Sex offender registry the focus of new ACLU of Michigan lawsuit

LANSING, Mich. (WILX) - The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Michigan is suing the state over the latest version of the sex offender registry.

An ACLU attorney says too many people are being “tarred as a sex offender for life” with no opportunity get off the list.

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The plaintiffs include a man who was never convicted of a sex offense. He was accused of forcing a McDonald’s manager and a teen into the restaurant during a robbery. He is now required to register as a sex offender.

“Michigan’s registry is one of the largest in the country, and current estimates indicate that it includes more than 44,000 people,” ACLU officials wrote on their website. “The registry costs taxpayers between $1.2 and $1.5 million each year to maintain with no demonstrable public safety benefit.”

The courts have not yet decided whether the law is constitutional.

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