Sex-Offender Laws Sent a Man to Prison Over a Prayer Livestream
Jason wasn’t sure what to do. After an alleged sexting incident in 2012 snowballed into a felony conviction in his southern state, he was forced to register as a sex offender and barred from using a computer or smartphone. Over time, the conditions of his probation were reduced to a patchwork of technology-related restrictions: He was allowed to use email, but he was initially not allowed to send text messages. He could use the internet, but he was not allowed to have a social media account, and all of his time online was monitored by a probation officer.
Since his conviction, Jason has become a leader in nonprofit advocacy around criminal legal system reform, regularly testifying at the state legislature, organizing state lobbying efforts, and winning community engagement awards. Last summer he petitioned the court to have his probation end early, given the growing list of public officials and local leaders who offered their support of his case.
But right now Jason is sitting in prison and will be there until July 2023. And it started with watching a community prayer livestream.
Favorite quote: “sex-offender registries…are ineffective in preventing sexual violence or rape. It is widely accepted among experts that registry laws don’t prevent sex crimes, that people on sex-offender registries are very unlikely to reoffend (something the US Supreme Court got terribly wrong in a consequential case), that around 90 percent of people who commit new sexual assaults aren’t on a registry, and that most sex crimes occur between people who already know each other.”
My favorite part of this on going lunacy is that “rape” and “violence” is always associated with “sex crime.” Not all crimes of a sexual nature are “rape” or “violence”. This man’s original charges had no rape or violence involved. Underage consenting teens are not “raped” and it’s not “violent”.
They get away with using these terms because they titled the laws “Sexual ASSAULT”. There is a huge difference between “assault” and “misconduct”. When is someone going to argue this and force the legislature to change the name of the statute? Probably never.
Maestro, misconduct in Florida sex offender laws is usually covered by the lewd and lascivious behavior. This is for those instances when actual assault cannot be applied.
This is a very well written report that simply lays out the facts without sugar coating anything.
What a waste of resources by sending a guy to prison for watching a prayer livestream!! He’s in prison all because he has a sex offense on his record and we are the only group banned from today’s public square known as the internet. Maybe if these old political dinosaurs knew how and the importance of technology including the internet this wouldn’t be an issue. Vote these tyrants out to the curb where they belong: ass or face first who the hell cares.
I believe the vagueness of probation conditions and registry laws are by design so that they can ensnare anyone at any time. It’s nothing more than a pretext to arrest or investigate anyone they fancy. This way they don’t actually have to worry about investigating real crimes that might necessitate legitimate police work and training. Why prosecute actual crimes when it’s much easier to prove and prosecute made up ones.
This guy Jason probably did too much advocacy, not realizing that he really isn’t a free citizen with rights. This, along with other tripwires he triggered, caused him over time to be a nuisance with his PO, so the officer decided to ship him off downstream to be a problem for someone else. Many PO’s don’t want to assist with our successful rehabilitation and reintegration – that is simply too much work – even though it is one of their primary missions. If only a parole or probation officer’s performance were judged by how many under their charge successfully complete their supervision instead of how many they were able to send back.
For the US Probation Ofc, having to return someone to prison requires a lot of paperwork and is often viewed as a sign of failure.
Vaguely-written conditions empower the PO to adjust their interpretation over time as you demonstrate reliability and trustworthiness (or lack thereof). Their interpretation is no mystery if you ask first, which is what Fed PO’s want you to do.
I don’t know whether Jason’s probation was Federal or state. I may have misread, but it doesn’t sound typical Federal.
Also non-consensual sexual contact is sexual assault.
I thought we all agreed on that.
Sexual misconduct, by contrast, is a civil matter.
If our movement defines sexual assault more narrowly than the criminal legal definition, then hoo boy are we going to have an even harder time garnering followers.
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/sex-offender-darren-rouse-killed-ontario