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Sex offender registry laws: Our have policies gone too far

funnyfaceking

August 11, 2014

1 upvotes

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2014/08/sex_offender_registry_laws_have_our_policies_gone_too_far.html

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Post Information

Title	Sex offender registry laws: Our have policies gone too far
Author	funnyfaceking
Upvotes	1
Comments	2
Date	August 11, 2014 6:06 PM UTC (11 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/MensRights
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/MensRights/comments/2d96s3/sex_offender_registry_laws_our_have_policies_gone/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/MensRights/sex-offender-registry-laws-our-have-policies-gone.997069 https://theredarchive.com/post/997069

Comments

[–]SporkTornado 1 point2 points3 points 11 years ago (1 child) | Copy Link

The idea of a sex registry is good in theory, but I have read way too many stories of sexually confused children being put on the list. Kids have been forced to register as sex offenders for taking pictures of their own under aged genitals, 15 year old boy has sex with 13 year old girl means liftime registry as a sex offender for the boy. And even in some states you can be put on a sex offender registry for streaking and public urination. We really need to raise the bar for sex registration status.

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/jun/14/pitfalls-minors-sex-offenders-register

In 2011, there were about 747,000 registered sex offenders in the US, according to Human Rights Watch. Depending on the state, that number could include a drunken frat boy who got caught urinating in public where children were present, or two teenagers who can't keep their hands off each other. Most shocking, in some states, kids who are caught "sexting" each other, or sending nude photos via text message, could be considered guilty of distributing child pornography, especially in states that have not addressed sexting in the laws. That means that teenagers who "sext" could potentially be labelled sex offenders.

[–]room2breathe 1 point2 points3 points 11 years ago (0 children) | Copy Link

I agree with you that more stringent designations should be used when classifying a sexual offense. I don't think the drunken man or woman just looking for a place to urinate should be labeled as a sex offender, especially when more often than not it is in some alley or with somewhat of an attempt to remain shielded from the public.

More offenses mentioned in this article are associated with poor decision making, and in some cases poor decision making by children/minors. I think each case is different and to enforce a blanket policy is to do great injustice. Sure, it's not easy to apply different criteria for each situation, but often doing the right thing isn't.

Part of me wants to blame society and its' holier-than-thou mentality about anything sexual - who really cares if a guy is pissing over in the corner when there are over 1000 people here and you only have 10 bathrooms.

Some and probably most, to be completely honest, deserve to be on the registry, but when we're talking about a "lifetime label" we need to make sure it's deserved.