The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) recently launched the High Risk Child Sex Offender Database. The national publicly accessible tool is a product of the High Risk Child Sex Offender Database Act brought into force on December 31, 2024. The database lists those convicted of sexual offences against children that pose a high risk of […]
Alabama Sentences Man to 200 Years for Possession of Illegal Images
A 67-year old man who had previously been convicted of sexual contact with an underage boy was sentenced to 200 years when a collection of illegal images was found on his electronic devices. Such a lengthy sentence is unusual in cases of mere possession, with no evidence that the offender had produced or distributed the […]
Are Drones Being Used for Sexual Voyeurism?
There seems to be no end to politicians finding new sexual dangers from which to protect us. An Illinois legislator has introduced a first-of-its-kind bill to require that individuals on the sex offense registry must register any drones they may own with the State Police. The legislator justified the restriction out of concern that individuals […]
Victims of Disgraced “Operation Underground Railroad” Still Suffer
Despite the disgrace of Operation Underground Railroad (OUR) following revelations that its founder Tim Ballard, subject of a heroic 2023 biopic, was himself a serial sexual predator toward women who worked in the organization, many victims of its ethically questionable tactics continue to suffer imprisonment or sex offender registration. Ballard’s relentless self-promotion netted the organization […]
AI Wrongly Makes Sex Offender Accusations
“Technology is not neutral. We’re inside of what we make and it’s inside of us.” Prominent feminist scholar of science and technology studies, Donna Haraway, quipped this in a 1997 interview with Wired. That idea checks out when applied to this recent story out of Canada. The nutshell scoop is that Cape Breton fiddler Ashley […]
Elderly Man is Killed with Moose Antler Because of 40 Year Old Sex Offense, Killer Goes Free
A man living in remote Northern Minnesota used a moose antler to murder a 77-year old neighbor who had convicted of a sex offense over 40 years ago, but had been law-abiding ever since. The killer was found incompetent to stand trial after a psychologist testified that he suffered from a persecutory delusional disorder because […]
Doug Ford Goes After “Diddlers”
Ontario’s populist premier Doug Ford has announced that his government will introduce new restrictions on people convicted of sex offenses in response to the Supreme Court decision striking down mandatory minimum sentences for possession of child pornography. Ford said, “Throw them in jail. Throw away the key. They can rot in there… They’re a bunch […]
Colorado Court Considers Whether Sex Offender Registration Is Punishment
The Colorado Supreme Court has heard a case arguing that lifetime registration is “cruel and unusual punishment” due to the use of flawed and uncertain assessment tools to predict the likelihood of an individual re-offending and the generally low rate of re-offense in this population. The federal courts, including the Supreme Court in a 2003 […]
Sexual Vigilantes Arrested in Texas
The Sheriff’s Department in Waco, Texas, arrested three members of the Oklahoma Predators Prevention Group after a confrontation they organized that caused a local man to be injured. This group mimics police tactics by posting fictitious profiles of underage girls and luring their victims into explicit conversations and an arranged meeting, which the group monetizes […]
Do Restrictions on Individuals Convicted of Sexual Offences Really Protect Kids?
In a new documentary, British investigative reporter, Stacey Dooley, who has previously produced work on the exploitation of women and children, examines the harsh restriction placed on individuals on Florida’s sexual offence registry. The restrictions leave individuals with very few options for housing and jobs, making it difficult for those individuals to move on from […]