FAC Weekly Update 2026-01-06-Put the Laziness Theory to Shame
Weekly update for January 6, 2026. This is recording number 347
Dear Members and Advocates,
The preamble to most laws is where you’ll find the legislative findings. The standard “finding” we see regurgitated in almost every piece of sex offender legislation – about the “frightening high” recidivism rate – is annoying. Especially since its been debunked by decades of empirical research. But the one fundamental finding that is even more annoying is the one that’s missing from the bills but seems to be an important one… it’s the unstated presumption that people on the registry are extraordinarily lazy and unwilling to drive an extra 1,000 feet. Even though it’s never actually stated in the law, it must be what lawmakers are thinking – otherwise these residency restrictions and proximity ordinances make no sense.
Under this “laziness” theory, a person intent on abducting a kid from a playground would get in their white van, load up the candy, drive for 999 feet, shrug their shoulders, and say, “Well, that’s it for today.” Crisis averted. Children saved. Legislature applauds itself!
These types of nonsensical laws keep getting passed because they are built on another quiet assumption about registrant’s laziness – the belief that the people affected will stay silent and do nothing about them. Lawmakers presume that registrants will be too isolated, too stigmatized, or too weary to speak out, challenge them, or demand accountability. The expectation is that registrants will quietly retreat into the shadows, keep their heads down, and absorb whatever restrictions are imposed, while politicians enjoy the political payoff of appearing “tough on crime.” That silence makes these laws easy to pass and even easier to expand. FAC exists to prove that “laziness” assumption wrong.
As we move into 2026, FAC’s plans to advance public safety and protect our constitution are anything but lazy. We are not lazy when it comes to showing up in Tallahassee and opposing bad legislation like CS/HB 45 and SB 212. FAC has been actively engaging lawmakers, educating staff, submitting analysis, and making sure that constitutional concerns are not quietly ignored simply because they are inconvenient. We are not lazy when it comes to challenging unconstitutional local ordinances. FAC continues to confront residency and presence restrictions in places like Putnam County and Union County, where local governments pile on additional layers of punishment long after a sentence has been served. And we are certainly not lazy when it comes to national coordination and public awareness. FAC is working with registrants, families, advocates, and allies across the country to expose the myths that allow people to be permanently branded, excluded, and treated as second-class citizens.
This Thursday, FAC will hold its monthly member call, where our committee chairs will highlight some of their achievements, outline their goals for 2026 and explain how each of you can play an active role in advancing our mission. We are anything but lazy. To the contrary, we have been busy doing the kind of sustained, disciplined work that actually moves the needle and we hope you can join our monthly member call to hear just a brief overview of what we’ve been up to.
Here’s to a productive 2026!!!
Sincerely,
The Florida Action Committee
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I’ve been supporting myself by collecting and selling scrap metal for the past 15 years. I recently determined that I have moved approximately 3.5 million pounds of scrap in that time. That is not an exaggeration. I’m quite good at what I do and I’m extremely strong and I get lots of repeat customers who enjoy having me come out and work for free. I’ll be 55 and April and I’m still strong as an ox. During one unfortunate episode I twisted my ankle and continued to work because I did not have health insurance coverage oh well I needed the money tough luck. I found out later that I broke the arch of my foot at the heel and didn’t know it. I continued to work right up into the time of my foot fusion surgery. After my 8 weeks of being immobilized after my foot fusion surgery I returned to work immediately and I was still an incredible pain for several years after the surgery. I’m working hard today in fact. If you want to see a rugged individualist who lives by their own rules under an oppressive circumstance look no further. Here I am.
I know it is not a popular way to put it in some anti-registry circles, but I have argued that if I was whatever these registry proponents claim I was, there’s no law in the law that would prevent me from reoffending. There is only one person to stop me from doing that. That person is me.
And apparently, the vast majority of those on the registry feel the way I do. Most of us have no desire to commit another offense. But if I was determined to reoffend, what’s 1000 feet? I can walk that in a couple minutes, tops. Some determined to reoffen can find ways to do so.
I don’t have any desire to, and apparently the vast majority on the registry have no desire to, either.
One big issue with this registry is for all our educating the public, we still have idiots who think everyone on the registry is Epstein. Unfortunately, a very recent study found that educating the public leads only to modest success. So what else can we do?
Reynolds & Estrada-Reynolds, Changing Views of Sex Offender Policies: A Counterevidence Based Intervention, 48 Basic and Applied Social Psychology 33 (2026)
Abstract: Sexual offender policies like registration are highly popular, but generally ineffective. It would be advantageous to decrease support for these policies and increase support for empirically supported ones. Past attempts to reduce support for these policies have resulted in only modest effects. The current studies designed an intervention to more substantially reduce support. In two studies, participants either read a refutation-style text that provided counterevidence to misconceptions about sexual offenders and offenses, or an information only text defining residency restriction laws, registration laws, and treatments for offenders. Results suggested that the counterevidence led to only a modest decrease in residency restriction and registration policy support, increased knowledge of policy outcomes, and increased support for treatment in Study 2.
A Unique Perspective on Sex Offender Registries
As someone registered in the early 1990s—during the initial implementation of sex offender registries in the United States—for what I describe as a consensual act involving mistaken identity, I bring a multifaceted viewpoint to this discussion. Having recognized the escalating restrictions and societal stigma associated with the registry system, I chose to relocate abroad to evade what I perceived as an increasingly oppressive legal framework. Additionally, as the spouse of a senior judicial official in my adopted country, I observe U.S. policies from an external vantage point, spanning historical context, current realities, and potential future developments. This outsider’s lens may offer a more comprehensive understanding of the system’s implications.
Observation on Gun Laws and Criminal Behavior
In the country where I have resided since leaving the United States, firearm regulations are among the world’s strictest. Possession of illegal guns can result in severe penalties, including incarceration in notoriously overcrowded, unsanitary, and violent prisons. Even high-ranking officials, such as upper-level judges, face significant bureaucratic hurdles to obtain legal firearm licenses for personal protection. Despite these measures, gun-related crimes—including shootings, assassinations, and murders—occur frequently.
The Analogy to Sex Offender Registries
This observation on gun control is relevant to sex offender registries because it illustrates a fundamental principle: criminals do not adhere to laws. Strict prohibitions on firearms fail to eliminate gun violence, just as registries, residency restrictions, travel bans, curfews, and public notifications do not prevent sex crimes. If U.S. politicians are not as uninformed as they sometimes appear—evidenced by their ability to amass significant wealth shortly after entering office, often transitioning from modest means to multimillionaire status—they likely recognize this reality. Historical data and studies, such as those from the U.S. Department of Justice and independent analyses, have repeatedly shown that sex offender registries have limited impact on reducing recidivism or preventing new offenses, yet these systems persist and expand.
Questioning the True Purpose
Given that lawmakers, law enforcement, judges, and media outlets are aware of these ineffectual outcomes—supported by decades of evidence—we must confront the underlying motivations. No policy endures for over 30 years, despite clear failures and legal challenges, without substantial benefits for those who maintain it. What is the registry’s actual objective? Is it financial gain through enforcement mechanisms, political capital from appearing “tough on crime,” or a tool for broader social control? It’s time for an honest, unflinching dialogue to uncover the real incentives driving its continuation. Until we uncover that we will never slay the tyrannical registry dragon. It is very clear “protecting the children” isn’t high on Congress and our government leaderships list since there is ample evidence many of them are of the “protected class” exempting themselves from justice in the Epstein island scandal and the umpteen “tax payer paid slush funds” for paying of congressional kiddy s3x crimes scandals..
I have just this one thing to say. What would our situation be if there had never been an F.A.C to have our backs? I imagine many of us would be in jail or worse. All the new laws would never be challenged, more and more restrictions would be piled on us, and there would be few if any victories.
Thanks for all you do. Not all of us can donate money, but we can support in other ways. Looking forward to some good news in 2026. Many of us are getting old and I personally do not want to spend my last breath, still on the registry.
I appreciate your responses and commentary. Your perspectives are well thought out and insightful. As an aging 20 year plus registrant I have seen FAC grow in its advocacy which I greatly appreciate. You are correct in pointing out the reality of a Florida without FAC. The truth is a handful of people work very hard protecting and defending the PFRs of our state. Unfortunately most people never see the long hours and dedication theses wonderful people provide. We all owe them our gratitude.
Sam
Thank you for the kind words. Me and just about everyone else has at one time gotten into an argument or disagreement with F.A.C about something. But we all argued with our parents over the years and got mad at them often, but we still loved them all the same. And not just F.A.C, but the people who come on here to encourage us and stand together.
If it was not for F.A.C bringing us all together, we would have no one to talk about this. I do not discuss the registry with my parents as it upsets my mother. And who wants to have registry conversations at the registry office where there are cameras and maybe even listening devices where they can see and hear what we are saying about registering.