Member Submission: My Last Wishes
Greetings lawmaker,
I am writing to inform you of my last wishes. You see, I am registered sex offender in the State of Florida. I was convicted in 2005. I was placed on the Florida Sex Offender Registry for the rest of my life at that time. I am currently 66 years of age. My wife of almost 25 years had a stroke in October 2021. I am trying to plan where I am going to live out the rest of my life if it comes to a point that my wife will no longer be able to take care of me if I were to become incapacitated. I am her sole caretaker at this time.
When that time comes, I plan to miss something that is an arrestable offence (like re-registering, forgetting to add a car…). Once convicted, I plan to stay in the penal system letting the State of Florida provide me with healthcare, prescription medication and “three hots and a cot” for the rest of my life. It is not what I would like, but since the State of Florida had placed me on the ‘for life’ registry, they should have to care for me the rest of my life. You see, since I am a sex offender, there are no retirement communities or nursing homes that will take care of me. So, I have thought long and hard about this, prayed many prayers but I just can’t do this to my wife. I am praying, though, that my 3 kids will at least take care of her. They will not take care of me, because the State of Florida has helped me to ostracize them by making me register their cars, the phone numbers and more. I have made my family ‘offenders’ as well.
I have forwarded my suggestion to the Florida Action Committee. It is a 2,500+ member non-profit organization that advocates for public safety based on empirical evidence (facts) and best practices and not rumour mongering or hearsay. I’m hoping that my idea might gel with some of the 80,000+ registered citizens in Florida. Who knows, the state of Florida may have to build a hospital just for registered citizens so that the people that put us on the registry for life, might have to take care of us ‘for life.’
Thank you for your time and consideration. Sincerely;
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The state of FLA could have their own medical penal colony for folks they do this to.
Good letter. Hope it pulls someone chain into reality.
Profound. Just simply raw and true.
I totally agree with you. My wife passed away over ten years ago. I have been on the registry for quite a while. I made the mistake of moving to Florida a few years ago. I also made made a mistake of my son’s car registration recently. Right now I am under house arrest for 18 months for a shear mistake. My son does not even live with me but my name is on the registration. I have thought of many different avenues since my sentencing. I had a public pretender and he did keep me out of jail for something that I thought was pretty petty. I really couldn’t believe it when they told me of my choices. As of now, with my choices, I really believe your idea is not so bad. Without money in this world what else can you do?
Wow… powerful and very apt. I’m a lifetime registrant so this is something I should consider.
Well written.
This is something I concur and thought about highly. I’m retired military but with the registry I’m on no assisted living civilian or not will take me. This fact when I’m older plus I’m more susceptible being Taumatic brain injuries from combat to have forgetfulness all the way to dementia. So option when I’m older with my 3 sons one of which is autistic so I have to try and be there for him as long as I can mentally for im his advocate. So really there are two sons who could when older take care of me. But why should I shove this Burden on those I love the most. Making them sacrifice their life, career, and potential family to be on the registry with their things taking care of me. If I had to take care of someone I wouldn’t have gone into military or seen things I’ve seen so I believe they don’t need the burden.
So eventually I believe my fate is going to be forgetting to registry or not even remembering I’m even on it and having the “Great State of Florida” taking care of my needs. I mean for my safety I already pre-planned and know how to to solitary confinement which they where to place me on when I was arrested based on my military experiences. It was hard to swallow this possibility as a future and many loved ones don’t even want to discuss options like this or can not imagine this could happen in American let alone to a combat veteran honorably discharged.
So I am alone with my future planning. If I do not receive a pardon after our “Great Govoner” of Florida gets out, or try to move to another state and get them to take me off the registry there (Florida is another fight).
Once someone gets over being place on the registry I mean the impact of careers to family turning their backs, the next challenge mentally to get over is once future possibilities on the registry.
It’s depressing but once your getting to old to fight this probably be my fate or others on the registry to be in the jail/prison system probably until death for you will keep violating if you can bot remember to wipe.
This is honestly something at my age I’ve considered many times. The letter while is sad. It is very accurate IMO. I’m only 49. Bit at some point we will be at the place where we can no longer live alone. Who will take care of us? If nobody at least we know what the state has planned for us. Death in prison.
But hey. At least it’s not punishment.