Crackdowns continue in sued jurisdictions
If anyone expected the machinery of enforcement to slow down while constitutional questions related to the registry are being litigated, the message coming out of Jackson County is unmistakable. It hasn’t.
On September 23, FDLE announced that it had partnered with the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, Florida Department of Corrections and Homeland Security Investigations in a three-day operation targeting people on the registry. The result: 21 arrests and 91 alleged registration violations. – 10% of the registrant population in that county were arrested.
According to FDLE, investigators contacted 101 registrants (50% of the registrant population investigated) and conducted verification interviews. The alleged violations included failing to report changes involving residences, vehicles, telephone numbers, email addresses and Internet identifiers, as well as allegations of providing false registration information.
And Jackson County isn’t an isolated example. FDLE’s own recent announcements show a continuing series of targeted registration-enforcement operations across Florida.
Read FDLE’s announcement of Operation Sandspur here: FDLE: 21 Arrests in Operation Sandspur in Jackson County
Discover more from Florida Action Committee (FAC)
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
I have owned my home here in Florida for 15 years and have no intentions of moving. I’m not a transient or a renter, I own my home.
Why then am I visited 4 times a year and if I do go somewhere out of state and return they show up again after i have checked in at the Sheriffs office.
My life and others are not our own anymore and never will be. Even death doesn’t free us from this registration.
There is something wrong with the system.
And there should be an end to having to register.
I recently ent to Pennsylvania and to the Police barracks to register and they told me if I wasn’t staying over a month that I didn’t have to register there.
I am no longer on PA’s list.
I’m forced to register in another state. I’ve never lived in Florida nor vacationed there and never plan to.
The state I’m forced to register in, I fear, is taking lessons from Florida’s legislature regarding sexual offenses and doing their damnest to draft, debate, as well as pass legislation with the same penalty level for non – compliant Florida registrants currently in use.
The More we try and win, the more we seem to lose (Concerning crack downs, check-ins, verifications and registrations). If the registry is not punishment, there sure are a whole lot of ghost in jail and prisons because they seem to be arresting people who have long since been off paper, like probation or house arrest.
Seems like there is also two sets of rules for the supreme court. Those who can live on with their lives after they are released and those who are treated like we have just broken out of prison, even though we have done our time and done nothing wrong, although the other side doesn’t agree. Just existing means, we have done something wrong, due to our crime of a sexual offense, but do we have to wake up each day like it is Groundhog Day and relive a nightmare over and over again?
Finally, will there ever be a judge who has the guts and heart to do the right thing and give us our just relief.
Justice for Those Who Have Served Their Sentence
In legal and moral terms, “justice” for someone who has “done their time” means ensuring that, once an individual has completed the punishment prescribed by law, they are treated fairly, have equal rights, and are not subjected to further penalties or discrimination unrelated to the original offense.
The concept of justice in this context is tied to rehabilitation and reintegration. If punishment ends with the sentence, then justice demands that the person can live a lawful, productive life without being penalized for the crime itself once the sentence is complete
These arrests are not being taken lately either. I have heard as a downward plea for even a first offense they are offering one year in one day incarceration or two years GPS monitoring and all the probation restrictions. And that’s if you get a good deal. All these third-degree felony paper crimes are seven points in the FDOC system which equates to 21 months incarceration at a minimum. I also have heard people are getting no bond.
From the moment I read the complaint filed to begin this lawsuit, I was pretty sure that state staff attorneys had advised their bosses that this suit probably has some weight to it. And that the follow-on registry scrubs were not only retaliation, but to rack up as many felony arrests and convictions as they can while the challenged registry laws are in effect.
If what you’re saying about the post-arrest administration is true, then it smacks of Ron Book and his interests in the private prison industry, which obviously depends on having a large number of inmates. I would be very surprised if he wasn’t somehow involved in this wave of “compliance checks.”
Dustin
Not sure if you have seen the ads playing on TV in Florida of the Attorney General touting they have arrested over 2000 Sexual Offenders in a crack down recently. The more good that F.A.C does, the more the other sides pushes back.
https://www.myfloridalegal.com/newsrelease/attorney-general-james-uthmeier-announces-arrests-prosecutions-and-convictions-sexual
Question: If you’re not on supervision (ROFL We all are, in case you don’t realize it) When you go to the sheriff’s office, you verify all your info. When they come to you to do address verification, you show them your ID to prove you’re you and you are where you belong. If they ask ANY other questions at your door, internet ID’s, vehicles owned, social security number, college courses, etc., do you have to answer them? I’m under the impression that I’m not legal obligated to even answer the door. I do because I don’t want to rile them up. But can’t you just ask them if you are legally required to provide that information when this isn’t a registration event? Just provide ID.
You do not need to answer any questions nor ask any. You just need to show ID.
In my case, the police officer calls me, ( every 3 months) we set an appointment time,she comes to my door and says hi and leaves….no questions, no driver’s license check…just checking im still here and she’s on her way…
I believe that these “crackdowns” are focusing on individuals on probation/community control. Most of the press releases and “news” stories mention “in partnership with the Florida DOC.” It is a standard condition of all probation (not just sex offender probation) that the probationer must submit to a warrantless search at any time.
For a person who is not on any form of supervised release, it would be an unlawful search in violation of the Fourth Amendment for the police to demand to inspect his phone or even to ask questions to “check compliance” in the absence of reasonable suspicion that a crime has been committed. But for those on probation, almost everything is fair game–no warrants, reasonable suspicion, or probable cause required.
Not a standard condition for Federal
Agree. If someone is on probation that’s a completely different story. If someone is not on probation, they just have to show ID.
Question…1 Physically producing a Drivers license or Passport is different then simply providing your NAME. Tipically they will already have your file information and photo.
Must you hand over your ID?
Question…2 Are you also REQUIRED to personally Sign a copy of your reqistry information?
FAC cannot give legal advice, only advise of the statutes:
943.0435(6) states. County and local law enforcement agencies, in conjunction with the department, shall verify the addresses of sexual offenders who are not under the care, custody, control, or supervision of the Department of Corrections at least one time per calendar year, and may verify the addresses of sexual offenders who are under the care, custody, control, or supervision of the Department of Corrections. The system for verifying addresses of sexual offenders must be consistent with the federal Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 and any other federal standards applicable to such verification or required to be met as a condition for the receipt of federal funds by the state. Local law enforcement agencies shall report to the department any failure by a sexual offender to comply with registration requirements.
Yes, they generally have a copy of your registry and photo with them when they check on you and yes, it’s public information. Whether you have to confirm identity by holding up your license or have to physically hand it to them (or tell them you have my photo, I’m not showing you anything, here I am) is something you can consult with your attorney about, but is that the battle you really want to wage? You’re required to have a branded license. They can access a copy. If there’s a concern about showing it or letting them hold it, consult with an attorney. It’s vastly different from letting them go through your phone, search your property or interrogate you, which is not something you are required to do (or should allow) if you are not on probation. You must produce your DL/ID/Passport at registration.
Similarly, the registration requirements outlined in the statute describe what you must report. There’s no mention of signing anything. If you have a particular objection to signing your registration paperwork, that’s another question to ask the registry office or your attorney. From one perspective, the paperwork contains all the rules (which frequently change) and acknowledging your receipt of the rules by signing can be a concern. I get it.
when Indian River County asked me to sign registry paperwork I wrote on the paperwork that I am acknowledging receipt of the paperwork but I do not agree in any way that these new conditions legally apply to me.
When Indian River first started doing address verification (2001? 2002?) They showed up at my house at 2am in full tactical gear and there were four of them. They beat on the door with flashlights and also beat on neighbors doors in the area around me (ostensibly looking for me). Making sure to disrupt the entire neighborhood at 2am. There cars had big yellow reflective signs that stated they were sex offender response team or something to that effect. My mother wanted to stand next to me and they threatened to put her on the ground. In my opinion Hyde and Parrish were the worst of the four officers.
Jim
I am sorry that happened to you and your mother. I was treated better on probation than what happened to you. Law enforcement always tout how professional they are and stand for justice but I guess that only applies to certain people. They also know they can get away with treating us like trash just because of our past charges so I guess laws do not apply to us in the freedom catagory.
And how humiliating to be treated like crap in your own home and property.