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 <[email protected]>
Date: July 12, 2018 at 2:17:54 PM EDT
To: ‘Gail Colletta’ <[email protected]>
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
[email protected] 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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This is very interesting because it appears from FDLE’s own written response that a registered business person or vacationer can move from one hotel to another between the “days” as commonly understood without violating the legal definitions of “permanent”, “transient”, or “temporary.” In other words, change hotels or for that matter hotel rooms every two “days” and you’re within the law. That’s how my layman’s mind interprets what the said.
exactly Concerned citizen! change rooms every 2 days! or sleep 100′ away after 2 days
It doesn’t take a ‘rocket scientist’ to see that Florida has come up with another unmanageable policy that serves no purpose. I live in my permanent residence. No motel or campsite will ever be my permanent residence. It gets to the point where one has to say “enough is enough”. When these restrictions are applied to all felons I might consider them, otherwise as far as I am concerned they are unconstitutional to the extreme and I am willing to take a stand on that. I didn’t serve this country for 29 years to be subject to such idiotic BS.
While we highly respect your service and sacrifice, you did serve a country that today is one of, if not the most, Legally Corrupt countries on the face of the Earth. The more a person sees this country in a Holistic way (from all sides), the more they realize how bad the schemes setup in this country really are.
Isnt it their law? Seems they are avoiding responsibility for it or to clarify or the parity to enforce
Lauren Book sponsored the bill that created this 3 day thing. They (the FDLE) enforce the laws that the legislators pass.
As expected, “ blah blah blah “and more “blah blah blah”
My local office (Seminole) informed me that a day was by name , Every change of day name was considered a day , not 24 hour period .They did not know and called FDOC for confirmation and then informed me , there seems to be confusion about this on all levels!
FDOC (Department of Corrections) or FDLE (Department of Law Enforcement).
If FDOC – that’s just probation and has nothing to do with the state registration laws. They can have their rules of probation in addition to what the registry requires.
If FDLE – this was our written response. I’d rely on something direct and in writing, sooner than hearsay from someone in the Sheriff’s office.
Seminole is the worst at over defining the laws, I was told at one point I would have to register all app, even Starbucks app or even better sonos app which only controls my speakers in my house.
But the problem with the way they are defining days, is if you visit a friends house for a couple hours that is what they are calling a day, so by their definition you would have to register that address if you visit them more than 3 days a year (even if for only 15 minutes). I was also told by them once that days were counted by how many days you were not home didn’t matter if you stayed in different places.
I too have a problem with the people that are enforcing the laws can’t give you concrete definition of the law, I emailed fdle regarding this and the response I got was contact the sheriff. I think FAC should email every sheriff with the same questions to see how many different interpretations they get.
Overit – your example of visiting a friend for a few hours (and that being considered a day) has never happened, to our knowledge. If the County is telling you that, get it in writing or get us the name of the officer you spoke with who told this to you and we’ll get it addressed.
I was giving a hypothetical to what @jack was being told (as a example of how they over define the law), I missed they said every change of day, but still by that interpretation they are saying if you go to friend or family members house for let’s say dinner and you are there until after midnight more than 3 times a year you would have to register that address as a temp address.
get it in writing
It was from FDLE , anytime you are somewhere away from your permanent address for 3 days per (name change of day ) it must be reported as temp!
i got pretty much the same response from FDLE, if you are at a residence and you visit starts on 1 calendar day before midnight and ends the next calendar day after 00:01, they consider that a day (ie.. you arrive friday at 9 pm and leave saturday at 01:00 -1 day ), but also said to call local sheriffs for their interpretation of the law, it was up to each county to determine what they considered a day
Here’s a better idea than logging the call… record it. There are apps that allow you to record a phone call; personally I use ipadio but there are a lot of options. You register your phone number with the app, and it gives you a PIN. You call in with the app, enter your PIN, then call the number you need to speak to; it works like a three-way call but with a recorder.
If the government–especially the police–tells you to break the law, then they arrest you for doing so, the fact that they told you to do so IS A DEFENSE–but you need evidence. This gives you that evidence.
Unless you get the consent of the other person on the call that’s not a better idea. Florida makes it a crime to intercept or record a “wire, oral, or electronic communication” unless all parties to the communication consent. You can catch a new charge.
I wasn’t aware Florida was a two-party-consent state. I’m in Louisiana, which has one-party consent.
It might also be the lesser evil, if you weigh the risks and benefits.
Let me see if I get this correctly. If I receive a phone call I should answer with,”Hello, I do not consent to being recorded, how can I help you?”
No – if someone is recording the call they are required to ask if you mind whether they record the call or inform you that the call is being recorded.
You are fair to assume that if they don’t tell you “this call is being recorded” or ask if you mind, they are not recording the call.
Tell that to Winter Springs PD. They recorded my confession without telling me it was being recorded and then said police are allowed to do that, they dont have to tell you.
FAC is correct. But – remember – in Floriduh, if an alleged former “victim” is calling and recording you, with the assistance of law enforcement, you will not be informed, and any lack of consent from you will not matter.
@ Anon if your recorded call is deemed to be illegal it can’t be used as evidence to help you (Fruit from the poisoned tree) It will deemed inadmissible and you will catch a additional charge for a illegal wire tap so no it’s a additional evil not the lesser
I agree with FAC. Not only would you catch a new charge for making the recording, but also be charged with failure to comply with registration requirements as any proof you had that you did comply is “fruit of the poisoned tree,” thus inadmissible.
I thought this was true also, you can’t record a phone call without consent from the other party. During my divorce I found out my now ex husband had been recording all my calls for the past two years. When I went to the police/sheriff about it they basically told me “he lives in the home there is nothing we can do”. I was in the middle of a nervous breakdown when I took comfort in the form of a seventeen yr old man. Now they offer to help me all the time, to jail!!!