Supreme Court: Sex Offenders Can Be Held Indefinitely

The United State Supreme Court ruled on Monday that the federal government has the right and power to keep sex offenders incarcerated, even after they've served their sentences. To keep the offender incarcerated, the government must prove that the the he or she may be "sexually dangerous" in the future.

"The federal government, as custodian of its prisoners, has the constitutional power to act in order to protect nearby (and other) communities from the danger such prisoners may pose," Justice Stephen Breyer wrote in the opinion for the majority.In the case the Supreme Court ruled on, primary plantiff Graydon Comstock was certified to be dangerous six days before his prison term was set to end. Comstock had been arrested for processing child pornography and was filing suit with other inmates at the Butner Federal Correctional Complex in North Carolina.

Corrections officials determined that the men in the case remained a risk for future sexually deviant behavior if they are to be freed, while the attorneys for the inmates argued that their constitutional rights to due process was being violated by continued incarceration. They also argued that Congress was overstepping its boundaries by interfering in a matter that would normally be settled by state courts.

The 2006 Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act includes a provision allowing for indefinite confinement of sex offenders. A federal appeals court had originally argued that the lawmakers in Richmond, Va., overstepped their authority by passing the law.

"The statute is a 'necessary and proper' means of exercising the federal authority that permits Congress to create federal criminal laws, to punish their violation, to imprison violators, to provide appropriately for those imprisoned and to maintain the security of those who are not imprisoned but who may be affected by the federal imprisonment of others," Breyer wrote.

This decision has implications in the case of Nushawn Williams, a man who has remained incarcerated past his sentence because he knowingly spread HIV to women without their knowledge. Some might argue that keeping the community safe is incredibly important and this point must be understood. We must also ensure that as we protect our children and other American citizens, we do not end up trampling all over the constitution in the process. In this case, however, it appears that some modification of the law is certainly called for.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and the author of the new book, "Black American Money." To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.