Kansas appeals court strikes down “branding” requirement for sex offender

As detailed in this local news report, a “Kansas appeals court has ruled that a judge overstepped his authority when he ordered a man to put up signs announcing that he was a sex offender.” Here are a few more details:

Quoting from the title song of the 1960s TV series “Branded,” the three-judge panel ruled Friday in the case of Leroy Schad, a 73-year-old Hudson, Kan., man who was ordered to post the signs on his house and car as part of a plea bargain related to his taking baths with two children….

While the TV show was used as an illustrative example, the ruling itself hinged on precedents from Tennessee, Montana and Illinois. In those cases, the courts ruled that public humiliation would interfere with the rehabilitative purpose of probation and was impermissible….

In addition to overruling the sign conditions, the appellate judges also ordered Stafford County District Judge Ron L. Svaty to reconsider the five-year length of Schad’s probation and a prohibition on leaving his house to buy groceries.

The full, lengthy ruling can be accessed at this link.