Sex club boots out sex offenders

[fun4Ds]

Indiana moves ex-cons from motel over sex club | WSBT - News, Weather, Sports South Bend | Regional


I didn't know this until reading about it in our local paper this morning.

Did anyone else know about this ?



Thoughts



fun4ds

[socolais]

On the surface, this sounds like a surprisingly responsible thing for a government agency to do. I guess there's no single answer that would satisfy all concerned parties and the most reasonable option is always going to be a compromise. It would be difficult for me to imagine a more sensible and responsible answer.

[bbarnsworth]

I didn't know about it, but I don't live anywhere near Ft. Wayne, nor have been to Utopia (and now Just 4 Now), so I don't have much reason to follow it. That said, the article is (thankfully) very neutral with regards to the swing club. That's good to see, and rare enough to make this article very unusual on its own.

I think it is wise to separate the two, though I seriously doubt there'd be any interaction between the two groups anyways. Isn't Utopia/J4N couples only?

[cplnuswing]

I personally think many of the sex offender registry laws have gone way too far, basically making it impossible to comply and therefore driving underground the very people you say you are wanting to keep tabs on.

This is the first I've heard of a motel program like this, but now I'm wondering how many other states are doing it under the radar out of bare necessity coupled with an inability to admit they have screwed up to start with. My question would be isn't it safe to assume that kids stay at motels too, so is that not somewhat contrary to the whole idea to begin with?? You can't be 999 feet from a public park or school, but you can be two feet from the kids in the motel room right next to you?

The bothersome part of the story is they felt the move was necessary because the swingers moved in, with the implication that any other group would have been still ok. By doing so, they link the two, which really comes as no surprise. Can't have swingers being a bad influence on our convicted child molesters.

[bbarnsworth]

Originally Posted by cplnuswing

I personally think many of the sex offender registry laws have gone way too far, basically making it impossible to comply and therefore driving underground the very people you say you are wanting to keep tabs on.

I have real concerns with the sex offender registries as well. It is a very, very serious incursion on civil liberties. I understood it when it first came into effect. Pedophilia is a known condition that does not have a cure; no matter how long you imprison someone, they still suffer from the condition. They have a high enough chance of committing another crime that post serving their sentence, they remain an ongoing threat to society that can not be resolved. So, either imprison them for life or come up with a compromise position to continue to protect the public. The registries serve that purpose. I don't like them, but it's an unfortunate and necessary consequence of the circumstance.

The problem is the laws have been rewritten since then and have now forced people to be registered sex offenders for crimes that have nothing to do with pedophilia. For example, if you decide to take off your clothes and go running around a baseball diamond while a major league game is going on, you'll have to be a registered sex offender for life. The registry has been horribly abused.

Originally Posted by cplnuswing

The bothersome part of the story is they felt the move was necessary because the swingers moved in, with the implication that any other group would have been still ok. By doing so, they link the two, which really comes as no surprise. Can't have swingers being a bad influence on our convicted child molesters.

I didn't take that away from the story. I read it that they saw the physical proximity of the two groups was problematic in nature. Certainly from a public perception standpoint, they're absolutely correct. Getting the swingers club to move was something they had little or no control over. Getting the ex cons to move was. Easy solution; move what they can most easily move.

[cplnuswing]

Originally Posted by bbarnsworth

The problem is the laws have been rewritten since then and have now forced people to be registered sex offenders for crimes that have nothing to do with pedophilia.

Even though they haven't figured out a way to make swinging specifically illegal yet, I would be surprised if somewhere there aren't at least a few people on that registry indirectly because of swinging. As you point out, nowadays do something silly but innocent like pulling up your top to flash your friends in the dark parking lot as a meet and greet is breaking up for the night, and if the wrong set of eyes happens to be looking your way together with an aggressive cop and/or prosecutor with an agenda, then there's the potential for a harmless prank to get you more than what used to be worst case a lecture or else a misdemeanor ticket. Now, that could be a life changing event. It's gone way too far.

Originally Posted by bbarnsworth

Getting the swingers club to move was something they had little or no control over. Getting the ex cons to move was. Easy solution; move what they can most easily move.

That's true, good point. What I was getting at was if the local quilting circle starting meeting there, would they have moved the ex cons? My take based on the limited info in the the story was no, they wouldn't have felt the need to.

[divenaked]

We have some friends who like to gert freaky in the great outdoors. They got caught on a federal reserve having sex a few years ago (out in the woods). He is now a registered sex offender, and they both served a short jail term. There were no other people around other than the ranger who caught them. How could that possibly warrent a sex offender status?

[JustAskJulie]

Indiana moves ex-cons from motel over sex club | jconline.com | Journal and Courier

FORT WAYNE — Indiana’s program for housing sex offenders after they leave prison has moved ex-cons out of a Fort Wayne motel after a private club with ties to a swingers’ group moved in.

The Indiana Department of Corrections says the recent arrival of the club at Hallmark Inn led the agency to move the sex offenders to a nearby motel.

As many as 16 former prisoners had been living there.

The club is called Just 4 Now. It shares a website with the now-closed Club Utopia, a swingers’ club.

The Indiana prison system uses Social Security funds to house some sex offenders recently released from prison in motels across the state.

State law prohibits some sex offenders from living within 1,000 feet of a school, park or child-care center.

[Alura]

Many states have that 1,000 feet law. Some specify 500 feet. Virtually the entire city of Tulsa is off limits.

Now, a few years ago some fool teenager thought it'd be fun to streak across the football field at one of our high school games. He was tackled by the cops, has been labeled "sex offender" and has a difficult time finding a place to live.

I'm glad the swing club won but also feel concern about those who lived there before, especially those whose "offenses" were relatively benign.

Alura

[Hallofrumors]

Alura, I remember that. I was living in Tulsa and the game was being televised. Jenks vs Union.

[Alura]

Yep! That was the game. We're Jenks fans.

Alura