Sentencing Law and Policy reports that a split 10th Circuit panel has upheld the reasonableness of a below-guideline sentence in a sex offense case. The case (available here) is US v. Smart, No. 06-6120 (10th Cir. Mar. 4, 2008).
A county in Florida is considering an ordinance that would require sex offenders to live at least 2,500 feet away from places where children gather, as all eight of the county's municipalities have already done.
The Associated Press reports that although the number of sex abuse claims against Roman Catholic clergy has dropped for the third consecutive year, the total payouts to victims has nearly doubled reaching the highest level ever. Settlements with victims totaled to $526 million for 2007. According to the article "nearly 14,000 molestation claims have been filed against Catholic clergy since 1950; Abuse-related costs have reached at least $2.3 billion."
A Minnesota district court has sentenced a repeat sex offender to life in prison, a relatively rare use of the sentence in the state. Minnesota's ultimate penalty - life in prison without the possibility of parole - has yet to be handed down for a sex crime.
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