http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-in-sexoffenderregist,0,2138848.story
A court's ruling that a convicted child molester did not have to register with the state as a sex offender because heas convicted before the requirement became law has thrown many counties into turmoil as offenders ask to be removed from the rolls.
The Indiana Supreme Court ruled in 2008 that Richard P. Wallace no longer had to register as a sex offender because his crime occurred in 1989, and the registry wasn't created until 1994.The Department of Correction, which maintains the state's official registry, says the ruling applied only to Wallace's case. But several counties say it applies to everyone and have begun purging their local registries of offenders who don't fall within the reporting guidelines.
Cpl. Jeff Shimkus of the Allen County Sheriff's Department says the situation undermines the state's goal of uniform, standardized reporting on sex offenders.
The Allen County registry, for example, is supposed to be an offshoot of the state registry. Now, though, the registries do not match.
"It's going to cause problems with the state site because its accuracy can't be guaranteed," Shimkus said.
Shimkus, who is charged with enforcing the registry laws in Allen county, said officials from the sheriff's department and prosecutor's office met after the Wallace ruling to determine how it would impact the local registry.
They decided to remove the names of offenders who committed crimes before the registry was created and to purge the names of people who had committed lesser crimes that previously did not require registration.
For instance, between 1994 and 1997, people convicted of rape were required to register only if the victim was younger than 18. Someone who raped an adult in 1995 would not have been required to register. But laws were later amended to require all convicted rapists to register as sex offenders.
Now, people convicted of rape before the law was amended no longer appear on the Allen County sex offender registry.
"We don't have to like it, but that's what the law says," Shimkus said.
The Kosciusko County Sheriff's Department has reviewed sex offender files but has not found any affected by the Wallace ruling, department spokesman Sgt. Chad Hill said.
DeKalb County says it will not remove names unless given a court order.
Brent Myers, director of registration and victims services for the Indiana Department of Correction, said that's the right approach.
He said corrections officials, prosecutors and the Indiana Attorney General's office met after the Wallace decision and agreed that offenders who wanted off the registry because of the ruling should take their case up with a local court.
He said DOC has received fewer than 70 orders to remove offenders from the registry.
Shane Call, who claims he was wrongly convicted by a jury of child molesting in 1991, asked Allen Superior Court to remove him from the registry.
He said appearing on the registry has affected his ability to work and support his wife and 13-year-old son.
"Before I was on the list, I hated the fact I was accused of that crime, but as soon as I got on the list, things got hard," he said.
Call hopes things get better soon. The court has agreed to remove him from the list.
Community Watch comments:
These are not accused sex offenders being removed from the Indiana Sex Offender Registry; these are convicted sex offenders being removed from the Indiana Sex Offender Registry, all due to a legal loophole.
So, if you are a known and convicted terrorist, should the CIA and TSA take you off their terrorist watch list because you were not a known and convicted terrorist prior to 911. Does that make sense? Would that make us safer? Put yourself in the shoes of the terrorist. Is it fair or legal to be placed on a list of terrorists if the list did not exist prior to you committing terrorist acts? If you say our terrorist example is ridiculous, you got the point.
