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Some teens may have to register online as sex offenders

By Michelle Dynes
mdynes@wyomingnews.com

CHEYENNE -- A House committee heard public testimony Thursday on a bill that would require certain teens to register as sex offenders.

Lawmakers have been reluctant to update the state's online registry with information on juvenile offenders. Federal requirements include offenders as young as 14, but Wyoming's proposal would only register the most serious teen offenders.

It's a compromise that gives law enforcement options when dealing with juveniles, even if it doesn't bring Wyoming into full compliance with federal guidelines, Natrona County District Attorney Mike Blonigen said to members of the House Judiciary Committee.

"I know at some point we might be the big green space on (the television show for FOX News commentator) Bill O'Reilly," he said. "At some point we might lose federal money."

But if a juvenile sexual offense is significant enough to join the registry, then it's important enough to release to the public, he said.

There are approximately 1,200 offenders in Wyoming's registry, and 60 percent of these individuals don't have any ties to the state, said Byron Oedekoven with the Wyoming Association of Sheriffs and Chiefs of Police.

He added that it raises questions about why a registered sex offender would want to move to Wyoming in the first place. And he supports the bill's stricter reporting requirements, which include workplace addresses, e--mail addresses and any screen names used online.

The purpose of the federal Adam Walsh Act is public safety, said Jennifer Horvath, an attorney with the Wyoming chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. She added that juvenile offenders are less likely than adults to become repeat offenders. Meanwhile, a majority of juvenile cases go through the adult court system in Wyoming

The bill's juvenile exception won't do much to keep teens off the registry. The reporting requirements of youthful offenses also could follow juvenile offenders for as long as 26 years, she said.

Horvath added that teens who do commit another sexual crime likely would join the registry as adult offenders.




Reader Comments

Abby wrote on Mar 10, 2012 9:40 AM:

" "Predators?" That is so extreme. My son, age 12 at the time of his "crime" is now expected to register as a sex offender. The crime, you ask? exposing himself to his younger brother. Who turned him in? an over exuberant school social worker (intern) who freaked at the thought of two boys naked- in a bedroom- I, the mother, thinking I was doing the right thing asked the social worker to talk to the boys. I asked for help to draw a line of mutual respect. Little did I think that later that day I would get called by a police detective on a witch hunt, a social services worker on a "prove all males are evil" campaign. My husband and I and our 3 children have been devastated. Tortured through the courts, system, therapists & social workers for close to 3 years. Now registry too? THIS type of thing wastes the tax payer money, spreads resources too thin and destroys the lives of many.
Honestly? a 12yo in a bathrobe? He was likely a boy who just took a shower, not a predator. "

matthewhobbs wrote on Jan 17, 2011 6:52 PM:

" One does not have to committ an actually crime of violence to be on the registry. Some of the reasons for one to become a gegistered offender is rediculous. One should really check out the laws on how our teenagers end up on the registry, some are on there for merely urinating in public, having concenual sex of an eighteen year old and sixteen year old. Couples who had sex underage and are now married. The list goes on and on. Further more 5.4% are statistically considered violent and to reoffend again. The registry does not protect anyone. It only serves to make the lives of those who have served their time and deserve a better life, but the registry is destroying their lives and their childrens. And we are trying to protect our children? Right? "

shelomith stiw wrote on Jan 15, 2011 9:06 PM:

" Experts and professionals agree with the results of the research in this area; inclusion of juveniles on public registries is counter-productive in that it creates conditions most likely to increase recidivism, not decrease it. Most offenders, once caught, do not re-offend, and this is especially true of juveniles. Public sex offender registration assures that any attempts to make ammends and live a productive and worthwhile life will be met with failure. That does not seem to be in anyone's best interest. "

Shelomith Stow wrote on Jan 15, 2011 3:19 PM:

" Has Wyoming found one single professional expert in the area of juvenile sex offenders who endorses placing them on a public registry? Or has anyone read any research or consulted any experts? The terms "first" and "repeat" offense by themselves don't mean much. What ALL research shows is that once caught and entered into the justice system, the recidivism rate is extremely low for all offenders and even more so for juvenile ones. That is the first offense legally, and no one should have every possibility at having a life destroyed after a first offense. You are creating the serial offender of tomorrow if the first time offender of today, juvenile or adult, is not given the opportunity, after the punishment phase and the treatment phase, to be fully integrated back into society. Please consult some experts, please read some research, and please think about what you are doing. "

JShepard wrote on Jan 15, 2011 2:48 PM:

" Exactly what is an offender? What is the crime that gets anybody on the registry??? In most states it can be anything from urinating in the park to rape. So you are for keeping those Predators at bay?? I hope your children never do anything wrong. They have a better chance of ending up on the Registry than getting struck by lightening. "

another citizen wrote on Jan 15, 2011 7:41 AM:

" I agree with Dorothea. I got a little poster thing in the mail saying I had a sex offender living 2 doors down from me! Oh my God! Protect my children! Sit on my porch with a shotgun!

When I did my research, the guy, when he was 19 slept with his 18 year old sister. I could not find out who turned them in, but they were both charged and pled guilty to incest and have to register.

Do I really need to take action to protect against this type of monster? Why do we treat all sex offenders equally? I don't want to hear about this minor stuff. I only care if they actually pose a danger to my family. "

Dorothea Duba wrote on Jan 14, 2011 3:38 PM:

" After reading the article I wish to point out that putting everyone on the registry defeats the purpose of safety, i.e., monitoring the SOs who are at risk and are violent. It takes a whole lot more money to follow all of the minor offenses with very little to show for the expenditure. The law should be focusing on the people who are most harmful. "

Evan G. wrote on Jan 14, 2011 3:12 PM:

" . . . an attorney with the Wyoming chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union."

I bet she's a close personal friend of Jack. Jack's a big ACLU advocate you know. "

Jack wrote on Jan 14, 2011 10:47 AM:

" It's time to stop protecting the deadbeat offspring and treat them all the same as adults and not allow sealed records. "

Make them think twice wrote on Jan 14, 2011 9:59 AM:

" If a "child" commits an adult crime, they should be treated as an adult and be on the registry. Perhaps it will make them think twice about doing something so violent. "

Yes..... wrote on Jan 14, 2011 8:45 AM:

" It's about time they start looking at the juvenile sex offenders. A couple of things to note. Juvenile sex offenders as well as adult offenders do have repeated offenses. The information doesn't come out until they get caught and interveiews. It's never an isolated event. Also the majority of sex offender cases don't go to the adult system in Cheyenne. But in Capser is another world that's why Blonigen introduced this bill.
I am all for red flagging these juveniles, not screwing up their lives unless they repeat again after treatment. And treatment is usually around 2 to 3 years. So they usually return to their respective communities when they are 17 and up. "

Weirdos wrote on Jan 14, 2011 8:41 AM:

" I'm all for it. Anything that keeps Predators at bay, is ok by me. "

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