Sex Offender Computer Search Law is Unconstitutional, Judge Says
A federal judge yesterday struck down a major portion of a revised Indiana sex offender registry law, saying that the state went too far in requiring that convicted sex offenders, after they serve their sentences and any parole or probation, agree to have their computers and Internet use monitored.
Siding with the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana, which filed the class action on behalf of convicted sex offenders, U.S. District Judge David Hamilton ruled that the newly revised law could not be enforced, as far as computer and Internet use monitoring is concerned, reports the Indianapolis Star.
“These plaintiffs have rights under the Fourth Amendment,” the Indianapolis-based judge says in a written opinion. “The state may not force them to waive those rights under threat of criminal prosecution for failing to do so.”
