Weekly Update #47
Dear Members and Advocates,
As Hurricane Dorian continues to threaten the east coast of Florida, our first hope is that you and your families are taking precautions to keep yourselves safe from the storm. For those who are subject to evacuation orders, we have set up a post on our site to exchange information on where you can go to seek shelter. If you don’t see your county listed in the comments section, follow the instructions in the post. For those not on evacuation orders who stay elsewhere for the storm, you are reminded that if you stay someplace for three or more days, it is considered a “temporary residence” and you are required to report it in person to your county’s registration office. This is a change from previous years, when you had five days before having to report a change. If you attempt to report a temporary residence but your registration office is closed, please notify [email protected].
Florida legislators are beginning to introduce this year’s Bills and you know 2019 will be the year of the “Epstein Bills”. Bills to address the grievous wrongs related to the handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case. Wrongs that only took place with one individual, whose experience with the criminal justice system and registration was so corrupted by money and political influence that they only occurred with respect to this one single person who is no longer alive… but apparently we will need new laws to address. Changes have already been introduced in New York and New Mexico, the other states in which Epstein had homes, and Florida’s changes are already in the works.
One such bill is SB 154: Human Trafficking Education in Schools, introduced by Sen. Thurston which requires the Department of Legal Affairs to develop human trafficking awareness curriculum for public schools. It’s a really sad reflection on our state that in between math and science, our children need to take active shooter training and human trafficking awareness! Another such bill is HB 53, introduced by Rep. Gottlieb, which will allow child victims to file a civil claim up until they are 55 years old. Our position is that we are all about laws that will keep children safe from sexual abuse, but that laws should not be knee-jerk reactions to rare cases, but should be founded on research into their efficacy. HB 69: Sexual Battery Prosecution Time Limitation by Rep. Davis, a/k/a “Donna’s Law” eliminates the time limitations allowing prosecution to be commenced at any time for specified sexual battery offenses against victims younger than 18.
Finally, despite the Hurricane, our Monthly Member Call is still scheduled for THIS THURSDAY at 8:00 PM. The topic of this call will be a legal update and our guest will be Attorney Ron Kleiner, who has been representing clients in removal petitions. During the call we will be discussing the status of legal challenges in Florida and in other states. Mr. Kleiner will be talking about petitions for removal under the Florida Statutes, what it takes to qualify for removal from the sex offender registry and sharing some success stories of recent removals. We hope to have you join us!
Sincerely,
The Florida Action Committee
Reminders:
Sat Sep 7- Family Support Session in Central Broward County -RESERVATIONS ARE CLOSED.
Sat Sep 14- Meet and Greet in Sarasota County from 2-4pm. Everyone Welcome. RSVP for location and details.
Mon Sep 16- Meet and Greet in Lee County from 6-8pm. Everyone Welcome. RSVP for location and details.
Thu Sep 26-Meet and Greet in Lakeland (Polk County) – Dinner 5-6pm and Meeting 6-7pm.
Sat Sep 28-Workshop in Apopka from 1-4pm – Come ready to stuff envelopes, make phone calls, plan projects for FAC Team Orlando
Sat Oct 2- Family Support Session in Central Broward County -11:00am-1:00pm -Seating is limited. RSVP early.
For more information about these events, or to RSVP email [email protected] or call 904-452-8322. No children please.
SOME HEADLINES FROM THIS WEEK
A Partial Fix of a Broken Guideline (proposal to amend Federal CP Sentencing guidelines)
Federal Sentencing guidelines are grossly outdated and misguided. Professor Brent Newton, Adjunct Professor of Law at America and Georgetown Universities and former Deputy Staff Director of the United States Sentencing Commission from 2009 until 2019, thinks so and…
Must Listen: Michigan ACLU’s Miriam Aukerman on the broken sex offenders registry.
In May, a federal judge gave Michigan lawmakers 90 days to overhaul the state’s sex offender registry law. That ruling came after a 2016 federal appeals court decision that found the sex offender registry law was unconstitutional. That 90-day deadline has now passed,…
New Smyrna Beach expands their SORR to 2500
At the link below you can listen to the City of New Smyrna Beach consider a Sex Offender Residency Restriction: Listen to Audio You will hear how misguided and misinformed the Commission is. We can only hope the ACLU brings a lawsuit….
THE ‘MINOR’ SEXPLOITS OF THE U.S. GOVERNMENT: HOW THE GOVERNMENT PERPETUATES HARM TO CHILDREN
ABSTRACT: In its zeal to arrest those who violate the sexual exploitation of minors statutes, the government has established a decades long pattern of violating those same statutes. This document discusses statutory history, how these laws apply specifically and…
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