Date: 01/24/2012
Virginia Supporters,
HB753 has become a much improved bill, see the below history.
HB753- Juvenile offenses requiring registration; motions by the attorney for the Commonwealth
Sponsor/Patron – Del. Ben Cline (R-Amherst)
Brief Explanation/Summary:
Permits the attorney for the Commonwealth to file a motion with the court at any time considering juveniles who have been adjudicated delinquent of any offense requiring registration. Currently, the law does not specifically address any time frame during which the attorney for the Commonwealth may file the required motion.
Read Full Text or Track Status:
http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?121+sum+HB753
Read Full Text, Track Status, Cast Your Vote or Read/Leave Public Comment:
http://www.richmondsunlight.com/bill/2012/hb753/
Bill Status:
- 01/11/12 – HB753 Introduced
- 01/11/12 – Referral Pending
- 01/11/12 – Referred to House Courts of Justice
- 01/14/11- The RSOL of Virginia will be opposing this bill
- 01/18/12 House: Subcommittee recommends reporting (6-Y 3-N)
- YEAS–Bell, Robert B., Cline, Gilbert, Miller, Villanueva, Morris–6.
- NAYS–Albo, Watts, Herring–3.
We find it interesting that Gilbert voted “yea” since he was not in the room during ANY of the discussion or for the vote.
House Subcommittee Backs Bill Dealing with Placing Juveniles on Sex-offender Registry, January 18, 2012:
- We now better understand HB753.
- This Bill if passed into law would allow for the indefinite consideration of being added to the sex offender registry any person being adjudicated delinquent of a Sex Offense as a Juvenile.
- The discussion held on 01/18 was that if a person who was adjudicated delinquent for a sex offense had no future sex offenses but at some point in the future committed any crime whatsoever could be placed on the sex offender registry. Simply put if 10, 20 or 50 years had passed since their sex offense as a juvenile, the individual stole a newspaper, the conviction of stealing a news paper would have him added to the Virginia Sex Offender Registry. Our courts (the judge) currently have the discretion depending on the specifics of a sexual offence and the circumstances surrounding the crime to add any individual to the States Sex Offender Registry, for their sex offense conviction.
- But with this bill we would be allowing any/all Commonwealth Attorneys to petition to have this person added to the registry years later amounts to double jeopardy. We believe this action then constitutes their addition to the Virginia Sex Offender Registry as a “punishment” for crimes that were not sexually related. The Sex Offender Registries are only constitutional because they are deemed “administrative” but to hold the possibility of future registration over a citizen’s head for the rest of their life if they are ever convicted of another crime is a punishment. If the Commonwealth took such steps we believe it would be a Constitutional violation of the use of the Virginia registry.
- Assuming as with most convictions in the Commonwealth (97+%), the conviction was a result of a plea agreement wherein there was no duty to register, then a third constitutional issue arises where the plea agreement was contingent on the predicate of not having to register as a sex offender. If the state of Virginia then adds a citizen to the register for a drug charge or DUI then that would be a clear case of Breach of Contract by the Commonwealth.
- 01/23/12 House: Reported from Courts of Justice with amendment (18-Y 0-N)
“during which the offender is within the jurisdiction of the court”
This means that a decision MUST be made about registration before the “juvenile” turns 21 years old.
This is better than holding the possibility over their head for the rest of their life if they are EVER charged with ANY new crime.
