Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Criminal Law Blogs -> Grits for Breakfast

Criminal Law

: Grits for Breakfast

Resources wasted on harsh punishments, registration for low-risk 'sex offenders'

While I was away Jordan Smith at the Austin Chronicle published an excellent story on wasted law enforcement resources devoted to Texas' sprawling sex-offender registration program. Here's a notable excerpt:The original idea for increasing penalties and restrictions, and for creating the public registry, was that harsh punishment and the public branding of offenders would enhance public safety ? saving children, especially, from falling victim to sexual predators. In practice, however, the rapid expansion of crime and punishment in this area of the law has created a clumsy system that has diluted those original intentions beyond recognition. As of March 1, there were nearly 63,000 persons on Texas' public database administered by the state's Department of Public Safety, which adds roughly 100 new names to the list each week...continue to full post

Full post as published by Grits for Breakfast on September 20, 2010 (boomark / email).