Why is the Registry Punishment?
I can’t believe that we are still having to answer this common sense question. Isn’t it obvious?
Apparently to the judges of the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, who recently overturned a lower court’s decision that the registry was cruel and unusual punishment, it’s not so clear. Neither was it clear to the judge in the Southern District of Florida who felt that forcing people into homelessness due to Miami-Dade county’s harsh residency restrictions isn’t punishment either. Incredible given that two of the original defendants on that case had died homeless on the streets of Miami by the time the Court heard the case. How is this possible?
Well what is common sense to us isn’t necessarily common sense to a judge. We must remember that judges, like all of us, live in their own world, socialize with their own friends and exist in their own preconceived notions about society, crime and the law. In other words, they have no clue what’s it like to live one day in our shoes. If, just for a week, one judge could have his name, photo and information listed on the Florida Sex Offender Registry, make him go out and find a job, a place to live while raising two kids or try to find a partner to spend life with, then have him come back and make the decision as to whether or not the registry is punishment. Wouldn’t that be glorious?
Residency restrictions, going to our kid’s schools, having a shot at keeping a job, finding a place to live, going to church, all of these things can continue to be denied us because our presence on the registry isn’t punishment. This is hogwash. You know it but the Court’s don’t see it because apparently we have yet to make our case crystal clear.
In an effort to do that we want to compile a list describing in detail the punitive effects on a registrant, their family, friends, employers and others in their lives, experienced living a lawful everyday life. Please include your experience in the comments below. Be specific and we will compile your comments for a “master list” of the punitive effects of the registry. Also remember that this is specific to our presence on the registry, not the criminal conviction itself nor any hardships as a result of probation requirements. PLEASE only list events that happened to you, not commentary.
Judges don’t know what they don’t know, so we have to tell them. We look forward to your comments.
Discover more from Florida Action Committee
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Oh boy where do I start. I have been living in this hell for close to twenty years. It’s almost impossible to find housing when you do the price is 3 times what is normal. I have a degree in culinary and a degree in ac repair you know what’s my profession. Driving trucks. Yes the two degrees I spent over 70 grand to obtain I can’t use them because I’m on the registry and nobody will hire me. I spent two years living on the street not because I didn’t have support of some family and could have easily stayed with them but because of residency restrictions kept me from staying with them.
It also kept me away from homeless shelters. So when hurricanes come our way I’m forced to just sit back and face the elements. Currently single because every worthwhile relationship I ever enter into once she finds out I’m on the registry the relationship ends because she doesn’t want the stigma!I can go on and on but to sum it up it’s denied and rejected from housing , from jobs, from religion from society. And not to mention everyday I fear for my life hoping and praying a vigilante doesn’t come across my name and come to kill of me and the household
Where I live there is a bike and walking paved path that covers much of our city. It passes just 400 feet from my home. By law I am not allowed to use it or loiter within 500 feet of that marked bike path, punishable as a felony with 7 years in prison. If I decided to sit in a lawn chair in my own yard I could be arrested. If while mowing my grass I paused to rest for 2 minutes I could be arrested for loitering within 500 feet of a bike trail and spend the next 7 years locked in a prison. All because of a single conviction 20 years ago that landed me in prison for 30 months. If I ever move I will loose “grandfathered” status and never again be able to life within a distance of any path, school, church, daycare, home daycare, playground, McDonald’s with a play area, park, bus stop, place where children might congregate, etc. For the rest of my life. But I still have to pay property tax to maintain all of those things that I can never use or be near.
Judges are human beings, and as such, are just as biased or un-biased as any other human being.
I thought that by taking the oath as a judge, prejudice is supposed to be left behind?
The bunk house I found to stay at, let me stay as a registrant for 6 months. That is until a neighborhood activist went to the Mayor of Houston to complain that there were too many of “us” staying there. They gave me a week, before kicking me out.
I found a woman who accepts and loves me. Her family disowned her.
I move to Florida, I find an apartment in a registrant approved part of the city. My realtor hires me as maintenance and gets the riot act read to her by the Sheriff’s Sargent. Blessedly, my realtor sides with me. A neighbor catches wind that I live next door, they get on Facebook and tell everyone that the Realtor has a sex offender working for them.
Unable to live in most decent places (city/county ordinances or apt lease rules)
Change of address hassles and having to update license so quickly after a change
Fear about keeping address/car ownership listing current in emergency situations (emergency addr change or car rental)
Having to register in other states while traveling
Having to register “temporary residences” when traveling in Florida
Inability to travel nomadic-ly (maybe hike in the Appalachians) without fear of arrest or threats
Having to research registry laws, accurately, outside of Florida before travelling
Prohibited presence within certain “zones” in counties like Seminole and Brevard
Inability to attend some public meetings and/or demonstrations in prohibited “zones”
Having to register email addresses, Internet ID’s, phone numbers – lack of privacy
Fear of being refused entry to foreign country – usually very costly
Stamp of shame of the passport
Requirement to register intent to travel abroad and the trip details required
General public shame and possible vigilantism
Hard to keep friends or lovers due to restrictions on life and/or distrust by the other person
Having to appear for in-person registration during the year
Not being allowed on school campuses for your own kids’ events
Not being admitted to college or adult schools or campus restrictions if allowed to attend at all
Not being able to work or to volunteer on a school campus without registering it online and then being outed by the State
Being forbidden from using adult social media sites
Fear about being surveilled by law enforcement everywhere that you go
Having to register vehicles of other folks staying at your residence
Hassle of at least semi-annual police address verification visits – often before dawn
Lifetime registration without qualitative evaluation of your danger to your community
Remaining on Florida registry after moving out of the state permanently
Having to register in other states for a lifetime only because Florida required you to
Unable to get many jobs
Unable to get bonded or insured for many jobs or events
Not allowed to be a member of YMCA and other groups
Effect of your registration on your family members – your kids getting bullied
Stress of keeping up with specifics of new, unclear and punitive legislation
Having no refuge or refuge only at the jail during severe weather events
Having little political power – speaking out in public exposes me as an offender
Possibly forbidden to enter certain hospitals even in crisis situations
Law enforcement officers’ differing opinions regarding what the laws are – getting arrested by mistake
My husband was placed on the registry in 1998, and honestly unless he applied for a job, no one that we know of (other than our close friends and family) was even aware of his status. We quietly lived our lives, for a while. Fast forward to I believe 2007, and we started getting unannounced visits twice a year from JSO. Then about a year or so later, a 10 year old girl about 2 miles from our neighborhood goes missing. That resulted in a search of our home at 2am on a Sunday morning, no search warrant, just 10 JSO officers on our porch telling my husband they were going to search the house and he couldn’t do anything about it (the girl wound up being a runaway that was found that same morning hiding in her next door neighbors yard).
I’m anxious when we travel out of state because I’m what- ifing the residency requirements wherever we go.
Everyday our son goes to school, I pray no one ever finds out about his dad’s status. Halloween of course is a no go, or decorating for any holiday for that matter. (I still dont understand how being denied our religious right to decorate for Christmas isn’t illegal.)