What REALLY Happened:

Sex offender registries to protect families from convicted sexual predators are understandable efforts to try to decrease repeat offenses, but the registries not working. It's a hard fact people don't want to hear, just as it is to validate studies that show recidivism is actually low. According to Jack Ford of the Utah Department of Corrections, the state department conducted a recidivism study of 400 sex offenders from 1992 to 2004. Among that number who had fully completed therapy and treatment, only two sexual offenders reoffended, Ford said.

Since the 1994 rape and murder of Megan Kanka by a convicted child molester who lived across the street from her home in New Jersey, sex-offender registries have spread across the country, federally mandated by Megan's Law, which was named after Kanka. (The Spectrum, March 12, 2006).

The majority of offenders registered have been "convicted" of poor-behavior-choice offenses, which involve no victim. Most charged persons lack adequate funding for a legal defense to fight such charges. In the State of Florida, the resulting plea bargain is followed by automatic sexual-offender registration as decreed by F.S. 943.0436. Our politicians have even legislated judicial discretion, the power of a judge to impose a fair and just sentence.

Restructuring the sex offender registry would notify citizens as to the truly dangerous predators who currently hide behind the thousands of low-level offenders. The tier levels detailed in H.R. 4472

Let’s get one thing straight from the start. I cannot imagine the death of my child. Period. To lose my child due to a murderer? Unthinkable. John Walsh and Mark Lunsford are two parents who have endured such tremendous loss and pain. The loss of their precious children has focused attention on those dangerous persons who demonstrate predatorial intent on those with no power. Understandable.

Walsh and Lunford have lied about the sex offender issue for some time. Is lying too strong a word for men who have suffered such loss? I don’t think the nonoffending family members who suffer the collateral consequences of knee-jerk hysteria driven legislation that we-John Q. Public-have allowed politicians to run rampant with, would disagree with me. Both men have been presented the truths associated with this issue and yet, continue to lie to the America public about the sex offender issue.

Worse yet, Walsh and Lunsford have sunk to the deepest depths to swim with the bottom feeders of politics, having joined ranks with powerful U.S. House Judiciary Committee Chairman, James Sensenbrenner, Jr. (R-Wisconsin), the self-proclaimed “Protector of All Children No Matter What”.

HR 4472, "Children's Safety and Violent Crime Reduction Act of 2005" proposes “to protect children, to secure the safety of judges, prosecutors, law enforcement officers, and their family members, to reduce and prevent gang violence, and for other purposes.” H.R. 4472 is a repackaging of H.R. 3132, which proposed, “to make improvements to the national sex offender registration program, and for other purposes.”

On March 8, Sensenbrenner-the Tony Soprano of the House, bullied H.R. 4472 forward to the Senate Mafioso-style by a use of a series of dirty political procedure tricks.

DIRTY TRICK NUMBER ONE:

H.R. 4472 was never debated in the full US House. The bill was repackaged from H.R. 3132 or in more simplistic language, H.R. 3132 “magically morphed” into H.R.4472 by voice vote, as reported by "The Source on Women’s Issues in Congress"(Volume 11, No. 7 -- ISSN 1526-8713).

What REALLY Happened:

"Nation" reported on 3/9/2006): “Yesterday I was witness to the new Democratic method of passing bills in the US House, using a method called "Suspension of the Rules." A method, to which I believe it was a man from Massachusetts commented, if there are any people from Iraq watching "Don't do this at home."

He was RIGHT! As Tony the Tiger would say, all I could liken it too was a Kangaroo Court. It goes something like this, only a few members from the US House are present, I think it was around 20, and they are the only ones who vote. There are basically two sides, those for the bill and those against the bill.” (Among those present: Ginny Waite-Brown (R-Florida), Mark Foley (R-Florida), Katherine Harris (R-Florida), all co-sponsors of H.R. 4472).

”They hold debate, more of a complaint session because nothing can be amended, the bill verbiage is LOCKED by the Sponsor and Chairman of the US House Judiciary Committee Rep. Sensenbrenner (WI). Where did the representation by the people go?”

DIRTY TRICK NUMBER TWO:

Sensenbrenner anointed himself judge and jury on March 8, obviously because he knows what is best for the American public. H.R. 4472 manipulates the legislative process by repackaging H.R. 3132 legislation that already passed the House. Sensenbrenner selectively removed two amendments that were previously passed on the floor of the House as H.R. 3132 and forwarded to the Senate for consideration. In other words, Sensenbrenner did not appreciate the fate of H.R. 3132 and now wants to mulligan his way through Congress with The Children’s Safety Act. Like a kid, he is crying, “Not fair! I want a “do over”!”

What REALLY Happened:

Although "The Source on Women’s Issues in Congress" reported “A number of the provisions were included in the Children’s Safety Act (H.R. 3132), which the House approved on September 14”, no opportunity was given the House majority on March 8 2006 to address the removed amendments. As "Nation" states: “Now, the full House previously, under HR 3132, did get to debate and vote to approve its provisions, but the new bill HR 4472, they were not made privy to so they could debate. “…the full House should get to debate them also. The decision should not be left to ONE person.”

DIRTY TRICK NUMBER THREE:

H.R. 4742 co-sponsor Mark Foley (R-FL) indicated on March 8 that, “Mr. Sensenbrenner has crafted a bill that gets at the heart of this matter. I want to thank John Walsh, who lost his son Adam, as a tireless advocate who went and asked Senator Frist to bring this base bill to the Senate floor, and Senator Frist has agreed to that request, along with the other parents of the children who have lost their lives.”

What REALLY Happened:

The Senate Judiciary Committee approved a similar bill on October 20 (see The Source, 10/21/05). H.R. 3132 died in the Senate when Senator Bill Frist (R-TN) removed its equivalent, sister bill S. 1086, from consideration due to attempt by Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA) to add a hate crime amendment. (S. 1086 also proposed to improve the national program to register and monitor individuals who commit crimes against children or sex offenses).

Alarmingly, Foley’s comments seemingly indicate that John Walsh has influenced Frist to allow H.R. 4472 on the Senate floor, although S. 1086 lies in legislative limbo. This is where John Walsh begins lying about his true motives behind his support of The Children’s Safety Act. His agenda is all about getting the legislation pushed through, one way or another, regardless to constitutionality or collateral consequence to our society as a whole.

Sensenbrenner, by hijacking every rule Sesame Street ever taught kids about “How a Bill is Made”, is attempting to circumvent the stalled S. 1086, by repackaging H.R. 3132 as the new H.R. 4472, which includes other broad proposals, relating to gangs and the judges. Sensenbrenner unilaterally disallowed amendments to be added to H.R. 4472 by House Democrats, knowing an attempt to add a hate crime amendment would be made, which would stall The Children’s Safety Act in the Senate.

In Real Congress Land, H.R.4472 should not be referred to a Senate conference committee, due to the pending S. 1086. Usual procedure would stipulate that regardless of what H.R. 4472 states, The Children’s Safety Act as is, would not be finalized into law. It must be approved by the Senate, which is stalled on S. 1086 and cannot go to the Senate floor, per Frist, unless or until the hate amendment is withdrawn.

DIRTY TRICK NUMBER FOUR:

H.R. 4472 would establish three tier levels concerning a sex offender’s risk of committing another offense: a Tier I sex offender has committed an offense punishable by imprisonment for one year or less; a Tier II sex offender has committed an offense punishable by imprisonment for more than one year or committed the offense as a Tier I offender; and a Tier III sex offender has committed an offense against a minor or committed the offense as a tier II offender.

What REALLY Happened:

Sex offender registries to protect families from convicted sexual predators are understandable efforts to try to decrease repeat offenses, but the registries not working. It's a hard fact people don't want to hear, just as it is to validate studies that show recidivism is actually low. According to Jack Ford of the Utah Department of Corrections, the state department conducted a recidivism study of 400 sex offenders from 1992 to 2004. Among that number who had fully completed therapy and treatment, only two sexual offenders reoffended, Ford said.

Since the 1994 rape and murder of Megan Kanka by a convicted child molester who lived across the street from her home in New Jersey, sex-offender registries have spread across the country, federally mandated by Megan's Law, which was named after Kanka. (The Spectrum, March 12, 2006).

The majority of offenders registered have been "convicted" of poor-behavior-choice offenses, which involve no victim. Most charged persons lack adequate funding for a legal defense to fight such charges. In the State of Florida, the resulting plea bargain is followed by automatic sexual-offender registration as decreed by F.S. 943.0436. Our politicians have even legislated judicial discretion, the power of a judge to impose a fair and just sentence.

Restructuring the sex offender registry would notify citizens as to the truly dangerous predators who currently hide behind the thousands of low-level offenders. The tier levels detailed in H.R. 4472 s

On March 8, Sensenbrenner-the Tony Soprano of the House, bullied H.R. 4472 forward to the Senate Mafioso-style by a use of a series of dirty political procedure tricks.

DIRTY TRICK NUMBER ONE:

H.R. 4472 was never debated in the full US House. The bill was repackaged from H.R. 3132 or in more simplistic language, H.R. 3132 “magically morphed” into H.R.4472 by voice vote, as reported by "The Source on Women’s Issues in Congress"(Volume 11, No. 7 -- ISSN 1526-8713).

What REALLY Happened:

"Nation" reported on 3/9/2006): “Yesterday I was witness to the new Democratic method of passing bills in the US House, using a method called "Suspension of the Rules." A method, to which I believe it was a man from Massachusetts commented, if there are any people from Iraq watching "Don't do this at home."

He was RIGHT! As Tony the Tiger would say, all I could liken it too was a Kangaroo Court. It goes something like this, only a few members from the US House are present, I think it was around 20, and they are the only ones who vote. There are basically two sides, those for the bill and those against the bill.” (Among those present: Ginny Waite-Brown (R-Florida), Mark Foley (R-Florida), Katherine Harris (R-Florida), all co-sponsors of H.R. 4472).

”They hold debate, more of a complaint session because nothing can be amended, the bill verbiage is LOCKED by the Sponsor and Chairman of the US House Judiciary Committee Rep. Sensenbrenner (WI). Where did the representation by the people go?”

DIRTY TRICK NUMBER TWO:

Sensenbrenner anointed himself judge and jury on March 8, obviously because he knows what is best for the American public. H.R. 4472 manipulates the legislative process by repackaging H.R. 3132 legislation that already passed the House. Sensenbrenner selectively removed two amendments that were previously passed on the floor of the House as H.R. 3132 and forwarded to the Senate for consideration. In other words, Sensenbrenner did not appreciate the fate of H.R. 3132 and now wants to mulligan his way through Congress with The Children’s Safety Act. Like a kid, he is crying, “Not fair! I want a “do over”!”

What REALLY Happened:

Although "The Source on Women’s Issues in Congress" reported “A number of the provisions were included in the Children’s Safety Act (H.R. 3132), which the House approved on September 14”, no opportunity was given the House majority on March 8 2006 to address the removed amendments. As "Nation" states: “Now, the full House previously, under HR 3132, did get to debate and vote to approve its provisions, but the new bill HR 4472, they were not made privy to so they could debate. “…the full House should get to debate them also. The decision should not be left to ONE person.”

DIRTY TRICK NUMBER THREE:

H.R. 4742 co-sponsor Mark Foley (R-FL) indicated on March 8 that, “Mr. Sensenbrenner has crafted a bill that gets at the heart of this matter. I want to thank John Walsh, who lost his son Adam, as a tireless advocate who went and asked Senator Frist to bring this base bill to the Senate floor, and Senator Frist has agreed to that request, along with the other parents of the children who have lost their lives.”

What REALLY Happened:

The Senate Judiciary Committee approved a similar bill on October 20 (see The Source, 10/21/05). H.R. 3132 died in the Senate when Senator Bill Frist (R-TN) removed its equivalent, sister bill S. 1086, from consideration due to attempt by Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA) to add a hate crime amendment. (S. 1086 also proposed to improve the national program to register and monitor individuals who commit crimes against children or sex offenses).

Alarmingly, Foley’s comments seemingly indicate that John Walsh has influenced Frist to allow H.R. 4472 on the Senate floor, although S. 1086 lies in legislative limbo. This is where John Walsh begins lying about his true motives behind his support of The Children’s Safety Act. His agenda is all about getting the legislation pushed through, one way or another, regardless to constitutionality or collateral consequence to our society as a whole.

Sensenbrenner, by hijacking every rule Sesame Street ever taught kids about “How a Bill is Made”, is attempting to circumvent the stalled S. 1086, by repackaging H.R. 3132 as the new H.R. 4472, which includes other broad proposals, relating to gangs and the judges. Sensenbrenner unilaterally disallowed amendments to be added to H.R. 4472 by House Democrats, knowing an attempt to add a hate crime amendment would be made, which would stall The Children’s Safety Act in the Senate.

In Real Congress Land, H.R.4472 should not be referred to a Senate conference committee, due to the pending S. 1086. Usual procedure would stipulate that regardless of what H.R. 4472 states, The Children’s Safety Act as is, would not be finalized into law. It must be approved by the Senate, which is stalled on S. 1086 and cannot go to the Senate floor, per Frist, unless or until the hate amendment is withdrawn.

DIRTY TRICK NUMBER FOUR:

H.R. 4472 would establish three tier levels concerning a sex offender’s risk of committing another offense: a Tier I sex offender has committed an offense punishable by imprisonment for one year or less; a Tier II sex offender has committed an offense punishable by imprisonment for more than one year or committed the offense as a Tier I offender; and a Tier III sex offender has committed an offense against a minor or committed the offense as a tier II offender.

What REALLY Happened:

Sex offender registries to protect families from convicted sexual predators are understandable efforts to try to decrease repeat offenses, but the registries not working. It's a hard fact people don't want to hear, just as it is to validate studies that show recidivism is actually low. According to Jack Ford of the Utah Department of Corrections, the state department conducted a recidivism study of 400 sex offenders from 1992 to 2004. Among that number who had fully completed therapy and treatment, only two sexual offenders reoffended, Ford said.

Since the 1994 rape and murder of Megan Kanka by a convicted child molester who lived across the street from her home in New Jersey, sex-offender registries have spread across the country, federally mandated by Megan's Law, which was named after Kanka. (The Spectrum, March 12, 2006).

The majority of offenders registered have been "convicted" of poor-behavior-choice offenses, which involve no victim. Most charged persons lack adequate funding for a legal defense to fight such charges. In the State of Florida, the resulting plea bargain is followed by automatic sexual-offender registration as decreed by F.S. 943.0436. Our politicians have even legislated judicial discretion, the power of a judge to impose a fair and just sentence.

Restructuring the sex offender registry would notify citizens as to the truly dangerous predators who currently hide behind the thousands of low-level offenders. The tier levels detailed in H.R. 4472

What REALLY Happened:

Although "The Source on Women’s Issues in Congress" reported “A number of the provisions were included in the Children’s Safety Act (H.R. 3132), which the House approved on September 14”, no opportunity was given the House majority on March 8 2006 to address the removed amendments. As "Nation" states: “Now, the full House previously, under HR 3132, did get to debate and vote to approve its provisions, but the new bill HR 4472, they were not made privy to so they could debate. “…the full House should get to debate them also. The decision should not be left to ONE person.”

DIRTY TRICK NUMBER THREE:

H.R. 4742 co-sponsor Mark Foley (R-FL) indicated on March 8 that, “Mr. Sensenbrenner has crafted a bill that gets at the heart of this matter. I want to thank John Walsh, who lost his son Adam, as a tireless advocate who went and asked Senator Frist to bring this base bill to the Senate floor, and Senator Frist has agreed to that request, along with the other parents of the children who have lost their lives.”

What REALLY Happened:

The Senate Judiciary Committee approved a similar bill on October 20 (see The Source, 10/21/05). H.R. 3132 died in the Senate when Senator Bill Frist (R-TN) removed its equivalent, sister bill S. 1086, from consideration due to attempt by Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA) to add a hate crime amendment. (S. 1086 also proposed to improve the national program to register and monitor individuals who commit crimes against children or sex offenses).

Alarmingly, Foley’s comments seemingly indicate that John Walsh has influenced Frist to allow H.R. 4472 on the Senate floor, although S. 1086 lies in legislative limbo. This is where John Walsh begins lying about his true motives behind his support of The Children’s Safety Act. His agenda is all about getting the legislation pushed through, one way or another, regardless to constitutionality or collateral consequence to our society as a whole.

Sensenbrenner, by hijacking every rule Sesame Street ever taught kids about “How a Bill is Made”, is attempting to circumvent the stalled S. 1086, by repackaging H.R. 3132 as the new H.R. 4472, which includes other broad proposals, relating to gangs and the judges. Sensenbrenner unilaterally disallowed amendments to be added to H.R. 4472 by House Democrats, knowing an attempt to add a hate crime amendment would be made, which would stall The Children’s Safety Act in the Senate.

In Real Congress Land, H.R.4472 should not be referred to a Senate conference committee, due to the pending S. 1086. Usual procedure would stipulate that regardless of what H.R. 4472 states, The Children’s Safety Act as is, would not be finalized into law. It must be approved by the Senate, which is stalled on S. 1086 and cannot go to the Senate floor, per Frist, unless or until the hate amendment is withdrawn.

DIRTY TRICK NUMBER FOUR:

H.R. 4472 would establish three tier levels concerning a sex offender’s risk of committing another offense: a Tier I sex offender has committed an offense punishable by imprisonment for one year or less; a Tier II sex offender has committed an offense punishable by imprisonment for more than one year or committed the offense as a Tier I offender; and a Tier III sex offender has committed an offense against a minor or committed the offense as a tier II offender.

What REALLY Happened:

Sex offender registries to protect families from convicted sexual predators are understandable efforts to try to decrease repeat offenses, but the registries not working. It's a hard fact people don't want to hear, just as it is to validate studies that show recidivism is actually low. According to Jack Ford of the Utah Department of Corrections, the state department conducted a recidivism study of 400 sex offenders from 1992 to 2004. Among that number who had fully completed therapy and treatment, only two sexual offenders reoffended, Ford said.

Since the 1994 rape and murder of Megan Kanka by a convicted child molester who lived across the street from her home in New Jersey, sex-offender registries have spread across the country, federally mandated by Megan's Law, which was named after Kanka. (The Spectrum, March 12, 2006).

The majority of offenders registered have been "convicted" of poor-behavior-choice offenses, which involve no victim. Most charged persons lack adequate funding for a legal defense to fight such charges. In the State of Florida, the resulting plea bargain is followed by automatic sexual-offender registration as decreed by F.S. 943.0436. Our politicians have even legislated judicial discretion, the power of a judge to impose a fair and just sentence.

Restructuring the sex offender registry would notify citizens as to the truly dangerous predators who currently hide behind the thousands of low-level offenders. The tier levels detailed in H.R. 4472

Alarmingly, Foley’s comments seemingly indicate that John Walsh has influenced Frist to allow H.R. 4472 on the Senate floor, although S. 1086 lies in legislative limbo. This is where John Walsh begins lying about his true motives behind his support of The Children’s Safety Act. His agenda is all about getting the legislation pushed through, one way or another, regardless to constitutionality or collateral consequence to our society as a whole.

Sensenbrenner, by hijacking every rule Sesame Street ever taught kids about “How a Bill is Made”, is attempting to circumvent the stalled S. 1086, by repackaging H.R. 3132 as the new H.R. 4472, which includes other broad proposals, relating to gangs and the judges. Sensenbrenner unilaterally disallowed amendments to be added to H.R. 4472 by House Democrats, knowing an attempt to add a hate crime amendment would be made, which would stall The Children’s Safety Act in the Senate.

In Real Congress Land, H.R.4472 should not be referred to a Senate conference committee, due to the pending S. 1086. Usual procedure would stipulate that regardless of what H.R. 4472 states, The Children’s Safety Act as is, would not be finalized into law. It must be approved by the Senate, which is stalled on S. 1086 and cannot go to the Senate floor, per Frist, unless or until the hate amendment is withdrawn.

DIRTY TRICK NUMBER FOUR:

H.R. 4472 would establish three tier levels concerning a sex offender’s risk of committing another offense: a Tier I sex offender has committed an offense punishable by imprisonment for one year or less; a Tier II sex offender has committed an offense punishable by imprisonment for more than one year or committed the offense as a Tier I offender; and a Tier III sex offender has committed an offense against a minor or committed the offense as a tier II offender.

What REALLY Happened:

Sex offender registries to protect families from convicted sexual predators are understandable efforts to try to decrease repeat offenses, but the registries not working. It's a hard fact people don't want to hear, just as it is to validate studies that show recidivism is actually low. According to Jack Ford of the Utah Department of Corrections, the state department conducted a recidivism study of 400 sex offenders from 1992 to 2004. Among that number who had fully completed therapy and treatment, only two sexual offenders reoffended, Ford said.

Since the 1994 rape and murder of Megan Kanka by a convicted child molester who lived across the street from her home in New Jersey, sex-offender registries have spread across the country, federally mandated by Megan's Law, which was named after Kanka. (The Spectrum, March 12, 2006).

The majority of offenders registered have been "convicted" of poor-behavior-choice offenses, which involve no victim. Most charged persons lack adequate funding for a legal defense to fight such charges. In the State of Florida, the resulting plea bargain is followed by automatic sexual-offender registration as decreed by F.S. 943.0436. Our politicians have even legislated judicial discretion, the power of a judge to impose a fair and just sentence.

Restructuring the sex offender registry would notify citizens as to the truly dangerous predators who currently hide behind the thousands of low-level offenders. The tier levels detailed in H.R. 4472

What REALLY Happened:

Sex offender registries to protect families from convicted sexual predators are understandable efforts to try to decrease repeat offenses, but the registries not working. It's a hard fact people don't want to hear, just as it is to validate studies that show recidivism is actually low. According to Jack Ford of the Utah Department of Corrections, the state department conducted a recidivism study of 400 sex offenders from 1992 to 2004. Among that number who had fully completed therapy and treatment, only two sexual offenders reoffended, Ford said.

Since the 1994 rape and murder of Megan Kanka by a convicted child molester who lived across the street from her home in New Jersey, sex-offender registries have spread across the country, federally mandated by Megan's Law, which was named after Kanka. (The Spectrum, March 12, 2006).

The majority of offenders registered have been "convicted" of poor-behavior-choice offenses, which involve no victim. Most charged persons lack adequate funding for a legal defense to fight such charges. In the State of Florida, the resulting plea bargain is followed by automatic sexual-offender registration as decreed by F.S. 943.0436. Our politicians have even legislated judicial discretion, the power of a judge to impose a fair and just sentence.

Restructuring the sex offender registry would notify citizens as to the truly dangerous predators who currently hide behind the thousands of low-level offenders. The tier levels detailed in H.R. 4472 seemingly address the revamping of the registry. Sounds good, right? Take a closer look.

A Tier I sex offender has committed an offense punishable by imprisonment for one year or less. One year or less is the definition of a misdemeanor. In the State of Florida, all sexual offenses are felony convictions, punishable by one year and one day, meaning, not one Floridian convicted of a sexual offense would ever be categorized as a Tier I offender under such a stipulation.

S. 1086 requires the development of a three level tier system with criteria that stipulates that all convicted of any offense, an element of which is physical contact of a sexual nature with a minor, shall be designated as Tier II or Tier III individuals. All low level offenders convicted of offenses such as public urination, talking online to an undercover police officer, or possession of one picture of porn would be listed as Tier I offenders.

These tier levels would clarify for the American public a truer risk level of each registered offender. A tier level system would allow quality monitoring by law enforcement of those offenders deemed extremely dangerous to our children. If the tier level system had been in place one year ago, it is quite probable that John Couey would have never met Jessica Lunsford-because he (as a career criminal) would have been better monitored by law enforcement as a high level offender. Mark Lunsford is aware that the Florida Sex Offender Registry does not work, yet he chooses to support H.R. 4472 that would further mislead the public regarding the true risk level of those forced to register as offenders.

Implementation of a tier system would reveal those predators who are a danger to our children, those who currently hide behind so-called offenders who have been convicted for victimless "crimes" such as a Romeo and Juliet teenage relationship, public urination, consensual teenage sex, or have chatted online or been caught up in sting operations with undercover officers.

Of course, our politician’s dirty little secret will be revealed by such a tier system. The majority of persons listed on the registries are low level sex offenders. How did this happen? Why did this happen? The more names on the registries, the more federal dollars for law enforcement is directed toward the individual state.

“In our traditional criminal justice system, the court sentences offenders to jail or prison terms, a fine, probation and related conditions of probation,” stateS Robert M.A. Johnson, President, The National District Attorneys Association, 2001. “When probation is complete, as far as the criminal justice system is concerned, the offender has done the time and paid his or her debt to society.”

”However, today's offenders learn that they have only begun to suffer the consequences of their convictions after they have satisfied their sentences. State legislators and members of Congress, often motivated by public response to highly publicized cases, have opened the dam on a stream of laws that impose subsequent consequences on those convicted of particular crimes. These collateral consequences are in addition to the sentencing consequences enforced in the courtroom, and, unlike the judicial sentence, they do not consider the circumstances of an individual offender or offense and often they are lifetime consequences. The consequences vary from state to state, but they generally relate to voting, occupational licensing, vehicle licensing, firearm restrictions, offender registration, civil forfeitures and welfare benefits.”

“On a societal level, a problem arises when the degree of these collateral consequences reduces the possibility that offenders can return to be productive members of our society. In these cases we have effectively created a subclass of citizens who, even after doing what they were ordered to by a judge, are barred from some jobs, unable to drive, disenfranchised from the vote and continually labeled as criminals. To no one's surprise, they may believe they have no recourse but to continue to live outside the law.”

“These collateral consequences are simply a new form of mandated sentences.”

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, recently indicated that some Republicans are trying to create a “police state” to round up illegal immigrants. What a surprise. (The House measure would make unlawful presence in the United States, currently a civil offense, a felony. Such tactics are all too familiar to those offenders forced to register as sex offenders and their nonoffending family members).

The Republicans behind such such “police state” bills have become extremely skillful since 9/11 in the use of psychological terrorism, pitting us against them, neighbor against neighbor, state against state.

As Edward Murrow indicated in his famous Oct. 15, 1958, "Wires and Lights" speech, "There is a great and perhaps decisive battle to be fought against ignorance, intolerance and indifference."

It is our duty to question authority, because without scrutiny, authority remains unchecked and corrupt.

We, the American people, are simply better people than those we elect to represent us.

We, the American people, are throwing away our and our neighbor's constitutional rights.

We, the American people, can do better.