NACDL recognizes that sex offenses cause great pain and suffering to victims and their families. However, society’s outrage and condemnation should not impair the need to make criminal justice policy decisions based upon facts, sound scientific research, and evidence.

NACDL opposes sex offender registration and community notification laws but also believes that if such laws are enacted they should classify offenders with full due process of law. Determination of offender risk must also allow for reasonable opportunities to seek relief from registration.

Brief of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers as Amicus Curiae in Support of Defendant–Appellee Thomas P. Thayer.

Argument: This appeal presents a straightforward legal question: Does the SORNA registration duty imposed on an “individual who was convicted of a sex offense,” U.S.C. § 20911(1), defined as “an offense against a minor that involves . . . [a]ny conduct that by its nature is a sex offense against a minor,” id. § 20911(7)(I), require a court to analyze the defendant’s predicate “offense” under the categorical approach to assess its “nature,” or should the court look to the particular facts underlying the defendant’s crime? Section 20911(7)(I) bears all the textual and structural signals requiring a categorical approach. And the government’s fact-specific approach raises significant constitutional and practical concerns. Because Thayer’s Minnesota conviction was for an offense sweeping more broadly than Section 20911(7)(I)’s definition of “sex offense,” Thayer had no duty to register, and the district court correctly dismissed the indictment.

The NACDL Task Force on Risk Assessment Tools commissioned Dr. Melissa Hamilton to produce a comprehensive analysis of how risk assessment tools are developed and applied. This report is a significant contribution to the body of scholarship and resources concerning risk assessment tools. It is an in-depth and accessible resource for practitioners, policymakers, advocates, and indeed all system actors in the nation’s criminal legal apparatus. It is designed to provide the information and guidance necessary to properly assess various risk assessment tools. [Released November 2020]

Table of Contents Included in Document 

Memorandum in Support of Habeas Petition in Child Sex Abuse Case

Open Records Request

Letter to Defense Expert

Application for Writ of Habeas Corpus 

Moiton for New Trial 

Motion for Issuance and Enforcement of Subpoena for Additional Medical Records 

Ruling on Motion for New Trial and Ruling by Georgia Court of Appeals

Argument: With proper investigation, preparation, and presentation by the defense in this case, there is absolutely overwhelming evidence that supports Mr. Nowill's total innocence. Mr. Nowill is presently seven years into the service of his sentence of thirty years in prison because, to date, no sitting judge or sitting jury had presented to them the complete evidence in this case for their consideration. Mr. Nowill is, in fact, innocent.

Mr. Nowill is the father of the alleged victim, Heather Nowill. On August 13, 2000, Heather, then aged 16, claimed that her father had been having a sexual relationship with her over the previous four years since she was 12 years old. She claimed this sexual relationship involved digital penetration of her vagina, mutual oral sex between she and her father, and full acts of sexual intercourse with complete and full penetration of her vagina by her father's penis occurring 3 to 4 times weekly for the duration of the 4 year period of time. Stunned when he first confronted with these allegations on the day of her outcry, and continuing for 2 years including his testimony before the jury in this case, Mr. Nowill denied any sexual contact with his daughter and consistently has maintained his innocence.

On the day of her alleged outcry Heather was required to undergo a medical examination at University Hospital. The complete report of this examination was not provided to trial counsel by the State. Trial counsel did not independently request of subpoena the medical records of the examination. The State did not call the doctors who performed the medical examination to testify in the trial. Also, despite the extensive and ongoing allegations of intercourse by Heather, trial counsel did not request or subpoena the medical records from her regular doctor throughout the period of time in question. With virtually nothing except the word of the alleged victim the case proceeded to trial. Even law enforcement personnel admitted there was absolutely no physical evidence to support the allegation.

At its upcoming meeting on August 12 – 13, 2019, The American Bar Association House of Delegates will consider a resolution concerning the definition of consent in sexual assault cases. NACDL opposes the proposed resolution. The resolution and report appear below, as does the NACDL position and a counter proposal, a letter from members of the American Law Institute, whose consideration of this matter is referenced in the ABA report, and a letter in support of the proposed resolution.

The goal of trying to put an end to child sex offenses is one on which everyone can agree. The best way to meet that goal, however, is debatable. Individuals that children know are responsible for 90% of sex crimes against them. Alix Deschamp discusses the origins of the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act and shows how the original legislation developed into not only a law enforcement tool but also a punitive measure.

Cases alleging child sex abuse often hinge on the forensic interview of the alleged victim, and thus the forensic interview should be the first place defense counsel looks. In this article, a forensic psychologist and a criminal defense lawyer discuss the forensic interview and how failure to follow best practices may encourage false allegations and elicit misinformation.

Comments to the U.S. Sentencing Commission regarding proposed amendments to the sentencing guidelines.

Comments to the U.S. Sentencing Commission on the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing ("CAN-SPAM") Act of 2003.

Comments to the Department of Justice regarding implementation of provisions of the Adam Walsh Act to affect individuals with past sexual offense convictions.

Comments to the Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs SMART Office regarding sex offender registration and community notification.

Coalition letter to Congressional leadership regarding the penalties imposed on Internet Service Providers for the actions of its users, as proposed in Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act of 2017 (H.R. 1865) and Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act of 2017 (S. 1693).

Report of the Sex Offender Policy Task Force reflecting NACDL's policy on sex offender registries and other practices as adopted by the Board of Directors.

Report of the Sex Offender Policy Task Force reflecting NACDL's policy on sex offender registries and other practices as adopted by the Board of Directors.

The first installment of NACDL Engage & Exchange, Autism Spectrum Disorder (Including "Asperger's Syndrome") and Child Pornography Cases: What You Need to Know. Featuring Mark Satawa of Satawa Law, PLLC, and Mark Mahoney of Harrington and Mahoney.