San Diego Criminal Lawyers Blog
There are currently more than 800,000 people registered in the nationwide list of registered sex criminals, and that list is growing dramatically. Even some who had denounced convicted rapist Brock Turner’s actions had questioned whether he should have to spend the rest of his life as a registered sex offender.
In states like California, Florida, South Carolina, and Alabama it is impossible for people convicted of any sex crime to be removed from the online registries showing their pictures, addresses, convictions, and probation details. Critics have stated that an ex-offender will struggle with getting a job and place to live for the rest of his or her life. Advocates for sex crime victims insist that lifetime registries make the public safer by preventing offender recidivism and giving citizens and police access to information on the whereabouts of sex offenders and precluding them from places like schools.
Brock was released on September 2 after serving only half his jail sentence (three months) for good behavior. Brock moved back to his parent’s house in Bellbrook, Ohio. It is reported that protesters demonstrated in front of the home before and after his arrival and Turner’s parents reported to police eggs being thrown at the house.
In 2003, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the legality of sex offender registries in 2003, but the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals recently held that Michigan’s sex offender registry law cannot be applied retroactively. Federal officials have been trying to get all 50 states to adopt uniform registration requirements, but so far only 17 states have substantially complied.
Registering as a Sex Offender in California
California Penal Code § 290, also known as Megan’s Law, requires that you register as a sex offender for the rest of your life so long as you live, work, or attend school in California. Registration generally requires you keep local law enforcement updated on your whereabouts.
Conviction of the following crimes in the state of California requires you to register in the state’s sex offender registry:
- Rape;
- Most acts involving minors such as child pornography;
- Forced acts involving oral copulation, sodomy, and acts of penetration with a foreign object;
- Seemingly innocuous crimes like indecent exposure (which in some states include peeing in public).
It should be noted that a judge may order you to register as a sex offender for any crime, even if it is not enumerated in the Sex Offender Registration Act.
San Diego Sex Crimes, Sexual Assault, and Criminal Defense Lawyer
Having to register for a sex offender can ruin your life. The Law Offices of David M. Boertje handles all cases involving sexual offenses, alleged sexual assault, rape and battery, and violent crimes. If you have been arrested or charged with committing a sexual offense in the San Diego area, contact attorney David Boertje today. Prosecutors and the court of public opinion take sexual offenses very seriously. Call us today, and we will go over all your available legal defenses and make sure you get the fair trial you deserve.