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| Lawyers in Arizona Preparing Paperwork to Free Sex Offenders From Hospital |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 01/28/2002 |
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Lawyers representing convicted sex offenders prepared paperwork Thursday in hopes of having their clients released from the Arizona State Hospital in the wake of this week's U.S. Supreme Court decision. The high court ruled Tuesday that rapists, child molesters and other sex criminals must be treated the same as other people singled out for involuntary commitment, and states must prove convicted sex offenders can't control themselves if they are to be kept confined after their prison terms expire. Even though the court did not ban such commitments, the ruling was a defeat for states that use them to extend the time offenders are locked away because of concerns about repeat offenders. It sent some Phoenix attorneys scrambling to file motions in attempts to get 75 people released from the state hospital because they were committed using the existing standard. 'I'm doing the paperwork right now,' said Jamie McAlister, who represents three of the committed. 'The opinion has ruled our law unconstitutional, so it's null and void.' The court decision also left in limbo 74 other people awaiting hearings to see if they will be committed. Kristi Riggins, another Phoenix lawyer, also was working Thursday to file motions to possibly get several of her clients released. Randall Howe, chief of the criminal appeals section in state Attorney General Janet Napolitano's office, said the court ruling should not pose insurmountable challenges because some degree of impairment already is required for commitment under Arizona's law. 'We stand true to our position that our statute is constitutional,' Howe said. 'We're going to argue that the people who were committed should remain there. We're confident in our argument.' Meanwhile, McAlister was confident her motions would be successful, saying Arizona's law is legally deficient and may have to be rewritten. Howe said he doubts any of the committed sex offenders will be released but 'you can't predict what the court will do' and an appeal could tie up any case for months. More than 1,200 sex offenders are confined in Arizona and 18 other states with laws resembling the 1994 Kansas statute that was challenged and brought before the Supreme Court. |
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