Bills I'm Watching

Items to watch in the current session of the Commonwealth's legislature:

1) 2009 HB 38 Increased restrictions on registered sex offenders. A horrible bill. It's a "piling on" of sex offender residence exclusions. It expands to include pools & parks as locii for a no-reside radius. It's becoming clear that Sex Offender Registries do not work. [and here] Well, it's been clear to those in the trenches, but now economists, penologists and a few lawmakers [and here] are begining to agree. I would like to note that the bill was introduced by Stan Lee (R-Fayette) (no relation to the Comic Book guy) who's never met a "Family-values" panic-inducing ultra-conservative talking point he didn't like.

2) 2009 HB 130 Seeks to EXPAND eligibility of the Death Penalty in Kentucky. This bill really bothers me. In my life I was ok with the Death Penalty, on the fence with the Death Penalty...

...before I even imagined to become a lawyer...

...when Timothy McVeigh was put to death... a colleague at my former workplace said something to the effect of "It's a good day, we fried that a-hole"...

...I took exception, I thought we shouldn't delight in the death of any human, even one like McVeigh, who is probably one of the best arguments FOR the Death Penalty. I became against the Death Penalty....

...As a 1L, I was fortunate enough to attend a talk with Juan Melendez, the 99th person exonerated from Death Row since the reenstatement of the Death Penalty. His story is the precise reason the Death Penalty should be abolished...

...on moral and legal ethics grounds...

...but there is also an economic component, that we all had to lose our 401(k)'s and Cost of Living raises SLASHED to realize...

... the thing that really bothers me is that the bill is sponsered by Rep. Joseph M. Fischer (R-Campbell), who recieved, from 1993-1998. the Northern KY Right to Life John J. Bauer Service Award, and sits on the Board of the Greater Cincinnati Lawyers for Life...

...But he wants to expand the Death Penalty... As a Roman Catholic, I think that will get him excommunicated...



There are more, but I commented/linked more than I anticipated... Good night, post will be continued.