Controversial cases involving sex offenses

Controversial cases involving sex offenses have sparked public debate concerning the appropriateness of certain sex offender laws and their applications. These controversies have sometimes involved sex offender registries, associational restrictions prohibiting those convicted of certain sex offenses from seeing their families or associating with minors, and residency restrictions banning them from living near schools. Sometimes they have involved minors who engaged in sexting with other minors. Prosecutors typically argue that the restrictions are necessary in order to protect the rights of the public, especially vulnerable children.
Cases
Matthew Freeman
Matthew Freeman was convicted of having sex with a high school girlfriend who was one year below the legal age of consent. He has been accused of living 326 feet from a school, in violation of the court order requiring him to live no closer than 1,000 feet from a school. Freeman commented that he had no criminal intentions with reference to the school: "I’m outside sweating hard, playing basketball, working on my drills. I ain’t looking at no kids."
Frank Rodriguez
Frank Rodriguez (born April 20, 1977) is a registered sex offender who pleaded guilty to sexual assault of a child for having sex with a 15-year-old, Nikki Prescott, in violation of the age of consent, which was age 17 in Texas. Rodriguez was 19 at the time. Nikki later became his wife and had four daughters with him. Nikki's mother knew of the relationship and had taken her daughter to Planned Parenthood to purchase birth control pills, but after an argument with her daughter, reported Rodriguez to the police. She later attempted to drop the charges, but was not allowed to do so. He claims that as a result of his sex offender designation, he experienced many career difficulties and was restricted in his interactions with his wife and children. Rodriguez' case was publicized in the news as an alleged example of misapplication of laws intended to protect children. Ms. Rodriguez has said, "I think we've suffered long enough" and stated that although she supports sex offender registries, she believes he should be removed from the registry. Rodriguez has said that he intends to petition the state to be removed from the registry.

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