MEMBER SUBMISSION: Experience during an address verification
I wanted to bring your attention to something new that I encountered last night after I did my bi annual check in.
I received a call from a deputy sheriff who asked me to step outside. Knowing that I had just done all my normal check in I stepped out side and met him. He was in an undercover vehicle and he told me that he needed to confirm some information. He told me that the US Marshalls are making them do a yearly check in on top of the Address verification checks. He then told me that he needed to make sure that something called Offender Watch was correct as well. He went over the things on my check in form that I did earlier that day.
He brought up some old account that I had never heard about. He told me that they use some program that they put our information into and it pulls things that close match what we give to them. Then it assigns a percentage to that information of how close of a possibility it is being yours. He then took a new photo of me in front of my house. Then told me that he would be back later this week to take a day time photo of my house for this Offender Watch and the US Marshalls service.
I asked if this information was for law enforcement only or if these photos would be posted online for people to see as I am worried about Vigilantism. I made him aware of some of the threats and murders that the registered citizens have received just in this year alone. And he made it sound like he understood. I told him I had never even heard of those accounts or even the websites he was saying. One being Gavatar.com he told me he also had never heard about it and that him and his supervisor looked into it as well and they didn’t even know what it was and thought it was for gaming. I shrugged my shoulders and said wasn’t me.
He then left but it has me shaken up a bit. I know that I have to deal with this for awhile more and I hate that my family is having to deal with this along side of me. But I am really worried about this Offender watch and it seemed like the officer who came out was sympathetic on the cases and told me to call them if we ever receive any threats about vigilantism or harassment as they don’t put up with it no matter who you are. I told him I appreciated it but as long as I am on this hit list then I will always have to look over my shoulder.
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Regardless of what the statutes or policies are, I still maintain that “compliance checks” are 4th Amendment violations.
Unless there is cause to suggest a registry violation, there’s no reason to investigate compliance. More often than not, the only “cause” is that registry restrictions are so vague, self-conflicting, or amended without notice that full compliance is impossible.
Funny how inalienable – unable to be taken away from or given away – rights are somehow alienable for registrants and registrants alone.
Dustin
It comes down to not whether it is legal or not, but rather, whether a judge has the conscience enough to rule these as punitive, which in turn would rule them illegal.
They keep stating the legislatures made the laws, therefor they are gods and it must all be legal since obviously the supreme court is NOT impartial.
It is funny because supreme court is “For life” so what are they so afraid of?
They’ll be making us paint our houses RED next..
Facts
Red is better than pink. Several sheriffs use to make inmates wear pink jumpsuits
CherokeeJack
As a convicted sock hoarder you should let your sheriff’s office know how many and what color socks you have. After all once a sock hoarder, always a sock hoarder!!
Brandon
Yes busted
I sleep with several pairs of socks and cuddle with them. I am obsessed with them an need help. Not sure I would pass a polygraph if asked about my sock fetish.
And don’t tell but I have pairs of socks that I did not disclose to the sheriff’s office. Hope they don’t do a search warrant or I’ll be up socks creek.
Can you be arrested for being an SO…sox offender?
Capt
That is a new statue they just passed in the legislation session.
On a serious note, they do seem to spend more time finding new ways to mess with ex offenders than actually helping people.
Heads of household who get sent to prison have a higher rate of their children acting out.
Their families have a higher rate of becoming homeless without the extra income from the main bread winner (Yes I know women can also be the bread winner) just making a point in fact.
I drove by a sheriffs department the other day on my way to the doctor. I was sitting at the light and it was about 39 degrees outside and all the people waiting to register were standing outside in the freezing cold, waiting to be let in, one at a time.
It seems that only certain counties have paid to belong to Offender Watch and that this is being done only at the county level. https://www.communitynotification.com/counties.php?state=FL According to their website, the service is meant to provide “up to date technology” in the form of an app that the public can use. Technology that is not available via the State website. The question of the day of course is, is this legal? How far above and beyond the law requiring the State to maintain a publicly available list as well as laws allowing for public notification are counties allowed to go? They claim not to share information with law enforcement meaning they take no action of their own, but they do provide a way for law enforcement to share information directly with them. What additional information law enforcement would be sharing beyond what is already publicly available I do not know. County officials sharing information with a third party website, beyond what the State Registry contains? Sounds fishy.
“It seems that only certain counties have paid to belong to Offender Watch and that this is being done only at the county level.” Has anyone noticed that the same counties subscribing to this service are the same counties with the worst reputations in dealing with citizens forced to register? FAC, please note!!!
rpsabq
Many of the Florida counties listed on that list are also counties that contain FDOC prisons. Interesting
In Michigan, you have a right to resist an unlawful arrest. see State v Moreno, Michigan Supreme Court, 2012. I don’t know how to download things onto this website so can’t download this case to this website.
I don’t recommend resisting the police when you are confident that they are in fact the police. Police misconduct in your home is a different story.
convictedsockhoarder-you should have been taken out and shot.
AC;
It’s unfortunate that registrants have to always watch their back because they are being harassed, assaulted and killed.
Most people now carry cell phones with cameras. Always take a picture of the person identifying himself as the police, his vehicle and his license plate. If you don’t believe he is a real law enforcement officer, file a police report.
Most attorneys are recommending that registrants don’t answer the door during these “compliance checks”. I am not aware of any law, rule or regulation requiring registrants to be photographed in front of their house.
This is a clear overstepping of police boundaries and should be challenged, in court if necessary.
The down side if that is this.
If I am home and the deputy comes by, he says hi, says see you in a year (Unless someone else is filling in) and leaves me alone for an entire year. He knows I don’t give him crap and he leaves me alone.
Now, when I am not home he leaves a banner on my door stating he tried to check on me. If that happens a second time then he leaves a bigger banner on the door. He puts his cell phone on the first one and I always reach out to tell him when I will be home so he can get on to the next person.
If I refused to answer the door, after 3 attempts he said they would mark me as “Not able to verify address” and not sure what happens after that and do not want to find out. Before you say that is illegal, it doesn’t matter as even an illegal arrest still counts towards your getting off the registry. I am NOT willing to mess that up.
I do not make waves and stay off their “Retribution” radar.
In Florida, as far as address verifications go, you have 3 weeks to respond from the initial date of attempted contact.
Although, as we all know, Florida lives to change things without notice.
Detroit;
I did that once already back in 2014 when some young guy knocked on my door saying he was a county official and he had no credentials on him, parked his car in the corner, and was just saying the wrong things making him seem more suspicious. I have cameras on my house with audio, I also collaborate with neighbors and they have cameras as well in which some focus on my house and they give me copies as well if I ask for them with no hesitation. I had called the police and filed a report. Just to let them know and also to have a file of the incident in their system even if nothing came out of it. The cop told me I did the right thing and to always do that no matter how big or small. He went around the neighborhood driving very slowly for about 30 minutes looking for the guy and the vehicle he used which I have on camera and then he parked outside my house writing the report for about an hour before departing. After that weird incident. I record and report any weird incident that I encounter. At this point with registrants and the the dangers that the registry poses on all of us, anything is possible.