Saturday, February 16, 2008

If you are directly affected ..

If you are directly affected by this law...as a sex offender on registration or a family member or friend of one, here is what you NEED to do immediately:

1. File the complaint forms with the local courts. They are provided for you at Ohio Public Defender web site. (http://opd.ohio.gov/AWA_Information/Adam_Walsh.htm)
You must do this , not only to protect your own constitutional rights, but also to join in the fight to make it more likely that we will succeed as a whole. File both the Motion for Relief from Community Notification and the Petition to Contest Reclassification. Make sure you also note on your filings that you contest the Constitutionality of the law's application: "that SB 10 violates the ex post facto, double jeopardy, and separation of powers provisions of the Ohio Constitution and the United States Constitution". The more complaints filed, the more cumbersome it becomes for the courts and politicians. It not only assures you of contesting your own rights, but it also strengthens the cause throughout the state and nation.

File in the county of your registration AND the county of your conviction (if different). File copies with both the Clerk of Courts and the County Prosecutor, as instructed. Keep a copy. You have an extended deadline but it will not go on forever so get it done!

2. Call, email and write your local representatives.
Be persistent and forceful in what you have to say to them. These politicians are cowards and bow to public opinion more than you know. Any indication that they will receive negative media attention will scare them more than you know. Tell them you insist that they stand up against the AWA law or that they resign. Do not make your case personal. No politician really cares about your own personal interests. They only care how it affects their reputations. Base your case on the illegality of the law and the irresponsibility of their actions in passing it. Beyond all, let it be known that you are not "asking" them , but rather demanding. Remember that these political and elected officials hold their positions ONLY as a privilege and at the pleasure of us, the citizens who vote !

3. Join ConstitutionalFights and our efforts to fight AWA and the SB 10 laws. Sign our petition at http://www.petitiononline.com/oh08/petition.html.