[Mr.Barbarian]

I heard a story once on NPR about a married couple in their 30s with kids.

They had gotten together as teenagers, and had sex just outside whatever the legal window in that state happened to be. Say, he was 19 and she was 17, or whatever.

He's still on the sex offender list. There is no possible way to get off. A judge can't overturn it and it can't be appealed to any executive or representative.

They described how, wherever they move, they receive hostility from neighbors who assume the worst about them.

[Blaster]

(03-28-2013 10:14 AM)bojangles Wrote:  

damn this is fucked up, you can get put on this list for pissing in the street?

They seem to be state-specific, so it depends on where you live. I looked over the list of offenders in my city and did see a few 'indecent exposure' type of convictions. But looking at the way the law is written, simply pissing in the street would not be sufficient. It would have to be done intentionally, including intent to expose publicly or at least a recklessly disregard a risk of exposure to others who would be offended, and regardless of intent the act must be done in such a way that shocks or alarms others, and that someone actually was shocked or alarmed.

In other words, if you're on a street outside a bar with a crowd of other drunks, take out your dick and start pissing in a gutter, it's not a sex offense. But if you drop your pants in front of a 5 year old on a school playground you're going on the registry.

Innocent convictions, of course, are always possible.