That is a pretty good one Michigan - thank you for posting it.

Josh Gravens, a 29-year-old activist who was placed on a sex offender registry after touching his younger sister inappropriately when he was 12, told Slate. “To be honest, I don’t know why we have them today, because research would say they’re useless and ineffective and have devastating collateral consequences for more than just the people listed on them.”

Josh, it is not really difficult to understand why we have these sex offender registries----Any politician that attempts to abolish them or even begins to diminish them would be voted out of office at the next election.

Since politicians have no political courage, they will never take any action to abolish the registries. These bums like their job too well to risk it over the registry. And who wouldn't?? They have great medical benefits, they don't work very hard or very long as they work less than 200 days a year, and somehow they manage to get fantastically rich off their salary. Plus they even get a decent retirement.

Who would want to give up a job like that? The concept of self-preservation ensures that they will never touch the registry.
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The voters, instilled with fear from the media about predators, pedophiles, sex offenders, and perverts---and anything other name they can use to spice up their stories----love the registry as they think it protects their children. They then clamor to the politicians to pass even more useless legislation regarding registrants.

The registry has become a political animal and is a Catch 22 situation and self-perpetuating.

The registry was never a Constitutionally viable idea in the first place. It has worn out its welcome and it is time for it to go. But the only way it will be eliminated is through the courts---piece by piece. That is just my opinion. I don't see any huge landmark court opinion abolishing the registry in the near future.

rewdiazepam

I agree. In the twin tales of Josh Gravens and Galen B Josh (to me) shows what it means to grow beyond childhood mistakes and become a responsible adult in spite of .all the additional harms done to youngsters labeled child molesters and sent through a system/ placed on the registry which has indeed become a political animal out to aggrandize prosecutors with political ambitions and .puff up haters who style themselves as "Saviors of Children." to justify leading the lynch mob.

Well that's why Josh was the one who was quoted in this article and not Galen. He has lost that privilege.

excellent article