Education

We want to educate 3 groups:

Young people in general need to know the laws governing sex. While ‘sex education’ is taught in schools, it seldom engages the youth in what the law prohibits and the severe consequences. Certainly, young people need to know about the dangers of HIV/AIDS and other STIs. But many young people are also ignorant of the dangers of legal prosecution and life-changing consequences for engaging in certain activities.

We want to educate former offenders and their families on and off the registry about their rights and the law. Legal technicalities and associated barriers to understanding certain restrictions leads to ‘technical’ violations by well-meaning persons, and do so needlessly. We also want former offenders to understand that they did not give up their rights to human dignity and the right to pursue productive goals in life.

We want to educate parents, educators, lawmakers, and the world on which policies related to sex crimes work, and which don’t. The misinformation on this topic is rampant. Incorrect assumptions and ill-conceived public policy make our society LESS SAFE. We desire a world with fewer victims. Knee-jerk reaction laws and hysteria are not productive means to this end.

Links

In Oregon

Research And Education

U.S. Affiliates

Want to see your website linked here? Want to see your website NOT linked here? website@oregonvoices.org

CURRENT ISSUES AND EVENTS

The next general meeting will be on Zoom in February. Check your email for details.

COVID 19 REGISTRATION UPDATE

Since last March, the Oregon State Police have allowed registration by telephone. This system is still in effect but check for potential changes before you register. Details on OSP website.

REGISTRATION RELIEF HEARING UPDATE

Hearings continue to be by phone or video. Our last numbers indicate that about 80% of those applying were granted relief, many without using attorneys and doing the rigorous information gathering on their own. Since then, two registrants in OV were granted relief, one with an attorney, one without. OV hopes to develop materials to help people in this process. Unscored registrants who believe they are eligible for relief should contact the BPPPS for instructions.

PROPOSED SORNA AMENDMENTS

The US Attorney General’s office issued proposed modifications to SORNA(Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act). These would affect all state registries. OV and affiliated organizations submitted comments objecting to the proposed changes. We will wait for the AG’s response before taking further action. Information on any Oregon legislative responses this session to federal requests will be on our email.

COVID IN OUR PRISONS

As of December 30, the Marshall Project reports 276,235 cases nationwide with at least 1738 deaths of AIC’s. This includes federal and states. The Oregon DOC reports 2320 overall confirmed cases with 21 deaths to date. Both of these represent almost double the number of active cases since October 31.