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Blog
Announcing New Policy Platform to Strengthen Sex Offender Laws
Submitted by Chris Kelly on 4 May 2010 - 5:25pm
Strengthening Sex Offender Registration Laws, Requiring All Contractors to Conduct Employee Background Checks and Improving Coordination and Management of Sex Offender Registry among Top Priorities
Today our campaign released a new policy platform to strengthen California's sex offender laws. I hope you'll read the release below for more details or download the full policy paper here: http://www.kelly2010.com/sexoffenders
-- Chris
ATTORNEY GENERAL CANDIDATE CHRIS KELLY ANNOUNCES POLICY PLATFORM TO STRENGTHEN SEX OFFENDER LAWS
Strengthening Sex Offender Registration Laws, Requiring All Contractors to Conduct Employee Background Checks and Improving Coordination and Management of Sex Offender Registry among Top Priorities
Palo Alto, CA -- Today, Democratic Attorney General candidate Chris Kelly released a policy platform: "Strengthening Sex Offender Laws & Management," to create safer communities for children and their parents by strengthening California's sex offenders law and organizational structure. The plan will strengthen California's sex offenders registry by requiring sex offenders to hand over their email and online identities and aliases and supporting Chelsea's Law; altering Contractors State Licensing Board qualifications; barring sex offenders from working in home construction; and working with the California Sex Offender Management Board to streamline the management of sex offenders in California.
"With my background as a policy advisor to President Bill Clinton, my experience working with Attorneys General from around the country, and my record of keeping the internet safe from sexual predators while chief counsel of Facebook, I will be ready on day-one to strengthen sex offender laws and management through tough, innovative approaches. I will work to prevent sex offenders from committing criminal acts through smart, effective policies that address the roots of criminal activity and help keep our communities safe," said Kelly.
An attorney and businessman, Kelly brings the right mix of experience in public policy, technology and law to fight traditional crime and combat new crimes of today -- like identity theft and online sexual predators. After graduating from Harvard Law School, Kelly worked for a federal judge assisting on a wide range of criminal and civil cases, including drug smuggling and money laundering. Kelly then came home to work for a Palo Alto law firm, representing innovators and entrepreneurs, including Netscape in the Microsoft anti-trust case.
In the 1990's, he served as a domestic policy advisor to President Clinton. During his time at the White House, Kelly helped to advance the landmark plan that put 100,000 new community police officers on America's streets. As chief legal counsel at Facebook, Kelly led efforts to protect the safety and security of the online community.
As Attorney General, Kelly will create safer communities by:
Strengthening California Sex Offenders Registration Law To Include All Online Identities & Aliases. According to the California Sex Offender Management Board, California, as the most populous state, has one of the largest populations of sex offenders in the nation. Over the last fifteen years, the Internet has become a place where many Californians connect with families, friends, obtain news and information, but it has also become a place where sex offenders prey. As the former Chief Privacy Officer at Facebook, I advocated measures to help protect Californians online and to restrict access for sex offenders to social networking sites.
In 2008, I worked with the Attorney General of the state of New York to pass a tough law to protect children online-the Electronic Security and Targeting of Online Predators Act (e-STOP) eliminated 3,500 sex offenders from MySpace and Facebook. The law requires sex offenders to register their online aliases and email addresses with the state law enforcement officials. E-STOP was used as a model for the Federal KIDS Act, but the requirement to collect electronic identifiers has not yet been implemented by most states, including California. California should implement an e-STOP program to not only ban sex offenders from social networking sites, but to also require sex offenders to hand over their email addresses and all online aliases. As Attorney General I will push the Legislature to adopt an e-STOP program to put the strongest protections in place to ensure that our children are safe from online sexual predators.
Requiring All California Contractors To Conduct Employee Background Checks. In 2006, the California state legislature passed a bill that states that convicted child sex offenders cannot work in a setting alone where there are children. This was a good first step to keep predators out of schools and child care and other areas working with children. However, we must ensure sex offenders stay away from our children and out of our homes. To do so, the state of California should require that all contractors conduct employee background checks as is permissible under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. The Fair Credit Reporting Act allows employers to conduct background checks via consumer reporting agencies that pull together and report all records that are publicly available. As Attorney General, I will push for new background check requirements for contractors to prevent convicted sex offenders from working inside the home and near children.
Reforming Contractors State Licensing Board Qualifications. The California State Licensing Board Qualifications needs to institute procedural regulations that prevent any convicted sex offender from obtaining a legal contractor's license that can be used for in-home construction. Contractors in the state of California have to register with the Contractors State Licensing Board to legally do any construction business that is worth more than $500 in labor and materials. Contractors not only have to get licensed, but they need at least four years of experience/education, to be bonded and undergo a FBI background check. Contractors are used for a variety of different purposes from home remodels to large-scale construction projects. To ensure that construction work happens in a safe, competent and professional manner and to further protect the families of California, we need to reform the Contractors State Licensing Board background check qualifications to bar convicted sex offenders from obtaining a contractor's license. Presently, the Contractors State Licensing Board background check allows people convicted to explain and show that they have been rehabilitated and are able to work in construction. Each background check is analyzed on a case by case basis. As demonstrated by the case of registered sex offender, John Albert Gardner, the man who recently pleaded guilty to killing and raping Chelsea King and Amber Dubois, parents cannot rely on the uncertainty of whether a particular sex offender has been rehabilitated. To ensure the protection of our children, we need to explicitly bar sex offenders from any chance of working in a home or near children. As Attorney General, I will push for reforming the Contractors State Licensing Board to explicitly ban anyone that is a convicted sex offender from getting a contractor's license that can be used for in-home construction.
Supporting Chelsea's Law & Delivering Aggressive Enforcement Once Passed. On February 25, 2010, teenager Chelsea King vanished while on a run in Rancho Bernardo Community Park. Chelsea's body was found less than a week later in a shallow grave. John Albert Gardner, III, a registered and convicted sex offender was charged with murdering Chelsea while violating conditions of his parole. We need to strengthen California's sex offender laws so that situations like this never happen again. I am proud to support Chelsea's Law-it is a much-needed step in the right direction. Chelsea's Law will increase penalties for sex offenders, including: for first-time offenses against children under 18, increasing sentences from 15 years to 25 years in prison; life sentences for those who commit forcible sex crimes against those younger than 18 when there are aggravating circumstances such as torture and kidnapping; increasing parole from 5 years to 10 years; and those that are convicted of crimes against children younger than 14 would get lifetime parole with electronic monitoring. Once Chelsea's Law passes, as Attorney General, I will aggressively enforce and prosecute under this new law.
Improving Coordination of Sex Offenders Registry and Management of Sex Offenders. The California Sex Offender Management Board (CASOMB) was established to identify problems with California's current community management of sex offenders and recommend ways to help solve those problems. One of the primary findings by CASOMB was that California's sex offender laws overlap, creating a fragmented and difficult system to navigate when enforcing sex offender laws and registration. One of the recommendations by CASOMB to more successfully manage sex offenders is for California to better coordinate the monitoring of high- and moderate-risk sex offenders to ensure that they are actually registered, that resources are being directed at high-risk offenders, and that violators are being actively pursued by law enforcement. As Attorney General, I will push for improving the coordination of the sex offender registry to ensure that high- and moderate-risk offenders are being registered and properly monitored.
Clarifying California's Sex Offender Residency Restrictions. The California Sex Offender Management Board called California's sex offender residency restrictions a "central crisis" and the most serious issue of sex offender management. The problem lies in a complex and overlapping set of laws stipulating where sex offenders can and cannot live, making it difficult to ascertain where sex offenders can live without violating local zoning ordinances. The Justice Research and Policy Association published findings that some zoning laws have pushed sex offenders from urban areas to more rural ones, where they have less access to treatment and become more transient. As a result, if sex offenders cannot find appropriate housing, the likelihood of homelessness and convicted sex offenders taking shelter in public places such as street alleys, highway underpasses or even local school yards increases significantly. This creates new public safety concerns for law enforcement officials and communities. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, there are roughly 2300 homeless sex offenders in California, which is a public safety risk. As Attorney General, I will work closely with local officials, law enforcement and the Legislature to monitor the effectiveness and success of local and state ordinances and zoning laws that prevent convicted sex offenders from living, working or loitering near places where children frequent.
The full plan is available for download at http://kelly2010.com/sexoffenders.
Horribly wrong in Arizona
Submitted by Chris Kelly on 28 April 2010 - 10:49pm
The law the Arizona legislature just passed putting towns and cities under the gun to enforce federal immigration laws is dangerous, vindictive, and wrong.
As a candidate for California attorney general, believe me, I've given a lot of thought to what laws mean in the lives of real people.
This new law mandating the questioning of anyone who so much as looks like an immigrant could mean an incredible intrusion into the life of virtually anyone -- although in practice, it's clearly a stealth assault on Latino Arizonans.
When racism rears its ugly head like this, the most dangerous thing we can do is stay quiet.
This law is bound to increase racial profiling and discrimination in Arizona.
Having worked for a federal judge in San Diego earlier in my career, I'm very familiar with immigration law. Clearly, America needs comprehensive immigration reform - but Arizona's solution is absolutely the wrong approach.
As your next attorney general, I would fight to protect the civil liberties of all Californians, standing strongly against any attempt to repeat Prop 187, the discriminatory California initiative from 1994 that prefigured this Arizona law.
Members of the legal community are swinging into action to see how they can challenge -- and hopefully strike -- the law on constitutional grounds or based on conflicts with federal statutes. I fully support those efforts.
But it's the patriotic duty of every American to stand up, get involved, and speak out on behalf of the freedoms this country was founded to protect.
Discrimination, in any form, at any time, is just plain wrong.
Thank you for your support, and thank you for doing what's right.
My statement about Facebook & privacy
Submitted by Chris Kelly on 28 April 2010 - 1:16pm
I strongly encourage Facebook to structure all its programs to allow Facebook users to give permission before their information is shared with third parties.
I'm proud of the work I did at Facebook to make the Internet safer and more secure. Because of Facebook and my work there, the Internet is a safer and more secure place today than when I joined the company.
Facebook's recent changes to its privacy policy and practices with regard to data sharing occurred after I left the company. My principle for evaluating these changes in the law enforcement role of Attorney General will be based on the same views of consumer protection that I upheld when I represented Facebook -- do they meet the requirements of consumer protection law by giving users meaningful control over their personal information?
When I am Attorney General, Facebook, like every company, will have to comply with its obligations to adhere to the law, provide truthful information to consumers and to keep its promises about their privacy rights. As Attorney General, I will represent the citizens of the state of California to protect consumers from fraud and other corporate malfeasance. Any company that breaks the law, including Facebook, will face the full extent of the state's prosecutorial powers.
Let me hear it
Submitted by Chris Kelly on 15 April 2010 - 4:55pm
Share your ideas and priorities for California's next Attorney General
Over the past few months, I've developed a series of detailed policy proposals that will serve as my "roadmap" as California's next Attorney General -- plans to prevent crime, protect consumers, support law enforcement, crack down on online predators, and bring technology innovation to fighting crime.
But I know that good ideas for fixing California come from everywhere -- and it's going to take all of us, working together, to tackle the challenges that are facing our state.
So today I want to hear from you and the entire Kelly2010.com online community: What do you want to see from California's next Attorney General?
Click here to share your ideas and your priorities with me today!
If there's one thing that I've learned from my experience in law, public service, and technology, it's that I don't have a monopoly on good ideas. None of us do.
So while I'm proud of our campaign's efforts to develop cutting-edge proposals for reducing crime and keeping Californians safe, I know there are lots of other good ideas out there too.
That's why we've created a new online forum for you to share your own ideas, vote on ideas offered by other members of the Kelly2010.com community, and create a dialog about the future of our state and the office of Attorney General.
It's easy to participate and make your voice heard.
So let's hear it: What are your priorities for our next Attorney General?
Click here to join the online conversation at ideas.kelly2010.com now!
You know that saying, "two heads are better than one"?
Well, thanks to technology, we can put hundreds or thousands of our heads together, online, to come up with new ideas to move California forward.
I'm really looking forward to hearing from you.
I hope you'll share your ideas and join the online dialog right now.
Kamala Harris' Personal Attacks Can't Mask Her Record
Submitted by Robin Swanson on 13 April 2010 - 1:49pm
Watch the video about Kamala Harris' record as SF District Attorney -- and you decide.
More than six weeks after the Department of Justice released disturbing statistics about the increase in San Francisco's crime rates during SF DA Kamala Harris' tenure as District Attorney, Harris continues to run scared from her record. With Friday's release of a video comprised of TV news footage showing local outrage at Harris' revolving door system of justice, her failure to pursue the death penalty against a hardened cop-killer, and her dropping of prosecutions related to the San Francisco crime lab scandal, Harris still has provided no answers to the people of San Francisco or to California voters.
In the video, one police officer expresses his anger and disappointment about Kamala Harris' refusal to seek the death penalty against a convicted cop killer:
"The people of San Francisco should be outraged by this. These...criminals know in San Francisco if you want to commit a crime, you come here, you do it, you plead it down. The next thing you know you do three months when you should be doing 12 years in state prison for it."
Those aren't our words. They are the words of a San Francisco police officer on the evening news.
Instead of responding to these damaging news reports, Harris' campaign has again resorted to personally attacking Attorney General candidate Chris Kelly and manipulating statistics to hide her abysmal record on crime.
Harris fails to acknowledge that the video itself is a compilation of actual news reports from Bay Area television stations, including responses from law enforcement and regular citizens about the rising crime rates in San Francisco. And their effect is devastating.
Watch this short web video of recent news media reports about Kamala Harris' job performance as District Attorney.
Harris can't dispute and in fact hasn't disputed the numbers from the DOJ, which show that violent crime and homicides have indisputably and tragically increased in San Francisco during her tenure, while crime fell statewide.
Instead she relies on faulty data comparisons to try and paint her record as something other than what it is. In March, when they were first confronted with these statistics, the Harris campaign tried to obfuscate the truth by quoting statistics from a six month period in 2009 and compared them to statistics from 6 months in 2008. The problem is that Kamala Harris hasn't been D.A. for 6 months. She's been D.A. for 6 years.
This time the campaign is choosing to compare San Francisco's crime rates to individual cities, ignoring the methodology of the California Department of Justice, the very department she says she wants to lead as Attorney General, in order to make her numbers look better. This is a distortion of the facts, plain and simple.
Here is what the DOJ statistics show. In the period of time that Kamala Harris has been District Attorney in San Francisco:
- The homicide rate in San Francisco County in 2003 was 8.8 per 100,000 population. The homicide rate in San Francisco County in 2008 was 11.6 per 100,000. That's a 32% increase.
- The violent crime rate in San Francisco County in 2003 was 732.5 per 100,000 population. The violent crime rate in San Francisco County in 2008 was 808.0 per 100,000. That's a 10% increase.
- The robbery rate in San Francisco County in 2003 was 392.3 per 100,000 population. The robbery rate in San Francisco County in 2008 was 493.7 per 100,000. That's a 26% increase.
Watch the video. Look at the DOJ stats. Those are the facts.
Another fact. Kamala Harris' track record proves that she is simply not up to the job.
No way, Meg
Submitted by Chris Kelly on 1 April 2010 - 8:08pm
The governor can't force the attorney general to deny the people of California their rights -- and as California's next Attorney General, I would never join a lawsuit to overturn this critical health care legislation.
When asked on Tuesday whether she would "force [her] attorney general to file suit" against the new health care law signed by President Obama, GOP gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman was clear:
"The answer to that is yes."
I'll tell you this: The governor can't force the attorney general to deny the people of California their rights -- and as California's next Attorney General, I would never join a lawsuit to overturn this critical health care legislation.
Are you with me?
Over the past 10 days, nearly 6,000 people have already signed my online petition, urging these right-wing attorneys general, led by Florida Republican AG Bill McCollum (who is running for governor), to drop this frivolous suit.
But now that Meg Whitman has joined their call, we've got to speak out even louder.
I hope you'll help.
California stands to gain tremendously from health care reform. Of the 32 million Americans who will get health coverage under the bill, as many as seven million of them will be Californians -- and everyone in our state will gain more security and stability in their health insurance coverage.
We can't let the purely partisan antics of Meg Whitman and these AGs to stop real progress for California and all Americans.
Thanks for standing with me.
Protecting Consumers
Submitted by Chris Kelly on 30 March 2010 - 2:50pm
Keeping California consumers safe is going to be a top priority for me, but it's going to take innovative new solutions to do it. The same old policies of the past just are not working.
As California's next Attorney General, I'm going to use my diverse experience in business, technology, and law to fight traditional crime and the new crimes of today.
Keeping California consumers safe is going to be a top priority for me, but it's going to take innovative new solutions to do it. The same old policies of the past just are not working.
So today I'm proud to roll out my new plan to protect California consumers as Attorney General -- and I hope you'll take a look.
With my background as a policy advisor to President Bill Clinton, my experience working with Attorneys General from around the country, my time serving as chief legal counsel at Facebook, and my experience establishing online safety rules for kids, I will be ready on day-one to use technology and new ideas to protect California consumers.
Here's my new four-point plan for protecting consumers:
- Combat mortgage fraud, prosecuting lenders and anyone else who tries to take advantage of California homebuyers
- Reduce identify theft and fight credit card fraud, prosecuting identity thieves and improving public awareness
- Protect our seniors from telemarketing fraud, nursing home abuse, and Medi-Cal fraud
- Reform predatory payday lending, working to cap interest rates and prosecute lenders who take unfair advantage of consumers
If you agree that these steps will help California consumers, I hope you'll stand with me.
I'm proud of my new consumer protection plan -- along with the plans I've previously announced to support law enforcement, improve crime prevention, and use new technology to fight crime.
Join me, and together, we can create a safer California.
Don't Sue President Obama
Submitted by Chris Kelly on 23 March 2010 - 11:29pm
Sign my petition to Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum and 12 other AGs today -- and urge them to drop their lawsuit against the historic health care reform bill
Today, we celebrate President Obama's signing of landmark health care reform legislation into law. Thanks to this historic bill, 32 million Americans will gain access to health insurance, health care will become more affordable, and no American will ever again be denied coverage when they get sick or because of pre-existing conditions.
But before the ink was even dry on President Obama's signature, the attorneys general of 13 states -- led by Florida Republican AG Bill McCollum, trying to score political points in his campaign for governor -- immediately filed a lawsuit to try to block the new law in the courts. One of my Republican opponents, Tom Harman, is even encouraging current California Attorney General Jerry Brown to join them.
This is the ultimate frivolous lawsuit, brought to you by the GOP -- the party of "NO" -- and we can't let them stand in the way of progress.
As California's next Attorney General, I will always fight to put the people's interests first, not the special interests or any narrow partisan political interest.
California stands to gain tremendously from health care reform. Of the 32 million Americans who will get health coverage under the bill, as many of 7 million of them will be Californians, and everyone in our state will gain more security and stability in their health insurance coverage.
That's why I will do everything in my power as California Attorney General to defeat efforts to repeal or overturn this critical health care legislation.
And we can start, today, by urging these Republican attorneys general to drop their frivolous lawsuit against the new health care bill.
Do you want the attorneys general from Florida, South Carolina, Nebraska, Texas, Utah, Alabama, Colorado, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Washington, Idaho, Louisiana, and South Dakota telling Californians that they can't have health care reform?
I don't.
The people of California want and deserve the benefits of health care reform.
LA's BEST
Submitted by Chris Kelly on 19 March 2010 - 6:41pm
On Thursday, I had an opportunity to visit with young students solving problems, sharing ideas and diligently working on a science project together with their teachers. The students were doing this during an after-school program, at Politi Elementary School, in the Pico Union neighborhood of Los Angeles. Politi Elementary is one of many elementary schools participating in LA’s BEST, an after school education, enrichment and recreation program serving more than 28,000 children in economically challenged neighborhoods of Los Angeles. I was fortunate to see first hand the positive impact this type of program has on young students during a program tour, led by LA’s BEST Executive Director Carla Sanger.
This tour highlighted the significance of engaging kids at an early age in academic, physical, and cultural activities that keep them off the streets and out of California’s criminal justice system. The LA’s BEST After School program at Politi Elementary School is a shining and innovative example of how young people can thrive in a constructive learning environment instead of turning to drugs, gang activity or other delinquent behaviors. To date, more than 212,000 children have gone through LA's BEST and many are now lawyers, police officers, educators, artists and small business owners.
Though they also haven’t been spared from the state’s budget cuts, after-school programs keep children occupied during the hours when violent juvenile crime is most likely to occur. Recent statewide and local evaluations of California’s after-school programs found consistently positive results for students enrolled in these programs, including improved student achievement, increased school attendance and improved personal behavior. In fact, studies show that kids in LA’s BEST are 30 % less likely to commit juvenile crime and 20% less likely to drop out of school. With public school funding being decimated statewide and many after-school programs being cut, I believe it is essential to preserve and expand programs like LA’s BEST, in order to keep kids safe, engaged and off the streets.
As Attorney General, expanding educational and after-school programs for young people is a major component of my crime prevention plan. I will work to increase educational and economic opportunities for all Californians, reduce gang activity, strengthen effective rehabilitation programs, and improve community-police relations. By implementing these crime prevention initiatives, we can make California a safer and stronger place for our families and kids. When our children are actively engaged in school—through effective teachers, supportive administrations and afterschool programs—they do not turn to gangs and crime as a means to find a supportive community.
I will also work alongside educators and organizations like LA’s BEST to help young people create a path to success. I will work to improve educational opportunities and expand after-school programs that result in greater productivity and reduced crime in our communities. I will also work to prevent crime through smart, effective policies that address the roots of criminal activity and help keep our communities safe. As the next Attorney General, I will bring an innovative and results-oriented approach to fighting crime and protecting the citizens of California.
My Commitment
Submitted by Chris Kelly on 18 March 2010 - 5:48pm
Today I'm announcing that I have contributed an additional $2 million to my campaign.
I'm committed to running a substantial and competitive campaign for California Attorney General, a campaign that can reach out to millions of voters and share my innovative ideas to fight crime, protect consumers, and keep our families safe. So today I'm announcing that I have contributed an additional $2 million to my campaign.
I'm not an "establishment" candidate, I'm not going to be beholden to special interests, and I'm not afraid to spend my own money to change the direction of California. But I can't do this alone -- and I'm so humbled that you and thousands of other friends and supporters are standing with me. Working together, I know we can bring new thinking and new leadership to tackle some of our state's most challenging problems.
I think the voters of California are ready for new ideas, and I'm ready to communicate to them a message about why I'm the candidate with the right experience and priorities to be California's next Attorney General. As an attorney and businessman, I believe that I bring the right mix of experience in public policy, technology and law to fight traditional crime and combat the new crimes of today – like identity theft and online sexual predators.
That's why we've already released three substantive policy papers on crime prevention, supporting law enforcement, and my "Innovation First" plan to use technological advances to fight crime -- and we'll be rolling out more plans in the weeks ahead. But it's going to take all of us, working together, to get our state back on track.
Our campaign for California Attorney General continues to move full steam ahead. Thank you so much for your continued support!
