October 1, 2022

The Truth About the Neighborhood Boogeyman

October is here and it’s almost that frightful time of the year. The goblins, ghouls, and ghosts are out. But of course, we can’t forget the neighborhood “boogeyman”. He doesn’t...
September 30, 2022

Neck declared an ‘Intimate Body Part’ in Latest SCOPA Ruling

WHAT? The neck’s an intimate part of the body? Since when? Since 9/29/22 by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania in a 5 to 2 ruling on Commonwealth v. Carl Gamby,...
September 22, 2022

PARSOL Team Educates Legislators Including New ALI Model

The Legislative Committee of PARSOL is based in Harrisburg but is active across the entire Commonwealth. It is dedicated to forming relationships with our elected officials and tracking bills that...
September 17, 2022

How to Use Person-First Language in the RSOL Movement

PARSOL receives letters and phone calls from people who are on the registry and those facing being placed on the registry. Often these letters and phone calls include statements like,...
September 14, 2022

Attorneys Challenge Chester County Decision; What Happens Now?

The Pennsylvania Association for Rational Sexual Offense Laws (PARSOL) has learned that attorneys for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania filed a notice of appeal to the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania (SCOPA)...

Public sex offender registries are ineffective:

Studies show that public registration policies are failing in their stated goal of keeping people safe from sexual victimization. Public registries (such as the Pennsylvania Megan's Law List) create a false sense of security that something is being done about the threat of sexual harm, but the evidence does not support this belief. Rates of sexual crimes have not decreased as registries have ballooned. The isolation and stigma placed on those on the registry may actually increase their likelihood of reoffending by negatively impacting so many areas of their lives including their family, housing, and occupation.

It is the position of both PARSOL and the Supreme Court of PA that public registries are punitive in nature. They bear close resemblance to historical shaming practices and thereby violate the United States constitutional right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment. Importantly, Pennsylvania’s public registry also infringes upon the Right to Reputation as guaranteed in the Pennsylvania Constitution.