Alerts – Liberty and Justice Coalition

Scam Alert

Admin — Mon, 04 Jan 2021 04:09:55 +0000

This is to alert you to the possibility that you might receive a phone call from scammers purporting to be law enforcement. Do not believe them. There are so many scams going that it is virtually impossible for us to track
them all. The most recent report was from one of our supporters who received a fake call from the Albuquerque Police demanding that he come to the downtown headquarters and provide a DNA sample to de-register
him. APD and law enforcement agencies do not make such calls which is how we know that this was a scam. DNA is collected at the time of a felony arrest or upon conviction if it hasn’t been previously stored. We believe that the purpose of the call was to get the person to leave his home so they could burglarize it or do something even more sinister.

The most common scam is that you may receive a call claiming that you have a warrant out for your arrest. Do not fall for that one either. Law enforcement will not call you demanding money in the form of pre-paid gift
cards or bitcoin to resolve an arrest warrant. LJC’s advice is that you do not engage with anyone claiming to be law enforcement, an IRS agent, or from the Social Security Administration. Neither the SSA nor the IRS make such phone calls which means any such call is a scam. The scammer will tell you that your social security number is being used fraudulently and that you are subject to arrest. If you do not recognize the voice of the caller, the best advice would be to ask for a badge number and then call the agency to confirm the officer’s identify. That will outrage the scammer and they will threaten you even more. Do not be bullied because a legitimate officer will understand what you are doing.

Rick Dean

LibJusCo suing New Mexico sheriffs and DPS

Admin — Wed, 30 Oct 2019 15:16:35 +0000

By Jackie Kent . . .

ALBUQUERQUE, NM (KRQE) – More than a half dozen sex offenders who committed their crimes in other states say they’re being treated unfairly in New Mexico.

“When someone moves to New Mexico, they’re kind of automatically by default required to register,” Liberty and Justice Coalition Attorney Barett G. Porter said.

Porter said many convicted sex offenders who move to New Mexico aren’t getting the state-required case review to determine if they should even have to register as a sex offender.

“We’re not actually looking for a break,” Liberty and Justice Coalition Attorney Ashley Reymore-Cloud stated. “What we’re looking for is that they’re awarded their constitutional due rights and due process that every single person is entitled to regardless of what they did.”

The lawsuit states that registering as a sex offender in New Mexico entails “significant burdens.”

Read full article

LJCs’ Attorney puts more Sheriff Departments on Notice

Rick Dean — Fri, 20 Sep 2019 00:26:33 +0000

We are excited to report to you that Ashley Cloud was present at our joint meeting with Titus House Ministries this past Sunday. Ashley and Larry shared our litigation plans and took questions from the audience.

Ashley reported that we have sent cease and desist letter to threes New Mexico sheriffs so far and we anticipate more to come. Letters have been sent to Bernalillo County, Quay County, and Lea County. You can view the letters by clicking on the county name. In addition to the letters, we distributed a Notice to Registrants prepared by LJC providing vital information in terms of what a registrant is required to provide the sheriff as well as alerting registrants to some of law enforcement’s invented requirements which are not in New Mexico’s SORNA statute.

Now that Ashley has joined our team, we anticipate that LJC will be collaborating more closely with other organization such as the ACLU. The challenges we face are enormous which means working with other organizations is crucial because no organization has adequate resources to fight this battle alone.

LJC expects to be filing multiple lawsuits in the coming months. We expect to launch the lawsuit regarding translation of out-of-state convictions very soon. We have assembled a good group of plaintiffs for that lawsuit. In addition to that case, our board has prioritized: (1) the issue of those being held in prison simply because they do not have an address which the Parole Board finds satisfactory; (2) forcing the Parole Board to provide due process to those facing revocation for technical violations; and (3) initiation of action to help those that have had registration requirements imposed retroactively or increased after registration began. As an offshoot of priority number 3, LJC will seek credit for the time people have registered in other states and for the time the obligation to register was unknown to the former offender. If this challenge is successful, some could have years shaved from their registration periods.

It is our intention to have more frequent meetings going forward to provide our supporters the opportunity to interact with our team. We are grateful that Titus House Ministries invited us to their Circle of Concern support group.

In closing, we ask that you consider our financial needs and donate at any level you can afford. We are the only NARSOL affiliate to have a staff attorney, and it is only possible to do the work if we have the necessary resources. You can become a member of LJC or donate here. LJC has been granted 501(c)(3) status by the IRS which means your contributions are tax deductible.

Letter to Bemalillo County Sheriff Manny Gonzales

fdarn — Sat, 17 Aug 2019 00:49:24 +0000

Read the letter from LibJusCo Staff Attorney, Ashley Cloud, to Sheriff Manny Gonzale in regards to unlawful practices towards registrants in Bemalillo County.

Gonzales Manny_Final Letter_8-16-19

Scam Update!!!

Admin — Thu, 21 Feb 2019 02:48:23 +0000

Repeating the warning: If you get a call from someone saying he is with law enforcement, that you are out of compliance, or overdue, or anything to do with your registration status and that he can help you take care of it, it is a scam. Hang up and call your registry office or local law enforcement. This has been going on for well over a year. We have just today gotten word that it is operating in Pennsylvania. This is a list of states from where we have had reports. Contact NARSOL if you learn of it being in a state not listed here.

CALIFORNIA, COLORADO, CONNECTICUT, FLORIDA, GEORGIA, IDAHO, MARYLAND, MICHIGAN, NEBRASKA, NEW HAMPSHIRE, NEW MEXICO, OHIO, OKLAHOMA, OREGON, PENNSYLVANIA, TEXAS, VIRGINIA

Here are a few media stories about it from various states:

https://wwjnewsradio.radio.com/articles/police-scam-targets-registered-sex-offenders

https://www.baltimorecountymd.gov/News/PoliceNews/iWatch/newtelephonescamtargetssexoffenderregistrants

https://www.kdrv.com/content/news/Sheriff-Recent-Phone-Scam-is-Targeting-Sex-Offenders-484228231.html

https://www.kpvi.com/news/local_news/scams-targeting-registered-sex-offenders/article_9f45c3b2-1104-11e8-9fae-9bce2c028996.html

https://www.centexproud.com/news/local/brazos-county-phone-scam-targets-registered-sex-offenders/1746536814

SCAM ALERT!

Admin — Sat, 10 Mar 2018 22:09:48 +0000

From the NARSOL WEB site
Those on sex offender registries targeted for telephone scams
March 10, 2018 Sandy

By Sandy . . . Scams offering to get someone off the registry for a fee have been around for a while. A new scam has appeared within the past few months, and as of this writing has targeted registrants in some form in at least four states: Texas, Oklahoma, Ohio, and New Mexico, with New Mexico being the most recent. All involve telephone calls to registrants claiming to be from someone at the registry office or police department and claiming the registrant is somehow out of compliance. From there the verbiage goes in one of several directions. Some are told to bring cash to the registry office. Some have details about the registrant and his past and his family and use threats. Some claim to have planted evidence of a new crime and threaten imminent arrest if instructions aren’t obeyed. Some haven’t asked for cash but told the registrant to go to the registry office immediately.
Local law enforcement in Arlington, TX opened a case as a terroristic threat, impersonating a police officer, and extortion. Officials in New Mexico said neither the police or registry officials would make such a telephone call.
So be aware. If you get any calls from anyone claiming to be officials and saying that you are in trouble in some way and need to go somewhere, don’t do it. Capture the phone number if you can and call your local law enforcement and registry office.

ACTION ALERT!!

Admin — Mon, 12 May 2014 01:30:45 +0000

Please see link provided: take action by contacting your representatives. Let’s make our voices heard against this more destructive version of International Megan’s Law before it gains any more traction.

Action Alert: Smith Introduces a -MORE ONEROUS- version of his defunct International Megans Law

5-10-2014 Washington DC:

International Megans law bill died years ago, and is not necessary because the SMART Office -through Guidelines- put it into play in 2011. See blog here with full explanation, scroll down a bit and read how they put it into effect.

Now on 5-6-2014 Rep. Smith introduces his original bill under a fictitious name, using a explanation of purpose, rather than a name as all other bills have. This new bill is a MODIFIED (More onerous) version and can be viewed here HR-4573.

Now in his press release he says the House approved this bill before, however they have not approved the more onerous amendments he has made to the new version.

It is time for everyone to contact their Representatives and Senators, and explain how this is harmful to registrants and their families, and is not good for the nation.

This is something that needs everyone’s attention immediately.

HELP US HELP YOU

We’re back!

Admin — Fri, 21 Feb 2014 23:41:38 +0000

As you can all see RSOLNM.ORG is back up and running. Sorry for the down time.

Rsolnm Webmaster

Report on National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) Summit

fdarn — Mon, 26 Aug 2013 11:59:41 +0000

Report on National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) Summit

Week of August 12 through August 16, 2013

Georgia World Congress Center

We are pleased to report that to you that Reform Sex Offender Laws Inc. in collaboration with Women Against Registry (W.A.R.) and Sex Offender Solutions and Education Network (SOSEN) was present for this very important gathering of legislators from all over the United States . RSOL was represented by Larry Neely and another person. W.A.R was represented by Vicki Henry. This was our first experience attending at a NCSL event so we certainly learned a great deal. This report is intended to let you know day by day what happened.

August 12th: This was set-up and orientation day for our joint delegation. The day consisted of getting registered, setting up the booth, and some preliminary networking in the halls of the Georgia World Congress Center .

August 13th: The exhibit hall officially opened at 10:00 o’clock in the morning. Almost immediately there was a swarm of people passing by our booth. The traffic was especially heavy because we had a good location which was in the third row of exhibitors. We engaged lawmakers, legislative staff, and various types of delegates from all over the country (and world) regarding the issues of public registration. One interesting comment came from the former Attorney General of the U.S. Virgin Islands who stated he genuinely had no idea that the registry he had promoted was causing conflict for U.S. citizens. He then proceeded to collect every brochure at our booth, explaining he wanted to learn more about the subject and would also share this information with his colleagues. The overwhelming majority of the comments from them were positive. Most admitted that there are problems with registration but expressed that the issue is politically difficult for them to resolve.

August 14th: The second day of the summit was a bit different because they reversed the flow of traffic. Everyone entered on the opposite end of the building which meant that we were in the seventh row. Nonetheless, the experience was similar to the previous day. We continued to engage lawmakers, legislative staff, and other delegates. In fact, there were many visitors from foreign nations. We spoke with a number of people from Canada and as far away as Kenya. Lunch was provided to us at no cost. Larry managed to sit with several Republican lawmakers from New Mexico. This in and of itself was an amazing opportunity because we strengthened existing relationships.

August 15th: This was the final day for exhibitors and also proved to be the slowest for us. We had barely a trickle of traffic; nonetheless, we continued to speak with anyone that would listen. On that particular day Larry primarily spoke with other exhibitors who were delighted to see us there.

Conclusion: Overall, this experience exceeded all of our expectations. The NCSL conventions provide us with the opportunity to network and educate in a way that would otherwise be prohibitively expensive for our organizations. We are hoping that the NCSL will become a regular event that we will attend in future years and we thank everyone that supported this project on such short notice.

URGENT ALERT: PASSPORT RESTRICTIONS for RSOs

fdarn — Sat, 03 Aug 2013 17:55:31 +0000

Attention Everyone!

New Jersey’s Congressman Chris Smith is at it again! He wants to restrict/revoke the passports of Registered Sex Offenders.

First there was 2008’s HR5722. Then there was 2009’s HR1623. To be followed by 2010’s HR5138. And then again in 2011 there was HR3253 plus TWO “Trafficking” Bills with passport restrictions for RSO’s HR2830 AND HR3589. Still pending for 2013 is his HR898-Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2013 also with a Registered Sex Offender passport restrict/revoke mandate.

Then there have been other sponsors of travel and/or passport restrictions for Registered Sex Offenders. Like Congressman Ted Poe’s 2010 bill HR5870. Blatantly titled; To restrict passports of certain sex offenders, and for other purposes.
2010 was a busy year for these types of bills because of a GAO Report that was released. They have all so far failed to be voted on in the House or in the Senate.

Now, Congressman Smith has submitted an amendment to HR2848- Department of State Operations and Embassy Security Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 2014. This amendment is to Megan’s Law, it grants the Secretary of State discretion to limit the valid duration of passports for convicted sex offenders listed on the National Sex Offender Registry, or to revoke the passport of an individual convicted by a court of competent jurisdiction in a foreign country of a sex offense. The amendment was unanimously approved by the House Foreign Affairs Committee on August 1st 2013.

This amendment is way too broad. Allowing open discretion to the Secretary of State’s Office to revoke passports will most likely turn into a blanket-ban against ALL registered offenders.

Only offenders who have been convicted of Trafficking Humans or of International Sexual Crimes should be evaluated and considered for passport and travel restrictions internationally. If this amendment stays as is in HR2848 it will most likely be broaden over time to include everyone (all RSO’s).

We do think that by inserting his long-time International Megan’s Law as an amendment into HR2848 it will pass and could very likely become Federal law. We also believe that if this becomes law the cost of checking everyone’s passports will be an issue and they will pass it on to the RSO as a fee.

The Secretary of States Office might even determine special passports should be created for RSO’s, they might expire sooner, they could cost more and everyone who is handed the document would immediately know the owner is an RSO, a “scarlet letter of travel”. If you’re traveling with your own children you or your family could be hassled or scrutinized because everyone knows you’re an RSO.

This Smith amendment could snowball into a huge cost,inconvenience and barrier for RSO’s who travel for work, family, school or vacation. It’s unnecessary, its prejudice and it has to be stopped!

We ask that you please contact your one U.S. Congress Representative and both of our U.S. Senators who could require the amendment be removed or significantly edited to only apply to those convicted of Human Trafficking or International Sex Crimes immediately! The representatives may be on their August break but their offices are still open and listening to the concerns of their constituents. We need to make sure they hear from all of us now so HR2848 does not proceed to the House floor for a vote as-is.

Even if you or your loved one don’t plan on traveling internationally, don’t take the attitude of it doesn’t affect me so why should I care. Any restriction imposed across the board to RSO’s especially laws restricting movement affect us all and we need to speak up.

Please take the time to email, call, write or fax your Federal Representatives.