originally posted 6/14/2009
I am a registered offender; I have never touched a child in any way. My crime was all computer related. This was a mistake I’ll regret for the rest of my life. I have done my time and all, yet I am still required to register twice a year and pay $150.00 each year. I think that I should not be classified the same as those who have done something with a child. I feel I have been punished long enough and want to know what can be done to change the laws.
posted shortly after original
Being in the same situation as the person in this “tale,” I know the feeling. What I did want to comment about is the $150 the person said they are “required” to pay. I am in a state that also requires the registrant to pay a $150 “registration fee” each year, although I have never done so.
The text of the provision states that failure to pay the fee will result in the person being declared unregistered, which would ultimately result in that persons arrest for failing to register.
Based on my knowledge of Ex Post Facto legislation, this type of addition to the law would be unconstitutional under both the states and U.S. constitutions because it is penal in nature [i.e arrest for failure to pay the fee]. I would suggest this person contact an attorney.
Penal Law definition – Statute enacted to proscribe a certain offense against the public at large or against another person; imposing a penalty for violation of same.
There are many cases that set precedence, such as Weaver v. Graham [“For a criminal or penal law to be ex post facto, it must be retrospective, that is, it must apply to events occurring before its enactment, and it must disadvantage the offender affected by it”], Calder v. Bull [“Because it seeks only to ensnare and punish those persons who would otherwise be beyond prosecution, it is penal and cannot be seen as ameliorative. It is an ex post facto law, which within the Calder definitions violates the Constitution of the United States.”] to name a couple.
Now is the time for a Call to Action. Relating stories is great but IMHO, it has done little to effect the unconstitutional requirements placed upon us as Americans.