Sex Offender Registry Requirements Leave Some Facing Stark Choices As Coronavirus Risks Grow
A patchwork approach to the nation’s sex offense registry laws is leaving many of the 900,000 people on the country’s registries with a stark choice as COVID-19 sweeps the country: risk their lives or risk their freedom.
The situation is similar in Florida. A spokesperson for the Florida Action Committee, which advocates for changes to the state’s registry laws, said his organization is getting “dozens of calls a day” from registrants who are both confused and afraid of being penalized because of a situation far outside their control.
Discover more from Florida Action Committee
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
$hitwood was on Fox News recently. He is a rockstar to politicians, media outlets, and the ignorant populous that want to keep the prisons at full capacity. He KNOWS he is above the law in Floriduh, where he is fully supported by good ole boys DeSatanist and Sinator Reich Stadt. Florida will continue to get more miserable for registrants until we are all dead or move away.
You say “until we’re all dead” as if those who are currently registered will forever be the only ones registered. That registry is growing daily, weekly and monthly.
“All” includes all registrants, present and future.
Mike Chitwood now wants to make a list of addresses of those who test positive for COVID-19. He is quoted as saying, “We’re not asking for names and we’re not putting signs on front yards, and we’re not publishing a list, but it’s important for our deputies to know if they’re responding to a call from someone who has been quarantined.”
Not a surprising action coming from this man.
The full article:
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/tested-positive-coronavirus-health-workers-may-share-your-address-police-n1178696
I know I gonna get back lash on this but maybe they should make a list of address of those affected Let them endure the leper status and being treated lower than dirt.
Chitwood is a force to be dealt with. I just checked out this article. I noticed that there were no comments in the Comment Section. I can understand why — I am afraid of this guy and he is supposed to be protecting people.
In the article posted here by James, the following is an excerpt:
Mike Chitwood, the sheriff of Volusia County, Florida, said he had to browbeat his local health department, in Facebook posts and interviews with the local press, to give his agency addresses of people who had tested positive. The updated lists are sent to his agency nightly.
On his Facebook page, he has posted the following:
Good evening Volusia County: Tonight we flagged 5 new addresses that are being monitored for coronavirus,
Right now, we’re not getting enough information to make informed decisions that protect ourselves and the public.
We need more testing and we need more information. I’m calling for our health leaders to step up to the challenge and provide us a daily, comprehensive list of addresses that have tested positive for coronavirus or are under self quarantine.
It’s a simple solution that will save lives and slow the spread. That’s our mission and we have to be laser focused on it.
In an Orlando local news report, the following was written:
Volusia Sheriff: Florida Department of Health is putting first responders at risk.
‘If you don’t protect us, when people call 911, nobody’s coming,’ Sheriff Chitwood says.
The sheriff said despite some backlash, he’ll continue to post all information he receives about possible and confirmed cases, until everyone gets on board.
Is this a sheriff in the United States of America?
This may cause people to avoid getting tested. And that would cause further risk to the community. Few people want their health department sharing their address with the sheriff’s office.
Sarah F
Thank You again for all you do. I don’t live in Florida but in Kansas City Mo last week in the news there were two Home owner associations that had requested home owners to notify them if anyone in the home had the virus. It was quickly deemed unconstitutional and illegal by a government department but sorry I forgot the departments name. They said was an attempt to publish private information, an invasion of privacy.
It just struck me as hypocritical to say knowing who has COVID -19 is protected information but who is on the registry is not. Both were supposed to be made public for the public’s protection.
Thank you for sharing this with us, DavidM. Interesting information for sure.
SarahF
I found the law it was referring to it’s the HIppa law of 1996. Mint for health care but it seems the application should overlap.
Yes medical records cannot be turned over to anyone unless you expressly sign permission
Aren’t health records private and aren’t the HIPA laws?
has chitwood ever heard of the Constitution of the United States of America?
does he know the laws of the land that he is sworn to uphold?
what a shame that Floridians actually vote for him to have any position at all
JI
Thank You ! I found it just before I read your comment. You are correct.
JI and DavidM, I could not agree with you more. Maybe down the road, this comparison could be used to help our cause. Thanks.
Registering is essential element of keeping the courts full and family’s fed.
I register this month in Polk jail I’m like do I go now or hope a law is past. They could easily have a car that comes to your house window closed and you talk on your phone to the officer. The guy who used to check on me said he’d have them all done in 3 days How much longer would it take. Plus the officers doing it are safe one less person to go home catch that crap somehow and return to the office. This is the way they should do it anyway making me leave my house drive there now n my time give them info I was never told I’d have todo 23 years ago is a folly of the justice system.
Correction! I hope every human forced to register who sickened with Covid-19 as a result of being forced to violate standing shelter in place orders and can prove it sues the state for deliberate indifference or if the person forced to register dies along with their immediate household, the next of kin would sue the state for acting in bad faith and with depraved indifference.
Even better, we can amend our EXISTING suit against the state because of this. No new suits necessary!