The Pennsylvania Supreme Court (SCOPA) has relied on Commonwealth v. Lacombe in the ruling of T.S. v. PA State Police (PSP). T.S. argued that PA’s SORNA Subchapter I violated the Federal and State Ex Post Facto Clauses. The basis of his argument is on the fact that his offense occurred prior to the enactment of any PA registry. The problem…
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2020 has turned out to be quite an eventful year to say the least. Lucky for you, I won’t be covering the pandemic nor the election. Instead, I’ll briefly cover the legal cases regarding SORNA and other relevant legal issues in Pennsylvania. So, hold on tight, here we go! PA Supreme Court: In the Interest of: N.B.-A., a Minor Decided…
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By Randall Hayes In September 2019, the increasingly prevalent and in-demand problem of online images of child sexual abuse (CSA) or “child pornography” rocked the Senate of Pennsylvania in a big way. The influential Chairman of the State Government Committee, Senator Mike Folmer, was arrested and charged with possession of child pornography after uploading an image of an underage female…
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PARSOL joined other national and state reform organizations, researchers, treatment providers, and sexual abuse prevention experts in signing a letter calling for news organizations, particularly Patch, to stop publishing “red dot” maps that identify the homes of persons on public registries. News outlets such as Patch claim they are doing a public service, when in fact the publication of this…
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NOTICE: The last day to comment is October 13th Hi All, We need people to visit the Federal Register website today and submit comments on a rule change to the federal Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). From out Legislative Director: I have read over the proposed rule change to the SORNA Legislation (28 CFR 72). Please find my explanation on what…
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Reprinted with permission from David Garlock: Monster. Pedophile. Predator. These are the words society uses to define people who have been convicted of a sex offense – words that create their own life sentence, intended to permanently isolate and condemn, and imply an inability to change. But I have found these words to be inaccurate descriptors and damaging to our…
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In late August, an adult male on the Registry selfishly and callously shot and murdered a sixteen-year-old boy in broad daylight in the city of Harrisburg, PA. The teen was trying to escape the shooter, and reports have it that sexual assault was also part of the terrible crime against this youth. PARSOL expresses our deep condolences to the family…
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The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania (SCOPA) heard oral arguments in a consolidated case of Mr. Claude Lacombe and Mr. Michael Witmayer in November of 2019 challenging the constitutionality of Subchapter I of PA’s Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). SCOPA ruled Subchapter I is “non-punitive and does not violate the constitutional prohibition against ex post facto laws”. This is…
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By Larry of NARSOL. . . In these consolidated appeals, Commonwealth v. Lacombe and Commonwealth v. Witmayer, the Commonwealth (state) challenged orders of the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas relieving appellees Claude Lacombe and Michael Witmayer of their duties to comply with Subchapter I of the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act. To achieve its dual goals of ensuring public safety…
Read MoreThe recent decision by the PA Supreme Court that sent a Constitutional challenge to public sex offender registries back to square one is a setback for those who know that sex offense registries are ineffective. Reactive measures like the registry divert resources away from policy which has the potential to prevent sexual crimes. While we will likely not see the…
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