Judge again blocks new R.I. sex offender residency restriction

UPDATED 11-9: Critics of new residency law say it’s dangerous to remove sex offenders from stable living situations

11-4-15 Rhode Island:

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — A federal judge has blocked until January enforcement of a Rhode Island law that bars certain sex offenders from living within 1,000 feet of a school.

U.S. District Judge John J. McConnell Jr. on Wednesday ordered the state not to enforce the law until a hearing in January.

McConnell last week had issued a temporary restraining order for 10 days.

The law was enacted this year and applies to Level III sex offenders, considered the most likely to reoffend.

The state's affiliate to the American Civil Liberties Union had requested the temporary restraining order, and after the hearing Steven Brown, the executive director, said the ruling would give Level III sex offenders and their families "a great sense of relief."

Attorneys John E. MacDonald and Lynette Labinger argued for the restraining order, stating the law was not being implemented the same way everywhere — with sex offenders in some communities having 36 hours to move and in others 30 days — and that many would have to move to Harrington Hall, an all-male homeless shelter in Cranston.

Rebecca Partington of the attorney general's office pointed out in court that the 1,000 foot zone would give parents peace of mind and that zones, such as the proximity of liquor stores to schools, have been set in the past.

The temporary restraining order had barred the attorney general's office and the Department of Correction from enforcing the law.

The restraining order was issued in conjunction with a class action lawsuit filed by the ACLU asserting, among other things, that the law is unconstitutionally vague, violates due process and retroactively punishes those who already completed their sentences.

The state argued similar restrictions have been imposed elsewhere, and those affected can find other places to live. ..Source.. by Providence Journal