FDLE Responds to FAC’s Request for Clarification
The FDLE has responded to our inquiry from May as to (a) what happens in emergency situations or when a registration office is not open, and (b) what is the definition of the term ‘day’, as it relates to the revision in the statute that requires IN PERSON notification of a change in permanent, temporary or transient residence.
The response, in its entirety, is copied and pasted in its entirety below:
From: Sexual Predator Unit <SexPredator@fdle.state.fl.us>
Date: July 12, 2018 at 2:17:54 PM EDT
To: ‘Gail Colletta’ <gail@floridaactioncommittee.org>
Subject: RE: Letter To FDLE re July 1 requirements 05252018.pdfDear Ms. Colletta,
FDLE does not have the authority to compel any law enforcement or government agency regarding their hours of operation. However, like FDLE, such entities are compelled by the order of Florida Statutes and law to fulfill the requirements of the law.
A reading of the plain language of the s.943.0435 and s. 775.21 does not provide specific exemptions to the registration requirements contained within the statutory language. In response to your inquiry regarding hypothetical events, FDLE is not able to provide legal advice. However, in the event of natural disasters and other unforeseen emergencies, registrants may contact the local sheriff’s office to give notice of the situation, request guidance, and/or inform of their travel, evacuation, location plans. If a registrant is unable to establish communication with their local sheriff’s office they may contact the FDLE registry 24-7 for assistance in making contact and/or noting their emergency situation and intended location/travel status etc.
In response to your last inquiry regarding the word “days”, although the statutes contain no definition of the term “day”, in those instances where the Legislature has used words of common usage, such words should be construed in their plain and ordinary sense. Additionally, the statute defines “permanent residence”, “temporary residence” and “transient residence” as follows:
“Permanent residence” means a place where the person abides, lodges, or resides for 3 or more consecutive days.
“Temporary residence” means a place where the person abides, lodges, or resides, including, but not limited to, vacation, business, or personal travel destinations in or out of this state, for a period of 3 or more days in the aggregate during any calendar year and which is not the person’s permanent address or, for a person whose permanent residence is not in this state, a place where the person is employed, practices a vocation, or is enrolled as a student for any period of time in this state.
“Transient residence” means a county where a person lives, remains, or is located for a period of 3 or more days in the aggregate during a calendar year and which is not the person’s permanent or temporary address. The term includes, but is not limited to, a place where the person sleeps or seeks shelter and a location that has no specific street address.
Registrants are encouraged to discuss any questions with an attorney or legal representation.
Sincerely,
Missing Persons & Offender Registration Florida Department of Law Enforcement
sexpred@fdle.state.fl.us 1-888-357-7332
850-410-8599 (fax)
PO Box 1489 Tallahassee, FL 32302-1489
PLEASE NOTE: Florida has a very broad public records law. Most written communications to or from state officials regarding state business are considered to be public records and will be made available to the public and the media upon request. Your e-mail messages may, therefore, be subject to public disclosure.
So the guidance from the FDLE is:
(a) in the event of an emergency, call your county Sheriff’s office – if you can’t reach them, call the FDLE, which is open 24/7.
(b) The common definition of “day”, according to Webster‘s dictionary is “the mean solar day of 24 hours beginning at midnight”
While the guidance is not completely clarifying as to what “day” is considered and they qualify it by suggesting we discuss it with our attorney or legal representative. Based on what they write, and a “day comprising of a 24 hour period beginning at midnight”, a period of less than 24 hours (ie: you arrive on Friday at 6AM or you depart on Sunday at 11PM) would suggest you have not been at the “residence” for that “day” if you were not there for the full 24 hours comprising that day.
As a side note: if you call the sheriff’s office or FDLE because you cannot report IN PERSON in the event of an emergency, make sure you keep a log of your call through your telephone carrier to cover your butt.
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I get how they define permanent and temporary residence but, I don’t know if anyone’s noticed, transient is defining residence as the county, and NOT as a place-of-stay, like the previous two, almost as if it applies only to those who are homeless or on the street. Moreover, how do you even report a county as ur residence as it doesn’t seem FDLE even accepts it, or even has a line available for doing so. Of course, this could be good cuz it would moot the line. Doesn’t this theoretically mean that if an SO had 182 residences he stayed at for max 2 days each in the year, he/she really has no residence at all, even under all 3 definitions? That was the huge legal quandary I found of them using the word county to actually define residence, but I want to see if FAC comes up with the same. The issue is a separated stay in a single county of non-permanence. I might be blind but I find no line requiring that the county too be a reported residence even when the individual stays don’t qualify. Please do concur or correct me. thanks
I’m VERY Confused, My Conviction was in 1997, In the State of Ill. Sentence was 3 Years Probation 10 Years Registration, My mistake was moving to Florida in 2002 before my 10 Year Registration was up. While Living in Florida, I received a letter from the State of Ill. stating that I no longer have to register, and that they were sending a copy of the letter to FDLE, I then called FDLE, they told me they don’t care what letter State of Ill sent to them, and that they will keep me of the list for life, I asked so even if I move back to Ill, where I am NOT required to register anymore you will keep me on the List, they said YES! So I am seriously considering moving back to Chicago ILL. How can they do this?
Read about our “Out of State Challenge”
Where do I find that out of State Challenge?
No longer hypothetical.
My husband is still on papers and was in the hospital on Sept 20th for cardiac care. Yesterday he again is in the hospital, same area, with C-diff, open area with curtain(s), no number and will not be released until at least tomorrow evening.
Spoke to P/O about requirement to register IN PERSON at Sheriff and DMV when she came to visit today.
She has no idea…she will check with her supervisor. With strict liability and only 6 hours away from being 48, now what??
This is a good example of the lack of thought that goes into these rules that ‘unknowing’ bureaucrats make. A trip to the hospital is not by any common sense chain of thought a change in residence. No one in his/her right mind would conceive such a requirement.
Muriel, you have informed his PO so now it’s up to her. If you know her to be a fair-minded person, you and hubby should have nothing to worry about. I’m off probation, but was very fortunate to have three out of four decent POs, the last one being a total @ssh0le.
Luckily I only had him for four months. During that time, he searched my house three times (including the night before I was due to be released from probation, with three other POs) tried to force me to take another polygraph (even though I had completed “therapy”) and threatened to put me on electronic monitoring just before Christmas because he “felt” that it was an oversight that I wasn’t on it when I was first put on probation. I had to read him the Floriduh statute which governed my conditions at the time of my sentencing.
Hope it works out well for you and him and he has a full, speedy recovery.
His po is responsible for his change of address
Yet another reason why the lawsuit regarding removing people from the Florida registry website, etc. who are no longer in the state is so important. That way, may of us can get the hell out of here and never come back and not have this crap follow us around for the rest of our days!!!!!!!
It is a violation of your 5th Amendment Rights to have a law that requires you to notify the State of your whereabouts, and if you don’t believe me, remember that you have the right not to incriminate yourself (pleading the 5th?). Of course the lawyers at the FDLE want people to seek out an attorney if they have questions because that’s job security for their buddies. This state needs a democrat governor and to vote out republicans in the state legislature if things are ever going to change. We are one country, and all but a few states do not prevent felons from ever voting, or have a life long SO registration, or private prisons, like Florida does. How many Florida state legislators own stock in a private prison associated company?
I have been a Republican all my life, but I must agree with you. Republican leadership has developed too high an opinion of itself.
I grew up in a family of republicans and have never been partisan before, but Governor Scott and his republican buddies have made a mockery out of “civil rights” within the State of Florida due to voter suppression. I am amazed when people get up in arms because the administration treats immigrants so poorly, but sex offenders are treated like scum bags and are American citizens that pay taxes – SO’s deal everyday with a true “witch hunt”. We never would have moved to Florida if we were informed beforehand that registered sex offenders are not allowed to vote, travel freely, or have a right to privacy, as now our personal information is available on a public website for everyone to view. I actually was hired for a management job, but after filling out information with my address to the employer, she looked online later that night and changed her mind about hiring me, the only reason given to me was that my husband is a RSO.
I moved to Florida from a nice home in Virginia Beach to help out my mother as my dad was in very poor health. He passed away a month after I arrived. I went ahead and built my retirement home here in Florida. My mother wanted to stay in her home. Right after I arrived in Florida I was greeted with a trip to the court house to be advised I was now a Florida ‘predator’ even though I was not one in Virginia were the offenses took place. By the way, the ‘victim’…she does not consider herself a victim…moved to Florida and lives within a few miles of me and we are in frequent contact…we get along just fine. I thought that was what the department of corrections wanted to happen in offense resolution. Not in Florida. I call it the department of collections as putting money in the Florida coffers seems to be the ultimate goal. I could move back to Virginia but I like it here and have made many new friends in the 15 years I have been here and have gotten involved in several interesting projects. Yes, his lordship Scott has been a hindrance into reintegration of ex-felons I believe because he feels he is so much better than anyone else. I’m not particularly a fan of Bill Nelson but if I could vote I would vote for him as I do not care for the character of Scott. After 29 years of military service I still cannot vote in Florida. Maybe if I fled to Mexico and came back into the country illegally I would be able to vote!
I would appreciate a little help. I am traveling to PA next month for a week. I have contacted the PA authorities re registration and was told that as long as my stay is less than ten days registration is not required. Anyone who knows for certain or differently I would like to know. That said, since I will be spending a week in a hotel I guess I’ll have two permanent addresses for the rest of the year!!
How crazy these requirements are. They are neither solving any problems or making anyone any safer…only creating problems. If it wasn’t for some of these outlandish policies many politicians would have no ‘accomplishments’ to claim. How sad! And they collect a tax payer funded paycheck.