We thank Ms. Tachana Joseph-Marc for her opinion piece in the Florida Times Union: “Guest Column:  Another missed opportunity for meaningful juvenile justice reform in Florida”.  The major flaw in the vetoed bill, though, was that it excluded those whose offense as a juvenile was a murder offense or sex offense.

https://www.jacksonville.com/story/opinion/columns/guest/2021/07/25/another-missed-opportunity-juvenile-justice-reform-florida/8012109002/?mc_cid=c40dd6c29e&mc_eid=fa93f8fd3d

To Ms. Marc, I say:

Thank you, Ms. Marc, for keeping the citizens informed on this important issue.

Everything you pointed out in this article was “right on”.  Many people are in hopes that one day not only will this legislation be passed and signed by a Florida governor, but that it will also be extended to people who as juveniles committed a sex offense and have never re-offended (committed another sex offense).

Not everyone on the sex offense registry committed a violent, sexual assault.  There are people on the Florida registry who, as juveniles, sent inappropriate pictures of themselves through a text to another juvenile.  That constitutes distribution of child pornography.  There are 17-year-olds who had consensual sex with a 15-year-old.  There is a former high school cheerleader who “mooned” some other people.  We are not saying there should not be some consequences – just not lifetime registration as it is now in Florida and not registration for someone whose judgment part of the brain was not fully developed at the time of the offense.

In addition to all the negative, collateral consequences you mentioned, being on the registry means that many cannot return to their childhood homes due to residency restrictions, very few homeless shelters will take them in, they will not be eligible for federal housing assistance, their driver’s license will be “branded”, and the list goes on.

A must-read article:  https://jlc.org/sites/default/files/attachments/2020-09/Labeled%20for%20Life%202020.pdf

 

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