Nov: 03, 2013

Lawsuit may lead to changes in Minnesota’s sex offender policy

Convicted sex offenders face notoriously harsh punishments. In fact, only one person has ever been released in the history of the 19-year-old Minnesota Sex Offender Program. A new lawsuit filed by a sex offender that was committed civilly may determine that this current system is unconstitutional. The 2011 lawsuit is yet to be resolved in federal court; in the meantime, the Minnesota Department of Human Services is starting to consider alternative correction methods that are less restrictive.

Nov: 03, 2013

Hearing to determine if Minnesota serial rapist will be released

Not all sex offenders in Minnesota go to prison. In some cases, a court may decide that such a criminal should be held in a treatment center. Minnesota houses nearly 700 sex offenders in treatment facilities at St. Peter and Moose Lake, and $73 million is spent every year to lock these offenders up. In the last 20 years, however, only one person has ever been released from one of these centers. On Nov. 8, a panel of judges scheduled a hearing to determine whether there should be a second.

Oct: 03, 2013

Minneapolitans need to rethink the stranger with candy mentality

Although parents in Minneapolis have grown up with stories and urban legends of strangers lurking with candy, waiting to abduct children and do horrible things, the reality is that very few children are harmed by strangers. When we look at the numbers, nearly all incidents of child molestation are committed by family members or acquaintances, with only 7 percent being committed by strangers. So, if the “creepy man in the van” is a myth, why are we still so worried about him?

Sep: 03, 2013

What does a guilty plea actually mean to a teenager?

Most people in Eagan recognize that a sexual assault charge is incredibly serious and a conviction would come with a long prison sentence and potentially a lifetime on the Minnesota Sex Offender Registry. With this in mind, it may seem ridiculous to think that anyone would enter a guilty plea on a charge of rape unless he or she actually raped someone. Yet 38 percent of juveniles who are convicted and later exonerated were found to enter false confessions. So when a teenager pleads guilty to any crime, what does he or she actually mean?

Sep: 03, 2013

Sentencing for sex crimes could turn on biased evaluations

The role of a Minneapolis criminal defense lawyer is not always to clear someone’s name; sometimes the evidence of guilt is overwhelming and there is little a criminal defense lawyer can do to free his or her client. That does not mean, however, that a lawyer is useless, but rather the lawyer’s job is to ensure the trial is fair and the punishment is appropriate. For many criminal offenses, including sex crimes, a sentence may depend heavily on the evaluation of a mental health professional. In these cases, part of the lawyer’s job is to make sure that the evaluation is unbiased, because if it is not, the defendant could find him- or herself facing a long sentence in prison.

Jul: 03, 2013

How unique is your hair? The FBI is looking into it

For decades the FBI has been using hair analysis and other forms of DNA testing to aid in the conviction of defendants. The science has certainly helped defendants who are accused of violent crimes, murder and rape to clear their name, too, but the FBI has recently announced that it will be looking into some of its cases to check for faulty science. One of the biggest problems the FBI has had, it seems, is agents making claims about hair analysis that can’t be supported by science. When those statements led to a conviction, it is very possible that the wrong person was convicted.

May: 03, 2013

Sex offender registration raising debate on how much is too much

Last week we talked about the damage that comes with someone being forced to register as a sex offender while still a child. There are numerous issues that arise when someone finds out about a former offender’s status, both for children and adults, making it very important that only the most dangerous people be added to the Minnesota Sex Offender Registry. Unfortunately, there are a variety of people who are added each year, many of whom pose no threat to the communities in which they live.

Mar: 03, 2013

Minneapolis’s high rape statistics are misleading

Many people in Minneapolis are likely aware that the number of rapes reported within the city are much higher than any other city in the country. What they may not know, however, is that the Minneapolis Police Department has been reporting far more crimes than just rapes to the FBI. For at least the past eight years, the Minneapolis Police Department has been operating under a much broader definition of rape than what has been requested by the FBI for its statistical comparisons.

Mar: 03, 2013

Minnesota Sex Offender Program will change, one way or another

This blog has previously mentioned the Minnesota Sex Offender Program, a program designed to hold former sex offenders after they have finished serving their sentences because the court believes they could be dangerous, and the fact that it has come under scrutiny. Several of the offenders who are trapped in this program have very little hope of getting out and they are arguing that their constitutional rights have been infringed upon.

Dec: 02, 2012

Women accuse doctor of sexual assault during examination

It is many Minneapolis residents’ worst nightmares to be accused of a crime and not have any witnesses to back them up. Imagine being arrested and charged with sexual assault by someone; the first thing to do would be to find people who could say that you are innocent. But, what if you were alone with the accuser and that is when he or she said you committed the assault? What do you do when it is just your word against the accuser’s? Unfortunately, that is the situation that a former Mankato Clinic doctor is now facing.

Category: Sex Crimes