Ga. sex offender registry problems cost the state federal funds
An interesting article in the Atlanta Journal Constitution
Shortcomings in Georgia’s sex offender registration program are going to cost the state hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal grant money, according to a letter the U.S. Department of Justice sent to the governor.
The state receives from $4.9 million to almost $5.9 million annually from the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant and has spent the money on several legal initiatives, but problems with the sex offender registry could cost Georgia 10 percent of its allotment.
There are 22,345 names on Georgia’s sex offender registry, which is available to the public to track sex offenders in their communities, including information on where they live.
The Department of Justice has found the state’s registry deficient each year since 2012 for failing to gather a variety of information on convicted sex offenders.
One of the shortcomings the federal money would have to address is work to assess the risk that each offender poses to commit another sex crime.
Federal law requires that each offender be classified as either Level 1, Level 2 or Level 3 by a specially appointed Sex Offender Registration Review Board. The classification system helps local law enforcement focus on monitoring those sex offenders who pose the greatest danger.
Notably, Florida does not have tier levels either. We just have offenders and predators.
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I’m a lifetime sex offender in Florida and thinking about moving to Atlanta Georgia, will I have to register for life there
Correct, as it stands you will have to register anywhere in the United States of America for life because of Florida.
Crazy right but that is what the Florida government and hate-fulled professional victim Senator Lauren Book demand. Damn the facts! Damn the fact that it helps no one and hurts so many. She and those like here DO NOT CARE.
Change will not come until they are taken down in court and Florida joins the rest of the United States in respecting citizen’s right and indeed Human Rights which they do not right now.
That is incorrect. If you fit within the law in Georgia, you may be able to petition to be removed from the registry 10 years after sanctions ended OR less than t if THEY classify you as a level 1 offender under Georgia standards. Georgia appears to be one of the few sates that treat out of staters the same. Vermont is another and IIRC, so are Colorado and, as of Jan 1, 2109, Oregon.
Each state has its different requirements: the problem is even if the new location doesnt require continued registration the fact is that youre on FLORIDAS for life. Its the FLORIDA registry that will follow you for life no matter where you go
Penalizing Georgia but not Florida for the same reason just doesn’t pass the smell test. Do the books tentacles extend all the way to DC?
Why can’t the ACLU or someone with the means to do so, sue Florida for not complying with SORNA? After all, having a tiered system would be “safer for the children” since law enforcement could then concentrate on those few individuals instead of a bloated registry of 73,444 (as of July 2017) that includes the dead!
Does anyone know if someone is visiting Georgia, for 4 nights, do they have to register/notify/what? I’m so confused.
I just found this sight today and it’s refreshing to see that not only are laws changing, but some are actually advocating the rights of RSO. We deserve a second chance just like our unethical politicians, whether they get caught or not. NO ONE PERSON IS WITHOUT SIN. Why is there so much judgement. We made little, stupid mistakes, paid our price, faced our foes and our punishment with our heads held high. Let us try to survive, please.
Ok, enough destressing myself with distress. Any help on this question would be substantial!
Please elaborate on your question.
Do you mean reporting in Florida or in Georgia?
For Georgia, you should contact the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and ask them (https://gbi.georgia.gov/georgia-sex-offender-registry) we are not in Georgia and we are not familiar with the laws of all 50 states.
For Florida, will you be traveling before 7/1 or 7/1 or after? That will determine whether you fall under the 3 day rule or the 5 day rule. Will you be staying in the same physical location for all 4 nights? If not, what is the breakdown (ie: 1 and 3), (2 and 2), (4 different places)?
The answer to your question will differ based on your circumstances.
Shoot. thank you. I assumed since this thread was from Georgia that someone would know this answer. No worries. Not sure if we are going or not. 3 days is just not enough time to go that far, really, especially if it’s considered, arriving Friday and leaving Sunday, 3 days in July.
Thank you much! I’ll get in touch with Georgia if necessary. Bless you for all of this!
I sent an email request for the info. I’ll post the reply when I have one, for future visitors with the same question.
From the Georgia Bureau of Investigation…
“Georgia allows out of state sex offender registrants 14 days to visit in Georgia. Should the offender decides that their visit will be 14 days or more, he/she will need to report to the Sheriff’s Office in the county he/she will be staying to register as a sex offender. We also recommend that offenders notify their state prior to traveling.”
Perfect! From what I am gleaning from GA, it seems to be a pretty rational state.
Georgia’s current mishmash of laws are the result of the State being handed their backside circa 2010 by their own Supreme Court and the Federal District Court IIRC. The bad news is that for people convicted after a date certain, the VERY draconian pre 2010 laws are still in effect, although a registrant can no longer be forced to vacate a “noncompliant” residence that they had occupied prior to their conviction. Of course, that probably doesn’t help people who were incarcerated even if they retained ownership of the property.
The only good news for those folks is that the internet identifier law went away and that level 1 and 2 registrants can petition to be removed either immediately after sanction end or 10 years after that. Georgia also requires that tier classification be based on individual assessment, not offense category. That last part alone puts them out of “compliance’ with the AWA, doesn’t it?
My offense took place in 1998 and I plead out in 2000, so I would be under none of those “extra” restrictions in Georgia and have been told by a couple of lawyers that I would likely grade out as a Level 1 and be able to meet all qualifications for removal and one or two extra ones. Of course, that assumes that someone in my position can afford to relocate to Georgia where i have little or no support or a job and specifically to an expensive urban county where one might find a more sympathetic judiciary. Such is life.
I called a lawyer in Georgia, and they had one flat fee for filing a petition on my behalf. I won’t specify that amount here. However, if the court denies your petition, you have to wait a while to file again. Also, I was told to move to a place near Atlanta since the judges tend to be more lenient.
Has anyone shot out an email to this reporter to ask if he checked or asked pols why Georgia gets screwed and Florida gets a past?educate this guy
So was it $3000 and a two year wait to reapply? I was told that the powers that be can be sticklers even in some of the urban counties like Fulton and Chatham. I suspect that may be because they have a lot of registrants in those counties and probably more than a few “problem children” under their supervision.
That means no reallocation. In other words, Georgia and 31 other states will see their allotments from the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant, or Byrne JAG funds, given to the 18 states, four U.S. territories and more than 130 tribes that currently comply with the federal law. So only 18 states are compliant? I know Florida is not, it has been said in the past it is just enough to get funds, wonder if this will affect them as well.
Apparently, Florida has done just enough to be “compliant” without the 3 Tier system.
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Florida doesn’t have a 3 tier system? Then why was I “converted” from a garden variety offender with the 20 year option to a Level 2 with the 25 year requirement? SORNA is the FLOOR, except in places like Texas where some crazy off the rails judge apparently decided that it is the ceiling. We can thank that paragon of legal scholarship Alberto Gonzalez for much of this mess, although the SCOTUS is FINALLY going to address some of this mess.
Florida has Offenders and Predators, and lifetime registration, no Tiers.
And you don’t have to be a predator to be designated a predator. The recommendation of a licensed counselor has no value when bounced up against the Florida bureaucracy’s made up definitions.
Who is an offender and who is a “predator”?
The sentencing guidelines I was sentenced under gave the judge the go-ahead to sentence ANY sex crime to lifetime registration and Supervised Release. My charge was in Florida in 2007, non-contact and non violent. AND FALSE! Adult porn and a public defender in collusion with the prosecution was used to persuade me to plead guilty to a possession offense that was false.
I am now in Illinois, which considers anyone on lifetime registration and supervised release a”predator” and advertises them as such on a public internet venue. Check out the following:
U.S. Sentencing Commission (2014). “2014 Guidelines Manual, §5D1.2. Term of Supervised Release”. “If the instant offense of conviction is a sex offense, however, the statutory maximum term of supervised release is recommended.”
Who legislates these unconstitutional statutes!? And why do the courts allow it!?