be best for implementing this type of education.”

Along these lines, the commission would study opportunities for collaboration with state and local agencies, community-based organizations, and other public and private organizations to provide prevention education services. It will also examine potential funding sources.

Watters said Sen. Martha Fuller Clark, D-Portsmouth, is interested in the commission and has been supportive of the bill.

The hearing for Senate Bill 348 is scheduled for Tuesday morning before the Senate Health, Education, and Human Services Committee. If the bill passes, a final report by the commission would be due July 1, 2015.

NH - Local lawmaker proposes bill to study sex offender registry

Original Article

01/22/2013

By Danielle Rivard

A local lawmaker hopes to prompt a study of the state’s sex offender registry.

State Rep. Timothy N. Robertson, D-Keene, says each sex offender’s case should be treated individually instead of a one-size-fits-all approach.

There are different levels of punishment for different types of sex offenses, and Robertson says offenders should not automatically have to register at the level their crimes are associated with, for example if someone is convicted of a felony, they are at a different level of the registry than someone convicted of a lesser crime.

A 30-year-old man who sexually assaulted a 4-year-old child should not get the same punishment as a 20-year-old who was drunk and “seduced” by a 15-year-old girl who looks mature for her age, he said.

Robertson authored a bill this year to create a team of three state representatives and two senators to review and study the effects of the sex offender registry.

Federal law requires people convicted of sex crimes to register with the state as sex offenders; their names and addresses are publicly available.

There are three tiers of sex offender registration, based on the type of crime committed. One tier requires the offender to be on the registry for 10 years, while the other two require the offender to be on the registry for life.

The bill states as part of its study, the committee will evaluate whether any changes to the registry’s law should be made and to determine whether certain offenders should be allowed to ask the court to be removed from the registry after a period of time.

As a member of the House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee, Robertson said he’s seen many different sex offender cases, such as the case of the 20-year-old man and the 15-year-old girl.

A few 20-year-old men were drinking together at a party and some girls who looked of age showed up. One of the men who never met one of the girls before had sex with her because she was willing, Robertson said in a recent interview.

It turns out the girl was 15, on probation, and told her probation officer what happened. The probation officer then had no choice but to have the man arrested, who then served four years in prison for it, Robertson said.

Since the man got out of prison he has never committed another crime and has been trying to make a living for himself. But he still has to report to police every few days and for the rest of his life he’s considered a child molester, Robertson said.

“There has to be a way to have (the man’s) punishment modified,” Robertson said. “I don’t believe in fixed sentences.”

Advocates for sexual assault victims at the Monadnock Center for Violence Prevention in Keene say they are in favor the committee’s creation because it will evaluate the sex offender registry laws.

From this, advocates hope to see more thorough assessments of offenders when their cases are reviewed.

But the bigger issue is the lack of prosecution on sexual assault cases and the safety of the public, advocates say.

Because there are too few prosecutions of sex assaults to begin with, the bill raises a different discussion “that is in favor of what we really need to be doing about sexual violence and sexual assaults on adults and children,” said Robin P. Christopherson, executive director of the center.

The sex offender registry is one tool meant to protect victims, Christopherson said. But the problem is that perpetrators often get charges reduced so they don’t have to register as a sex offender, and that protection is lost, she said.

Robertson’s bill will be assigned to a House committee, which will review the bill and hold a public hearing on it.

N.H. Court Officer Paid Couple To Have Sex

View the article here

He sure sounds like a sex offender to me!

04/19/2007

A former Franklin, N.H. District Court security officer convicted in a bizarre prostitution case must perform community service, but will serve no jail time.

Robert Theriault, 49, was convicted of prostitution after offering to pay a couple $20 an hour to have sex while he watched. The couple testified that Theriault told them they would be testing bed sheets and condoms for an insurance company. They testified they trusted Theriault because he was a court officer and they were desperate for money.

He was sentenced Wednesday to 150 hours of community service and probation. He also must complete a psycho-sexual evaluation.

He could have faced up to a year in jail on the misdemeanor charge. Judge Carol Ann Conboy noted he had no criminal record, but also abused his authority as a court officer, so she tried to strike a balance between a suspended sentence and jail time.

Theriault lost his job after he was convicted, and faces another trial next month on similar charges involving a different couple.

New Hampshire's prostitution laws prohibit people from offering to pay for sex whether it involves themselves or other people.