More fun with Florida law: it's okay for sex offenders to have porn

I'm not really sure how I feel about this particular case or the ruling, but I do know that the comments on the article are laughable.

The Florida Supreme Court ruled today that convicted sex offenders on probation can possess pornographic materials, so long as the porn doesn't pertain to their "particular deviant behavior pattern."

The facts: Donald Kasischke ... pleaded guilty in 2001 to three counts each of lewd or lascivious battery and exhibition on a 15-year-old boy. He was sentenced to a year in prison followed by two years of community control and eight years of probation.

Officers searched Kasischke's home after his release and found pornographic photos and a videotape (the porn contained images of young men, but it could not be proven that they were underage). He was hauled back to jail, which the Third DCA ruled was appropriate.

But the Supreme Court justices read the wording of the law, which included the phrase about relevance to an offender's deviant behavior pattern, and decided Kasischke should be able to keep his porn. (Kasischke, 61, is still in prison, but he will come back to Miami for a new hearing based on Thursday's favorable ruling.)

I mean, I'm not exactly thrilled that a convicted sex offender legally can have pornography, but then again, I can't think of any reason why he or she should relinquish their possessions, even if the possessions in question are a little, um, squicky.

But check out the comments on the article ... especially the third one.

I now know why its called the "High" Court. The only question left is: Which illegal drug is used to achieve the "high" before court is in session...

Posted by: UKnoe | July 10, 2008 at 03:52 PM [kill]​[hide comment]

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The FL Supr. Court is so out of whack with reality, that you do wonder if they are high on drugs.

Posted by: Ludwig | July 10, 2008 at 04:21 PM [kill]​[hide comment]

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Is it possible that the Right of Free Speech applies only to the "approved" members of our society? As an evil neo-con I have a hard time with resricting Free Speech in any way. This is why I am hated. If these folks are so sick that they pose a continual danger to our families, there is any easy solution. It only cost .17cents per application. It is called a .357 Magnum.

Posted by: SwampRat | July 10, 2008 at 04:24 PM [kill]​[hide comment]

Typical neo-con. Kill 'em all -- never mind the consequences. Or, for that matter, the Constitution. What a bunch of sick fuckers.

In Florida, Supreme Court appointments mirror issue on national level

With yesterday's resignation of Florida Supreme Court Justice Kenneth B. Bell, Gov. Charlie Crist will have an unprecedented opportunity to appoint a majority of high court judges all by himself, in a single gubernatorial term.

Crist is now poised to stamp his imprint on the court -- aside from the two resignations [Bell and Justice Raoul Cantero, who resigned in April], Justices Harry Anstead and Charles Wells will be forced to retire next year due to constitutional age restrictions.

That means Crist will have to appoint a majority on the court -- four of the seven state high court judges.

As a result, Crist can have an impact on Florida government and the judiciary for decades, well beyond his own term as governor ends ... which reminds us how important the upcoming presidential election is, as it is likely the next president will appoint at least two Justices to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Gov. Crist, a Republican, has shown a tendency to be less doctrinaire than his predecessor, Jeb! Bush, which gives me a little bit of relief as I consider what a majority Crist-appointed court might look like. Certainly it can be no worse than the judicial Neanderthals whom Jeb! undoubtedly would have selected.

But the Supreme Court issue in Florida is a microcosm of what we face as a country if Huggy Bear becomes president. We cannot afford to have Huggy appointing justices whom he already has said would be in the mold of Justices John Roberts and Samuel Alito, seeking to roll back every civil liberty and personal freedom that exists in America. That, more than anything else, is why it is so vitally important to set aside the rancor of the intra-party squabbling among Democrats and unite behind the presidential nominee, whether it be Obama or Clinton. Either one will appoint justices who will preserve the Constitution, unlike Huggy's Heroes Roberts, Alito, and Scalia.

Florida likely will survive, if not thrive, after Gov. Crist makes his high court choices. Sadly and crucially, the same cannot be said if Crist's pal Huggy Bear wins the White House.