Jurors don’t know what the penalties for a guilty verdict will be. They should.
Our jury system asks jurors to make decisions that have enormous consequences for citizens and their family members. The tough-on-crime laws of the 1990s, which lengthened many sentences to decades in prison, were sold to Floridians as being for the worst-of-the-worst criminals. What we have found, though, is that these harsh laws have caught up many people for whom they were never intended by our citizenry.
Before making a decision, should jurors be made aware of what will happen after a guilty verdict? Being told of the full sentence could be a game changer. As our courts are now, judges can undermine jurors’ opportunity to produce a fairer punishment when legislators and courts are not willing to do so.
There are criminal statutes that are far more severe than most citizens are aware.
Being placed on the registry in Florida can be part of a sentence, making sure that the punishment continues for a lifetime. Should jurors know this? Yes! Should the punitive nature of the registry be explained to the jurors? Yes! Every minute detail of it!
The punitive nature of the registry in Florida is so severe that there are people who are taking longer prison sentences in exchange for NOT being placed on the registry. As a defense attorney told me five years ago, being placed on the registry will destroy a person’s life.
Criminal juries were intended by our founders to be powerful checks on state power over criminal punishment. If that power could be returned to jurors, legislators might think twice before enacting severe penalties.
The sex offense registry is part of the sentencing process and is punitive, and that is putting it mildly. Jurors need to know how punitive the registry is to counteract what unscrupulous and self-centered lawmakers have done.
Good for the Washington Post. And for FAC Speaks for bolstering the Comments section of the article.
My bad, I thought WaPo was commenting on our registry when in fact that was FAC original content!
Sorry but I must disagree. That is not the jury’s burden to process. They are there to determine IF, and only if, what a person has been accused of has been proven beyond all reasonable doubt. Thats it. The only time, to my knowledge, that a jury is brought into the penalty phase is during case when the death penalty can be imposed.
In my case I did not go to a jury trial and accepted a plea – as the vast majority of defendants do. Mine, and my attorney’s failure, was not fully investigating the repercussions (beyond jail time). The SOR was relatively new at the time and we didnt think to find out what my post-incarceration registration status would be. Had I known it would be “for life”, I may have tried for a better deal to avoid this fate. I can only hope today, with the history of the registry well established, defense attorney’s are smarter and more educated on the post-conviction registry and advise their clients accordingly before accepting any sort of plea agreement.
Yes, I do think the registration laws are draconian and need to be radically changed at a minimum. Abolished entirely would be ideal of course. But that is up to the appellate courts and the legislature; not the juries.
Being placed on the registry in Florida can be part of a sentence, making sure that the punishment continues for a lifetime.
This statement is wrong and should be the basis for a challenge. There was NO mention of a registry when I was sentenced, because it did not exist. Why do people from the registry on get to use that as a plea bargain to get a better deal? I and 1000s of others did not get any considerations. The judges who refuse to acknowledge this should be ashamed they went to law school because they obviously did not pay attention in classes.
“Justice for all” I guess excludes anyone with a sex offense. Funny how I did not find the registry anywhere in the year I was sentenced. Shame on you justice system for being unjust.
CherokeeJ…
In Flori-DUH, Being on the Registry is for life and even after death!
In theory, everyone, is still a Ward of the State of Flori-Duh!
On State Sanctioned Compliance for the Rest of One’s Life and even after death!
Violation of Due Process; Violation of Ex Post Facto; Violation of Non-Delegation Doctrine; Violation of the Commerce Clause; ETC! ETC!! ETC!!
Make it a Great Day in the Neighborhood!
Interesting how they turned off the comments section after those 3 comments.
Maestro
I went and double checked because it said “Sign in to comment”.
But when I clicked that it said “Comments are now closed”.
I was going to put this comment……………
#1 They can’t handle the truth
#2 The truth hurts
#3 The truth will set you free
CherokeeJack
#4 If you can’t handle the truth don’t give me no lies and keep your arrogance to yourself.
#5 If you worry about other people’s business let’s see what skeletons are in your closet.
#6 If you were a crayon your shade would be Holier Than Thou White with a tinge of brown.
Brandon
Those Skeltons in my closet are very rude, they don’t even pay rent.
Yeah, but they probably don’t eat much either.
I’m just keeping it 100% real…had I known about what all gos with a conviction/ plea of a listed Sex Offence, and it will be for ever…im sure I would have had ran the other way before committing anything close to a sexual offense….u can bet on that.
Edward
Funny you say that. I once said if I could go back in time I would have plead not guilty and gone to trial. But stupid me. If I could go back in time, the smarter thing would have been to not have done the deed in the first place, regardless if it was so called “Consensual”.
In fact, if I had a time machine, I would have gone back to when I was about 9 years old and warned myself about a lot of crap. Maybe I could have changed the World. The only good news is, when this is all over, I know there is one that forgives and He is the only one that matters.
“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
John 16:33
Edward, I read your comment and thought back to when I was discussing with my lawyer “What does that registry thing mean to me?” He shared it was a means for the local govt to know where I lived and little more. I would be able to petition the Court to get off the registry after 10 years. He didnt think the registry would cause any more concerns for my life moving forward than the felony conviction.
As has been discussed MANY times, the registry is a moving target for us (and our loved ones) as the requirements keep getting increased, it is impossible to say anything about back then and IF I had known or such. Each of us somehow did something that put us into the negative limelight. We cant change yesterday, last week, even a moment ago. To me, FAC and its members are focused on how can we move forward with the weight of the ever increasing load being placed on our shoulders and still have some quality of life.
I was thinking about this the other day. How about something along the lines of ‘ya gotta give something to get something with prosecutors and legislators?’
How about doing away with the trial penalty or trial tax as some call it and adding a component where the jury is given the sentencing range to allow them to make an ‘educated decision’ instead of stacking the charges AND the sentence.
Oh, that was not a trade-off involving an accused but actually leveling the playing field for those on the receiving end.
Ok, I’m confused. I thought that the registry was a civil collateral consequence of a sex offense and not part of the sentencing process. A criminal statute must specify the punishment for a violation. A judge certainly can’t add a punishment that is not specified in the statute.
I doubt that Florida sex crime statutes are written to include a term on the registry. If so, that would actually be a good thing for any ex post facto argument, as the registry would then unambiguously be punishment.
Veritas.
Florida Statue
https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2018/943.0435
Thanks for the link Redkat. My point is that registration is not part of the punishment for a sex crime. It may be a crime to not register, but the original sex crime does not include registration in the punishment specified in the statute. I realize this is a fine legal point, and doesn’t change the punitive aspects of registration. However, to say that registration is part of “the sentencing process” is not quite correct.
If Florida does have a sex crime statute that lists registration as part of its punishment, I’d love that link. It would be quite useful.
Veritas.
ED C
I would like the stats on how many jobs the registry has created nationwide. I bet it is a staggering amount. Those cushy jobs are what motivates some to make sure the registries never go away. It is not about justice, it is about funding, control and suppression.
I can’t find any fault in that analysis, Cherokee. Nor would it be hyperbole to call it the “Registration Industrial Complex.”
Veritas.
ED C
When I was a cop there was no registry. However, I could imagine if there was one and they assigned me to that detail, I would have declined. Not because of what I know now, but I would have considered that baby sitting and harassing people who we already caught doing something.
I was more interested in stopping crime and apprehending those doing something wrong, not messing with people who haven’t gotten a chance to prove they can change. Even the most horrid person I came across, I never called anyone a scum bag or any derogatory name. I called even the worst of the worst “Sir” and Ma’am”. No matter how mean they were to me I remained not just professional but also kind, caring and compassionate to all people I came into contact.
I remember praying over a drug dealer as I watched him take his last breath. I got made fun of by other officers for a long time after that.
I can happily state I never got a single complaint against me when I worked in law enforcement, and that is hard to do. I never purposely put handcuffs on too tight, never “Accidently bashed someone’s head into the roof of the car as they were being placed under arrest. It was never my job to judge them or be the jury. It was not my job to deliver street justice. It was my job to arrest them and take them to jail and let the courts and the lawyers do the rest.
I use to really miss working in law enforcement. In today’s environment I wouldn’t do it if it was the last job on Earth and it paid $100,000 to start.
Cherokee, you are the embodiment of the objective of police reform. Over the years, we have seen increasing militarization of the police. I even heard one chief refer to his department as a “para-military force.” That para-military attitude does not belong on the street where there are citizens, but on the battlefield where there are enemies.
Thanks for your good service.
Veritas.
Ed
Thank you. I was born on a military base. My Dad was in Vietnam along with his two brothers. My Grand Dad served in WWII.
I tried to join the military but they said I had too many health issues. One trait I did not get from my Native blood is flat feet. I have huge high arches and cause me a lot of pain. My Mom got the flat feet I got the high heel lady feet HAHAHA
I have to regularly buy arch supports to wear shoes.
Yeah, but you’d probably look like one of Cinderella’s ugly step sisters trying squeeze into high heels! Try wearing flats instead. lol Unlike you, I was blessed with good health and the privilege of serving as an engineer officer in the 82nd Airborne Division.
Best wishes.
Cherokee they are just going by an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth in their on self-governing way with a bit of the Old Testament and they being ordained. Don’t we all know their is a higher authority than this man-made government. One wonders if government is self-centered.
While we are on the subject, of government , don’t expect man made government to be just. Scripture explains why. 1 John 5: 19 . The one who controls all earthly governments is not the true God. The one that does control government, including this one , has never been interested in justice.
As far as the registry is concerned the US constitution was thrown out the widow when it was started. The members of the USSC at that time that voted for it decided they knew better than the writers of the constitution. And decided that they could better protect the interests of children by in acting it, in their personal opinions. They were wrong. As time has proven.
There was a football game Sunday between the KC Chiefs and Baltimore. There was about one minute left in the game. KC had possession of the ball and were within field goal range , which they could have just kicked the ball and won the game but they decided to use up more time on the clock, they would run one more play. The ball was handed to him( won’t mention his name) when he got hit he dropped the ball and Baltimore took possession, so were able to win the game.
The point is should this one mistake be a mark that would loudly identify this player and even this team forevermore.
Or should we look at the whole record and choose to overlook these indiscretions and let them go on and try to do better from now on.
Look at all the facts. Like this player had never dropped the ball before , he had been out of use for 3 week before this with COVID isolation, he had some really hard hits already in the game.
In a court all the circumstances are never taken into consideration , so to condemn someone permanently for a single indiscretion or mistake should not be what identifies us as a society. But yet that is what the registry does.
Our natural human inclination is to hold grudges which scripture calls animalistic. The Godly inclination is to forgive. What do we choose to be identified for?
David
Think that is a bad example. The reason is, that is why I do not watch sports. Some fans hold players accountable for life for any mistake they think ruined the teams chances. I would like to see those fans play one , just one game and show us all how it is done.
Yeah that is what I thought.
I was always taught to play your best and that is all you can do. There has to be a winner and a loser (Except in soccer) so whoever loses, someone is going to be disappointed.
CherokeeJack
That might be a bad example I used as a illustration but I think the lesson learned would be appropriate. Whether applied to a judge or a juror or anyone else. We never know all the circumstances in a situation so must be very careful in judgment matters. Especially when you are talking long term repercussions. Which the registry is.
David
Foot ball is a team sport and it is team against team so it is: US vs. Them.
Golf is a game of “Every man for himself” (Or herself).
So the registry is like golf, us against everyone else. And F.A.C is like football, we are a team and it is us against them (The courts and law makers).
Why would the comment section be closed on something that was just posted a day before?
Even the mere suggestion off tepid leniency with a jurist deciding a sex case would be scoffed at and met with derision.
Asking the victimhood culture to give up ANY aspect of the registry would be like asking them to give up their God or religion. Lawmakers know fully well that hate, animosity and resentment is the accelerant that keeps the registry going. The post-conviction hell-scape for those with sex offenses puts a big smile on their faces, and in twisted way, gives them a sense of purpose.
Punishment, Penalities or even persuading endeavers, who can be right in these matters. Sure many can cry foul on biblical grounds or as many say does one size fit all in this registry game. Many didn’t have a chance to go to a jury but were given a plea deal or bargain. Should one look at a plea bargain, or deal as a bribery type of technique.
Man is always gonna have challenges and/or complications when it comes to others wanting to overthorw others such as in this registry ruse. Many citizens don’t even understand this and conclude its about raping someone but is it actually protecting with this cloud over one’s head.
One wonders if these able men and women are able to tie their shows right or is everything a plea deal away. Where is the true justice in that?