One person was arrested and others were given trespass warnings during the recent police operation at a shopping center in the 2400 block of North Federal Highway.

But while the parking lot is now cleared, the underlying problem remains.

Where are people subject to Florida’s strict sex offender residency restrictions supposed to go when they have nowhere else they can legally stay?

That question is at the center of a complicated conflict between local police and property owners and the state supervision system.

Local 10 first investigated the parking lot in June after discovering registered sex offenders and sexual predators who had been released from prison and were under supervision staying there. The location had been approved by the Florida Department of Corrections as a place where some of those individuals could stay when they had no other approved housing option.

Jeff Feldman, a former federal probation supervisory officer who now works as a consultant, has seen the problem from the supervision side. “It’s the norm for transient sex offenders,” Feldman said. “They have nowhere to live and we have nowhere to put them.” Feldman said the problem has been developing for decades.

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The post Sex offenders removed from Fort Lauderdale parking lot, but housing problem remains appeared first on Florida Action Committee (FAC).

After the original report aired, FAC reached out to Ft. Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis and the Local10 investigative reporter, Jeff Weinsier, who ran the story.

To his credit, Mayor Trantalis did take a meeting with representatives of FAC on August 10, 2026 in the Ft. Lauderdale City Hall. Jeff Weinsier committed to run a follow-up piece, which will air tonight.

If you are not in South Florida, you can watch online at https://www.local10.com by clicking the ‘Watch Live News’ button. Otherwise, FAC will post the story on our site tomorrow.

The post FAC to be featured on Local10 (South Florida) news this evening appeared first on Florida Action Committee (FAC).

Sex offender registries are publicly accessible, listing names, photos, and addresses. While sold as tools for public safety, they also function as ready-made directories for individuals seeking vulnerable targets. Women on the registry — already stigmatized, isolated, and often lacking support — are especially exposed. There are no safeguards, no warnings, and no meaningful protections built into a system that puts their personal information on display.

If a registry allows one offender to locate and target another, particularly women, then it is failing in its most basic duty: to prevent harm. Public safety cannot mean sacrificing the safety of a politically unpopular group. Until lawmakers confront the reality that registries can be weaponized, women on these lists will remain not just monitored, but endangered.

The post Female registrants on sex offender registry are hunted appeared first on Florida Action Committee (FAC).

Property owners face fines and a six-month jail sentence for violations.

About two dozen members of the public have spoken on the new law since it was first presented to the board last month — with those opposed to the ordinance pleading for at least more time to find new homes for some of the residents.

The board passed the law anyway.

SOURCE

The post CA: Fresno passes ordinance evicting registered sex offenders from group housing appeared first on Florida Action Committee (FAC).

The property has previously been targeted. In May, police were called after power cables were cut and a window and patio door were damaged. Later that month, another window was smashed.

This is a chilling reminder of the very real and very predictable consequences of publicly disclosing people’s home addresses. Not only to the registrants but to their families and neighbors. In this case, only a favorable wind direction prevented nearby homes from catching fire.

When governments choose to publish addresses, they are not merely “informing the public” — they are marking people and their families for harassment, intimidation, property destruction, and potentially deadly violence. These attacks are the foreseeable outcome of policies that dehumanize and single out a disfavored group and invite the public to act on fear, anger, and stigma. Time and again, we see the same pattern: registries lead to threats, assaults, arson, forced displacement, homelessness, and in some cases, murder. The targets are not only the person on the registry, but also their spouses, children, neighbors, and first responders who are put at risk when fires are set or mobs gather. No community is safer because a car is burned, a window is smashed, or a family is terrorized in their own home.

Public registries do not prevent crime. What they do is impose a lifetime of apprehension and fear — never knowing when someone will show up, when a window will be broken, when a job will be lost, or when violence will erupt. That constant state of fear is itself a form of punishment, imposed not by a court, but by policy.

FAC has long warned that public registration laws create conditions ripe for vigilantism. People who have completed their sentences should not be subjected to perpetual public shaming and danger. Their families and neighbors should not live in fear.

SOURCE

The post UK: Car torched outside registrant’s home appeared first on Florida Action Committee (FAC).

Clements Remand Brief

The post Clements’ brief filed today appeared first on Florida Action Committee (FAC).

lageson-sudduth-2025-digital-punishment-lateral-surveillance-the-sex-offense-registry

The post Study: Digital punishment, lateral surveillance & the sex offense registry appeared first on Florida Action Committee (FAC).

The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals concluded, “In short, we agree with the district court that the sign mandate compels speech and, thus, is unconstitutional unless it can survive strict scrutiny… there was no convincing evidence presented that [the signs] add anything to advance the goal of protecting children… there is insufficient evidence to support the State’s assertion that the sign mandate is the least restrictive means of achieving its goals [of protecting children]… Accordingly, the sign mandate burdens more speech than necessary and fails strict scrutiny”.

You can read the opinion here: 8th Circuit Halloween Sign Order

The post Huge win in 8th Circuit Halloween Sign Case appeared first on Florida Action Committee (FAC).

But here’s where the official narrative raises questions: deputies reportedly pulled over at the Silver Springs Substation to “adjust his restraints,” only to find the man unresponsive. They immediately began CPR, and fire personnel later continued life-saving efforts, but he was ultimately pronounced dead. If a person is not complaining, struggling, or acting distressed, why would officers feel the need to stop just to check his restraints? In most jurisdictions, once someone is secured for transport, officers drive directly to the detention facility unless there is an objective reason to stop—such as medical distress. The brief news account offers no explanation for why a restraint adjustment was considered necessary.

It also matters that the arrest was for failure to register, a “technical registry violation” that does not, in itself, involve a new sexual offense or harm to a victim. Police say the Carson City Sheriff’s Office and Nevada State Police will conduct a formal investigation under the Regional Critical Incident Investigation Protocol, but we at FAC are highly skeptical that will take place and of the circumstances.

SOURCE

The post Registered person dies on the way to jail after being arrested for an FTR appeared first on Florida Action Committee (FAC).

Net Nanny operations, as described by the Washington State Patrol’s Missing and Exploited Children Task Force, are Internet sting operations designed to catch adults attempting to solicit minors online. Between 2015 and 2023, these operations resulted in 311 arrests.

Supporters of the bill including prime sponsor Sen. Lisa Wellman and several advocacy groups are expected to argue that the current system imposes excessive penalties on first-time offenders, especially when no real children are involved.

NOTE: The lowest tier under Federal Law (SORNA) is still 15 years and if one of these people moved to Florida, they would be required to register for life.

SOURCE

The post WA: Bill proposes changes to sex offender registration for Net Nanny cases appeared first on Florida Action Committee (FAC).