Sex offense lawyer sues over new passport restrictions

LOS ANGELES — A veteran defender of sex offenders is taking the U.S. State Department to task for illegally implementing restrictive passport rules.

A lawsuit filed in Los Angeles federal court on Thursday accused Secretary of State Rex Tillerson of improperly introducing two legislative regulations governing how passports are marked for registered sex offenders. Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws Inc. et al. v. Department of State et al., CV18-00256 (C.D. Cal., filed Jan. 11, 2018).

The suit was filed by attorney Janice Bellucci on behalf of the Alliance for Constitutional Sex Offense Laws Inc., a California organization that lobbies to restore the civil rights of registered sex offenders.

According to the complaint, the State Department was required to create a “unique identifier” for U.S. passports to identify sex offenders, pursuant to the 2015 International Megan’s Law.

After months of delays, the department issued rules in September 2016 and October 2016 that defined the unique identifier and banned registrants from receiving passport cards, according to the complaint.

Passport cards grant limited travel privileges to Mexico, Canada, Bermuda, and the Caribbean, but they can also serve as a valid form of government ID in the U.S.

In a departure from normal procedures, the State Department announced its final rules without general notice or a period of public comment, which Bellucci said violated the Administrative Procedures Act.

In its new release, the State Department invoked the “good cause” exemption to justify bypassing the notice and comment procedures required by the APA. Bellucci said a careful reading of the department’s statement reveals nothing that warrants an exemption.

“When you look underneath the label it doesn’t add up,” Bellucci said, noting that her client has asked the court to declare the State Department’s new rules unlawful and enjoin officials from enforcing them.

“They need to comply with the APA, which means they would have to go back to issuing a proposed role, obtaining public comment, and then issuing a final rule,” she said.

A spokesperson said the State Department does not comment on pending litigation.

Bellucci, a longtime crusader for the civil rights of sex offenders, noted that a court victory still wouldn’t negate the branding of passports mandated by International Megan’s Law, which she identified in the complaint as an unprecedented vehicle for stigmatizing registrants.

Bellucci has had more immediate success pursuing a series of federal lawsuits in California targeting cities and municipalities enforcing illegal residency restrictions against registered sex offenders.

These local rules were passed in the wake of Jessica’s Law, a California proposition approved by voters in 2006 that gave local governments the authority to restrict where registered offenders lived. A state Supreme Court decision in March 2015 struck down the bulk of these residency restrictions, but Bellucci said local governments have continued to restrict where registrants can live even when they’re no longer on parole.

Earlier this week Bellucci filed a lawsuit against the City of Hawaiian Gardens for allegedly violating the 14th Amendment rights of her client, who was prevented from living within 20 miles of the city by local ordinances. John Doe v. City of Hawaiian Gardens et al., CV18-00203 (C.D. Cal., filed Jan 9, 2018).

Most cities have settled with Bellucci’s clients and repealed their laws. But she noted that a handful of cities, including Maywood and San Diego, are putting up a fight.

“We’re going to be doing hand-to-hand combat with these cities,” Bellucci said.