Collateral consequences scholarship round-up
Collateral consequences and restoration of rights have become hot topics in academia as the consequences of conviction grow more severe and the need for law reform becomes more apparent. Below we survey notable articles on topics relating to collateral consequences that have been released so far in 2017, some of which will be covered in more detail in subsequent posts. We hope to make scholarship round-ups a regular feature on the CCRC site, and we welcome submissions on relevant topics. A more complete collection of scholarship on issues relating to collateral consequences can be found on our “Books & Articles” page.
“Briefing the Supreme Court: Promoting Science or Myth?”
Melissa Hamilton, University of Houston Law Center
Emory Law Journal Online (Forthcoming)
Date Posted on SSRN: March 23, 2017
The United States Supreme Court is considering Packingham v. North Carolina, a case testing the constitutionality of a ban on the use of social networking sites by registered sex offenders. An issue that has arisen in the case is the state’s justification for the ban. North Carolina and thirteen other states represented in a friend of the court brief make three claims concerning the risk of registered sex offenders: (1) sex offenders have a notoriously high rate of sexual recidivism; (2) sex offenders are typically crossover offenders in having both adult and child victims; and (3) sexual predators commonly use social networking sites to lure children for sexual exploitation purposes. The collective states contend that these three claims are supported by scientific evidence and common sense. This Essay explores the reliability of the scientific studies cited in the briefings considering the heteregenous group of registered sex offenders to whom the social networking ban is targeted.