Yes, it's that time of year when I received my birthday letter from the Commonwealth saying I have to renew my sex offender registry information at the police station (or else...). If you don't know what it's like, you have to sign and submit a form stating your personal information, where you work/live, cars/boats you operate, etc... and visit the local police station to get photographed and fingerprinted (if you are a Level 2 or 3 in MA).
Having to go into the police station to essentially get booked every year is not a big deal if you think about it, but it's just a drag. Photos and fingerprints just like the first time except now I get to leave the station! Every year, none of the cops seem gung-ho about processing me and I always get the feeling they would rather be doing something else. Same here.
This is not a blog on how to beat the system, get a bottom bunk in prison, or get what you want from your probation officer. My goal is to be a guide and clarify what it means to be a labeled an ex-con, sex offender, probationer, and how you can and should engage life, plan for the future, and work with many of the restrictions placed on you. I believe you can use my experience to give you and your family a better life than what others feel you deserve or what you may unwittingly deny yourself.
Though this blog is was originally intended as a resource for offenders in Massachusetts, much of what I write about is applicable to sex offenders in every other state and many countries around the world, especially in Western Europe. Even other non-sex offenders trying to navigate prison, probation and parole, or employment and education opportunities can glean relevant information from this blog and apply it to help overcome their own struggles.