On August 27, 2026, the Pennsylvania Superior Court issued a published opinion in Commonwealth v. Shapiro, 2026 PA Super 188. The court held that people required to register (PRRs) cannot challenge SORNA’s “high risk” presumption by presenting evidence of their own low risk of reoffending. This closes off a strategy some had hoped to use to escape Subchapter H registration.…
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Commonwealth v. Osman, 81 MAP 2024 (Pa. July 21, 2026) On July 21, 2026, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court held that a person convicted of multiple Tier I and Tier II offenses in a single case cannot be sentenced to the mandatory three-year consecutive probation term under 42 Pa.C.S. § 9718.5(a). The decision was 5-2. Justice Donohue wrote the majority opinion.…
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Over the past year, PARSOL ran a campaign to hold the Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) accountable to a law then-Governor Wolf signed in 2018, requiring PSP to implement a telephonic verification system for Pennsylvania’s Megan’s Law registrants in Tiers II and III — those required to verify their information two or four times a year. After months of getting the…
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Two years ago, PARSOL released a survey that made us uncomfortable. We had asked sixty-one formerly incarcerated members about voting — this was in response to Pennsylvania House Resolution 47, which directed the Pennsylvania Joint State Government Commission to study voting patterns among released Pennsylvanians. More than half (54.2%) had been told their criminal record barred them from voting. A…
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Advocacy organization says video of House Appropriations exchange illustrates why the legislature must demand accountability before approving new PSP programs HARRISBURG, PA — The Pennsylvania Association for Rational Sexual Offense Laws (PARSOL) today responded to video from Tuesday’s Pennsylvania State Police House Appropriations budget hearing, in which State Representative Emily Kinkead (D-PA-20, Allegheny County) questioned Acting Commissioner Lt. Colonel George…
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At yesterday’s House Appropriations budget hearing, State Representative Emily Kinkead (D-PA-20, Allegheny County) asked Pennsylvania State Police Acting Commissioner Lt. Colonel George Bivens a direct question: why hasn’t PSP implemented the telephonic registration system that the General Assembly required — by law — back in 2018? She didn’t get a direct answer. We wish we could say we were surprised.…
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Background of the Case In July 2016, a woman in rural Northumberland County was kidnapped from her home, sexually assaulted, and later released. The victim was unable to identify her attacker, and DNA evidence initially produced no match, leaving investigators without a suspect after traditional leads were exhausted. Investigators then sought a reverse keyword search warrant directed to Google, requiring…
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NOTE: This article and its contents apply only to the case mentioned, not to anyone with same or similar situations. Please do not apply the court’s ruling to your individual case without an attorney or court instructions in writing. [Armstrong County, PA] On Dec. 3, 2025, Judge James J. Panchik of the Court of Common Pleas of Armstrong County, ruled…
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Atlanta, GA – October 20, 2025 – The National Association for Rational Sexual Offense Laws (NARSOL) proudly announces that John Dawe, Managing Director of Pennsylvania Association for Rational Sexual Offense Laws (PARSOL) and NARSOL’s Marketing Director has been named 2025 Advocate of the Year. The honor was presented during the 2025 NARSOL National Conference held this past weekend in Atlanta, Georgia. “John’s…
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This year marks the 30th anniversary of Pennsylvania’s registry. Thirty years. That’s three decades of a policy born in the “tough-on-crime” panic of the 1990s, still alive today despite overwhelming evidence that it doesn’t make communities safer. As a PRR, I know what it means to live under a system that has barely changed since its inception. At its core,…
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