Riverside Co. to Ban All RSO's From Halloween?

Should Sex Offenders be able to Decorate for Halloween?

By Sadie West, Hornet Reporter

Published: Thursday, December 1, 2011

Updated: Friday, December 2, 2011 13:12

Supervisor Jeff Stone of Riverside County introduced an ordinance that would ban sex offenders from putting up Halloween decorations and passing out candy to children.
This is unjust to many of the registered sex offenders, taking away more of their constitutional rights.
According to the article in the Los Angeles Times, "the measure would bar registered sex offenders from answering the door to trick-or-treating children or decorating their homes with Halloween decorations between 12 A.M. and 11:59 P.M. on October 31 each year.
Beyond that, they would be prohibited from leaving any external lights on between 5 p.m. and 11:59 p.m. on Halloween night."When the term sex offender is first heard, one usually thinks that the person must have molested a child or shown off their genitals to a child, but this is not necessarily true.
The dictionary definition of a sex offender is a person who has committed a crime involving a sexual act.
Nowhere does it say that the person committed a sex crime against a child, just a sex crime.
Sex offenses come in many different types.
In order for a person to be registered in the federal system as a sex offender, one must have committed rape or other forms of sexual assault and sexual abuse, obscenity, human trafficking, incest, inappropriate phone calls/sexting, sex with animals, and public order crimes (i.e. public urination, streaking, stealing underwear, etc.).
Of course, what was afore mentioned crimes all can be committed with or against children.
Like any other crime, there are serious and minor differentiations between the many committed.
It is unjust to punish and treat all registered sex offenders the same, when not all of their crimes are the same.
A more serious offense that deserves a more serious punishment is child molestation.
Streaking, or public urination, is a minor offense that does not need a serious course of action.
The registering of sex offenders provides a sense of security and protection for parents in all neighborhoods.
Parents can look up the locations and names of sex offenders in their neighborhoods, which help to prevent and avoid such houses.
Sex offenders should have the right to actively participate in the traditions of Halloween.
Parents should especially be cautious on such a night, taking extra precautions to make sure that nothing happens.
Just because sex offenders decorate their houses or purchase candy to pass out, doesn't mean that their houses will be visited.
Sex offenders are people too, people with sexual deviant behavior, but people nonetheless.
Crimes committed by the offenders are already taken care of and regulated by the government, as unjustly as it is.
It's unnecessary and cruel for more rules and regulations to be implemented.
Although sex offenders are definitely to blame for their actions, it's not right for even more rules to be added.
Halloween has been celebrated for many, many years.
The government has no place in regulating who gets to celebrate a famous and treasured holiday and who doesn't.
Everyone should be wary of sex offenders in their neighborhoods (and those nearby) and should take precautionary measure, but sex offenders don't need any more punishments added on either.
Halloween is a time of tricks, treats, and costumes, not a time of limitation and punishment.

From: http://www.fchornet.com/opinion/should-sex-offenders-be-able-to-decorate-for-halloween-1.2722434

The Halloween SO Hoax

http://www.creators.com/opinion/diane-dimond/the-halloween-sex-offender-hoax.html

The Halloween Sex Offender Hoax

By Diane Dimond for creaters.com

The spookiest time of the year is fast approaching, and you have likely already heard about local law enforcement officers preparing to keep your area free of danger on Halloween night.
They may be visiting schools to counsel kids on safe practices. They may be warning drivers about watching out for children on Halloween night. In communities across America, officers are fanning out to knock on the doors of registered sex offenders.
The idea behind visiting local "S.O.s" (as they are referred to) is twofold. First, it's a transparent effort to check that the address police have on record for the ex-offender is still good. Second, it is a somber face-to-face warning to the S.O. that they are not allowed to interact with children on Halloween.
Laws vary from state to state, but generally speaking those convicted of sex offenses are not allowed to decorate the outside of their homes or leave their outdoor lights on during Halloween night. Most S.O.s are required to display a poster in the front window saying they are not giving out candy or any other treats. In some states, there is a mandatory shut-in order for them from sundown to midnight.
This has become an annual ritual between cops and ex-cons. But you know what? It's a waste of time.
You read that right. There has never been a concrete reason given that explains why a sex offender would choose the very public holiday of Halloween to re-offend. More importantly, I couldn't find a single report of a child being sexually attacked by a stranger during a Halloween party or during door-to-door trick-or-treating.
Look, the shameful crime of child molestation happens countless times every single day in this country, but honestly, there's no evidence that the mystical day of Halloween sparks extra sex crimes. That doesn't mean it's a day to drop our guard, of course, but it is not a day to go looking for stranger-danger boogeymen that aren't there.
It's much more likely that your child could be struck by a car Halloween night or fall victim to tooth decay from eating all their loot.
The idea that spider-web decorations, carved pumpkins and costumed citizens somehow incites crimes against children reminds me of the urban legend that grew up around tainted Halloween candy. Remember that hue and cry?
We now know that only two deaths of children have ever been traced to poisoned Halloween candy, and both deaths were caused by family members.

After Halloween in 1970, in Detroit, 5-year-old Kevin Toston fell into a coma and died of a heroin overdose. Lab analysis of his candy bag contents showed they had been sprinkled with heroin. Officers later discovered the boy had stumbled upon his uncle's drug stash and had accidentally poisoned himself. In an effort to protect the uncle, the family had dusted the child's candy stash with heroin.
And, in 1974, Timothy O'Bryan of Houston died after eating a Pixy Stix laced with cyanide. Turned out his father had deliberately tampered with the candy to collect on the 8-year-old's life insurance policy. It was a homegrown homicide and, despite all the media reports to the contrary, not the work of diabolical criminals bent on poisoning children. (By the way, Ronald O'Bryan was convicted of murdering his son in 1975 and was executed in 1984.)
The Los Angeles Times quotes Joel Best, a professor of sociology at California State University, as saying he's been trying to debunk the Halloween candy myth for more than 30 years. His research found a total of 78 cases of "poisoned candy" between 1958 and 1988. Two were the deaths I've just explained above, and the rest, according to Best, were proven pranks.
I can't tell you where or when this Halloween sex offender myth began, but it persists to this day. Every year at this time, newspapers and TV news programs are full of reports about police activities to curb this so-called menace that supposedly sprouts up every Oct. 31. And in some areas of the country, the U.S. Marshals service pitches in to make the S.O. house calls. It's become an annual media staple much like covering fireworks on the Fourth of July or the Thanksgiving Day parade.
When you remove diagnosed career pedophiles from the mix (and in my opinion they should never be released from prison, and they often are not), most convicted sex offenders do not re-offend. They work to comply with complicated sex-offender registry regulations and their parole officer's rules. They try hard to blend in to their community, where rebuilding their life by finding a job, a place to live and even a church at which to worship can be difficult.
I think it goes without saying that our police officers have better and more important things to do every Halloween season. But it's worth saying anyway. Let's free up law enforcement from this annual charade so they can concentrate on the real criminals in our neighborhoods.

Diane Dimond's book, "Cirque Du Salahi — Be Careful Who You Trust," can be ordered at Amazon.com. Visit Diane Dimond's official website at www.dianedimond.com for investigative reporting, polls and more. To find out more about Diane Dimond and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.
COPYRIGHT 2011 CREATORS.COM

More on Operation Boo

CDCR Press Release 11/3/11
Sweep results in 118 arrests statewide; weapons, guns, drugs and child porn confiscated
SACRAMENTO – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) parole agents arrested 118 of the 2,095 sex-offender parolees who were contacted during compliance checks or searches as part of the 18th annual Operation Boo Child Safety Project on Halloween night 2011.  New charges were filed against six of the sex-offender parolees contacted.
“The 118 arrests among sex-offender parolees – for possession of weapons, narcotics, child pornography and other parole violations – prove that our statewide efforts with Operation Boo on Halloween night are not only well-founded but also necessary,” said Robert Ambroselli, Director of the Division of Adult Parole Operations.  ”Our educational efforts this year are also proving effective in the large numbers of parents who visited our website for our online parent’s guide.”
In addition to the traditional compliance checks, this year Operation Boo added two features:
Parent Empowerment:  CDCR provided a free downloadable brochure with helpful information about ways to talk to children about dangerous behavior in adults, and Internet links for parents to check for sex-offenders in their area. The number of page views on CDCR’s website climbed by more than 50,000 this Halloween when compared to last year.
Transient Sex-Offender Curfew Centers:  Since a significant number of sex-offenders are homeless, transient sex-offenders in most regions were ordered to report to a center to spend the curfew under supervision. Statewide, 12 special transient sex-offender curfew centers were operated Halloween night.
For more information about Operation Boo please visit: www.cdcr.ca.gov<http://www.cdcr.ca.gov>

Halloween Hype

Halloween Limits on Riverside County Sex Offenders Unconstitutional, Says L.A. Group

By Dennis Romero

Nobody loves a sex offender (except maybe his mom).
As such, moves by California and, more recently, Riverside County to limit their participation in Halloween have been met mostly with support if not yawns.
But a new, L.A.-based organization, California Reform Sex Offender Laws, says in a statement that Riverside's limits (on for example, putting up decorations inside a sex offender's home on Halloween) have gone too far:

The ordinance recently adopted by Riverside County which prohibits "sex offenders" from celebrating Halloween in their own homes violates the U.S. Constitution. Specifically, the ordinance abridges the First Amendment right to free speech of anyone convicted of a sex-related crime ("sex offenders") by prohibiting them from decorating their homes inside or outside in celebration of Halloween as well as displaying decorative lighting and answering the front door of their homes during that evening.

Although the state of California puts similar limits on convicted sex offenders who are out of the big house -- including a Halloween-night curfew, no handing out candy, and no answering the door -- the Reform Sex Offender Laws folks argue that the state rules have no teeth.
"There's really no penalty for violating that if you're not on probation or parole," the group's state organizer, Janice Bellucci, told the Weekly Friday.
But Riverside County's rules, which also prohibit home decorations and candy hand-outs, include punishment that can go as far as a $1,000 and six months in jail.
The group says Riverside's restrictions are unconstitutional. It hopes that a legal challenge can be mustered, but Bellucci says the organization doesn't have the cash for a serious battle yet.
Bellucci:

I havent' heard one story of any trick or treater being assaulted by a sex offender ... They're passing laws that are ridiculous: They don't protect anyone and they hurt a lot of people.

[Added]: Luis Patino, spokesman for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, told the Weekly it's not true that sex offenders who break the "Operation Boo" rules can go scot-free. They could have their parole "revoked" and be sent back to prison.
However, he noted that California authorities only supervise about 1 out of every 10 Golden State sex offenders, with the rest being the responsibility of governments like Riverside County.
So, while it is possible that a sex offender outside Riverside County might not have to abide by these Halloween rules, it's not right to say those offenders directly under the control of state authorities wouldn't see any consequences for things like handing out candy on Halloween.
The state also implemented for the first time this year a series of transient centers for the roughly 2,000 state-supervised homeless sex offenders, who have been ordered to report to the locations on Halloween so they can be supervised, Patino told us.
Also this year: A guide (PDF) for parents who want to find out if any sex offenders live on their kids' trick-or-treat route.
"If they see someone who should not be opening the door they can call 911," Patino says.
[@dennisjromero/djromero@laweekly.com]

Tags:

CDCR, halloween, Operation Boo, Riverside County, sex offender, trick or treat

Terry Tyson

​

Operation Boo in California

Last night I was a virtual prisoner in my own home with all the hysteria about RSO's And Halloween last night. What a bunch of crap! Pure 100% Bullshit. As with most aspects of Jessica's Law, The restrictions placed on me last night to "protect the public" during Halloween was a complete waste of taxpayer money, is pure hype, and protects absolutely no one. 
"Operation Boo" tells sex offenders to follow Halloween rules
By Natalie Sentz, News 10-- State supervised sex-offenders are being monitored to make sure they don't attract children to their homes. Special conditions are imposed on sex offenders for Halloween night.

Calif. sex offender parolees face Halloween curfew
By Don Thompson, Associated Press-- About 2,000 paroled California sex offenders have no permanent home partly because of a state law that bans them from living near schools or parks. This Halloween, however, many will spend the night together under supervision from authorities who want to make sure they have no contact with children out trick-or-treating.

Homeless Sex Offenders in San Francisco Move Indoors
By Lauren Smiley, The SF Weekly-- While all homeless sex offenders in San Francisco will have to report to round-up centers on Halloween, there will likely be fewer transients who need to check in this year.

Calif. Sex Offenders Prohibited From Answering Door on Halloween
ABC News-- With children getting ready to go door to door trick-or-treating Monday for Halloween, communities near Los Angeles are taking action to protect their children from sex offenders and other criminals.

Halloween roundup with Operation Boo
The Sacramento Bee-- It's Halloween, and Attorney General Kamala Harris is in San Francisco this morning at a presser talking up the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation's roundup of transient sex offenders in advance of tonight's tricks and treats.

Halloween 2011

Monday, Oct 31, 2011 4:35 PM 10:29:18 PDT

Sex offenders: Halloween’s boogeyman

Registered abusers are being rounded up tonight to protect trick-or-treaters. How real is the threat, though?

By Tracy Clark-Flory

• 

 (Credit: iStockphoto/Salon)

Topics:Halloween, Sexual abuse

As costumed kiddies take to the streets tonight, thousands of sex offenders across the country will be forced to turn off their lights and refuse to answer the door. Some will be required to also post “no candy” signs and refrain from decorating their yards. Some counties round them up for a mandatory movie night or an evening in jail. In some areas with prohibitively strict residency requirements, police will be rounding up several hundred transient sex offenders.

Year after year, new measures are introduced to keep registered sex offenders of all stripes from coming into contact with trick-or-treaters — and yet there is zero evidence to support the legislative trend. In fact, the available data suggest it’s a useless diversion of resources that creates a false sense of security. Just take a look at this absurdly misleading headline from a Fox News affiliate: “Police Work to Keep Halloween Free From Sexual Predators.” (Because all sex offenders faithfully register and offenses are only committed by those with previous records?) Meanwhile, other outlets are playing up the danger: Albuquerque’s KRQE advises readers to “beware of real monsters on Halloween,” and talks to a 12-year-old girl who is “excited to go Trick-or-Treating” — but only because her family has no idea that they live “in a neighborhood full of secrets.” Dun-dun-dun.

It isn’t just law enforcement that is joining in the Halloween paranoia: Tech entrepreneurs are hyping new smartphone apps — including a brand-new one for Facebook — as tools to steer kids clear of sex offenders’ homes and even allow parents to track their kids by GPS, instead of actually accompanying them in person. (Why parent in person when you can do so virtually!)

Here’s the truth: There are no documented cases where a registered sex offender abused a trick-or-treater on Halloween. The truth is that kids are most likely to be abused at home and by adults they know, not strangers — and even less so by strangers handing out mini-Milky Ways. A whopping 90 percent of child victims of sexual abuse are targeted by someone they know; nearly half of those cases involve a relative. It’s also the case that the recidivism rate among sex offenders is roughly 9 percent, according to the Department of Justice.

The urban legend of poisoned candy perfectly illustrates the misplaced and outsize concern: As Benjamin Radford of the Skeptical Enquirer pointed out several years ago, there are only two known instances where children died from tainted Halloween candy, and in both cases the child’s own parent was responsible for the intentional poisoning.

As I’ve written about in the past, a 2009 study that looked at nearly a decade of data found “no significant increase in risk for nonfamilial child sexual abuse on or just prior to Halloween.” It’s no surprise then that the data remained unchanged after the emergence of measures to keep sex offenders away from kids on Halloween. The common argument is that all this legal effort is worth it even if it only saves one child from being victimized. But, as the authors of the study noted, these initiatives cost money and take up resources that could be directed toward much greater risks. “For example, a particularly salient threat to children on Halloween comes from motor vehicle accidents,” according to the report. “Children aged 5 to 14 years are four times more likely to be killed in a pedestrian–motor vehicle accident on Halloween than on any other day of the year.”

Karen Franklin, a forensic psychologist who has long railed against the Halloween crackdown, calls it “security theater” and “the Halloween boogeyman.” She says “the scare feeds into a deep-rooted cultural fear of the boogeyman stranger.” Just as with scary movies, this holiday allows us the thrill of confronting our fears in a controlled manner. Similarly, the inevitable spate of stories about stranger danger each October both exploit and assuage parental nightmares. Canny entrepreneurs sell parents ways to protect their kids from “real monsters” – as though safety and control were but an app away — while local politicians and sheriff’s departments circulate press releases to celebrate their own valiant efforts fighting, in the words of the study mentioned above, “a problem that does not appear to exist.” All of which is to say: Kids aren’t the only ones who get caught up in the illusions of the holiday.

Tracy Clark-Flory is a staff writer at Salon. Follow @tracyclarkflory on Twitter.More Tracy Clark-Flory