Is Profit Driving Florida’s Sex Offense Registry?
I was arrested by my local police agency and spent 24 days incarcerated, including the six days it took to transport me from Ohio to Florida so I could bond out and mount my defense. But Florida delayed my release in order to force me to register on the public sex offense registry.
I have never lived in the state of Florida, nor have I ever desired to reside in that state. I briefly traveled to Florida in the past to engage in a peaceful demonstration against the primary proponent of residency restriction laws that harm returning citizens and drive up homeless rates in South Florida.
I had also traveled briefly to the state to hand out Christmas care packages to those made homeless by the Miami municipal residency restriction ordinance named after the same proponent I had protested the year before. Given a choice, I would not have spent even a single day in Florida.
But now, due to this false accusation that was recently dropped (through a nolle prosequi), I am currently listed on the state’s public sex offense registry for life.
I decided to look a little deeper.
It would seem that registration status in Florida would be lieu of a pending outcome, which was in your favor. Any other similar legal circumstance would have removed the burden, even though I could see if you overstayed your welcome after your release, which you didn’t. So yes, I have thought for many years the registry in Florida is purely a political federal money grab under the guise of protecting children.
Likewise, this smells like Lauren Book.
Get the Febreeeze! Siomething’s definitely fishy in South FloriDUH.
Lauren Book helped Ron DeSantis in his efforts to silence political critics when she added the addendum to a cyberstalking billlast year that includes statements not directed at someone, but merely spoken about them. So if you talk bad about her, she could have you arrested.
It seems a tad ironic that Lauren Book is passing legislation that is so eerily similar to Sharia law (it is illegal to public officials in many fundamentalist Muslim nations) or to the Nazis (which also imprisoned political dissidents).
If Lauren doesn’t like criticism or opposing views she shouldn’t of put herself out there. Lauren should just get her name changed to little baby. She sure acts like one by having a tantrum and whinging all the time. Maybe she just needs more of her bottle.
I read through this twice. It is VERY WELL WRITTEN!” Too bad main stream news media on and about Florida will never cover it because many of such outlets are owned by Disney, which has a vested interest in promoting its own self interests
That’s why I sent it to The Crime Report.
I was worried they wouldn’t publish it at first since I usually get an email whenever they make edits, and especially because I discussed the Books and their own questionable motives for supporting the registry.
The Miasma Herald is on my (bovine excrement) list for trying to throw my name into the mix over that alleged extortion scheme against the State Senator. I hope I can add them to any future litigation I file, along with Florida Politics.
Just like anything political, follow the money. Robin Williams was famous for saying congress should get jackets like Nascar with their sponsors on them so we know why they make their decisions.
Please tell us that you have planned or are in process of a scorched earth litigation for a false arrest. I wouldn’t put it past the Books for being vindictive and starting that mess.
Don’t worry, there’s something in the works. I have to see what exactly can be done, and if so there’s likely details I can’t share publicly, just like I couldn’t share the details of the false theft case until it was closed. But based on what I have, chances the Books were involved in the false theft case is higher than the chance the Browns will win the Super Bowl.
Soooooo… Roughly 1 in 5 inmates within the FDOC have a sex offense. Or did that number include jails as well? I ask myself this and wonder, of all those currently incarcerated, how many are serving time for a registry violation. Just a thought.
Honestly I never served any time for my actual SO. However, I was sentenced to one year for failure to register. To be accurate and fair, my first failure to register was met with 1 yr probation on the ankle monitor. The second failure to register resulted in a 1 yr sentence which was in 2018 and I believe that is when they started doing to 1yr minimum mandatory for registry violations?
@ Tim P.,
It’s 6 months MANDATORY MINIMUM while wearing an anklet for a registry violation.
Sc
But one has to wonder. How can something that is supposedly “Non punitive in nature” cause someone to be re-sentenced to new charges, which are punitive? Remember, the registry is supposed just a “Tool” for the public to use, not as punishment?
I think I just learned the definition of oxymoron. “a figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction”.
So I guess the registry both is and is not punishment depending on if you are trying to fight it. If you are on it, it is punishment. If trying to get off, it conveniently is not. Do any of you have a headache? I do.
I had looked this up years ago while incarcerated and sure enough, the same information is in the most recent version of the FDOC annual report (2020-2021).
Am attaching the link here, but the main information on numbers by offense type are on pages 47-49. Keep in mind, though, the rest of it is the world according to THEM.
http://www.dc.state.fl.us/pub/annual/1819/2020-2021-Strategic-Plan.pdf
Mark
I didn’t know where to send this link and I know it’s a little off topic but this has a little to do with this topic. I just wanted to put this out there for anyone planning to travel and stay at campgrounds.
https://drivinvibin.com/2022/01/22/campgrounds-running-background-checks/
The registry is, and has been driven my political advancement and money from the word go. Want to get elected run on stricter registry laws(as if they are not bad enough already) Missing a commodity from the for profit prison system(RSO’s) create new laws that even registry law enforcement doesn’t understand and violate all of those who you catch not following those laws, and so on and so on. Behind every law or registry that doesnt make sense follow the money/power
Another one of my favorite articles on this topic:
https://theappeal.org/floridas-sex-offender-registry-proves-inescapable/
Jacob
Thank you for the awesome article.
BOOM! Evidence right in the article that the registry is punishment. Read the entire sentence below and wait for it as the last word sets in. (And remember most court state registry is NOT punishment).
“The Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s application for that money, which The Appeal obtained through a public-records request, uses the size of the registry to sell the state as a leader in punitiveness”.
I wonder at what point will the bloated registry numbers impact Florida’s tourism dollars. Come to Florida for the beaches with sand on your feet listening to the waves crash, come see Mickey and company at the Happiest place on earth, and come to Florida where 200k are on our registration.
What will the wizards of smarts in Tallahassee do is the question. I don’t hate the state of Florida; however I’m not fond of the state’s politicians and views. It’s like what are they seriously thinking and what are they smoking.
It is more than monetary profit driving the registry. It’s the desire for power and the continuance of that power. Politicians and LEO manipulate the uniformed, ignorant, and just plain stupid amongst us to achieve this.
There appears to be no shortage of the aforementioned in the state of Florida, unfortunately, thus the problem.
That’s why I refer to Floriduh as the “Hold Muh Beer State.” Any stupid thing done somewhere else, Floriduh says “I can top that. Hold muh beer.” Any crazy story becomes more believable if it’s reported as “it happened in Floriduh.” Remember, this is the state where the terms “hanging chad” and “bath salt zombie” were coined.
Well, there’s only so many topics I can cover in 1000 words. The Crime Report gives me more space than most, other places want 700, 500, 250 or even 200 words tops.
Personally I could careless about the color of her skin, but how she rules and decides cases.
Here is your answer
We cannot get a fair hearing in Florida but the Fla Senate can waste tax payers money voting on making strawberry shortcake the official dessert of Florida? And it passed.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/florida-senate-passes-strawberry-shortcake-bill/ar-AATdC9K?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531
Oh geez is the biggest issue for Floridians what the state dessert should be. What is wrong with your politicians? Well Floriduh gives itself a bad name because people elect these politicians. Florida should just secede and become its own country.
Non-spoiler alert: It’s not just Florida.
I’ll be laughing when Rep. Matt Gaetz Is arrested and convicted of his crimes of sex trafficking. Florida is truly the d**k of the country and nobody has the balls to take the corruption on.
I’m hoping him having to register is catalyst for change in Florida.
I long ago vowed to never set foot in Florida because of its tortured registration laws. Apparently that is not enough if one ever annoys someone there. Derek has been a strong advocate for reforming SO laws, and does not pull his punches. That is what put him on the radar of some powerful person. It sounds like he got the “Book” thrown at him. I’m just sayin’.
We all know that it’s punishment, we all know it’s a political game, and we all know that it’s a money grab. What the public doesn’t know, is what’s allowing it to remain for now.
Think about it, why would those clowns keep dead people on the list, except for cash.
I bet the us doj gives florida cash for everyone on that list, so they keep dead people and people who moved away, on their list.
This is corruption and theft from the public to fund a corrupt government, based on fear mongering, also gross and disgusting human rights violations and is pure evil.
I can’t think of any legitimate reason why Floriduh or other criminal regimes would not remove temporary visitors from their Hit Lists. So I’ve come to the conclusion that Floriduh wants to encourage visitors to not Register.
The criminal regime of Floriduh obviously then either doesn’t actually care about public safety or they don’t believe their magic Lists help.
What the criminals want is to be able to:
Arrest more people.
Imprison more people.
Lie to the citizens about what a problem “sex offenders” are and how government needs to stay big and bigger in order to protect everyone. And of course they need more $$$$$$$$$$$ to do that.
Floriduh is a criminal operation that is a danger to Americans.
Will Allen
Think of it from this perspective. Say you are a wholesome family with kids and want to come for a vacation. Then you learn Florida has one of the largest population of sex offenders on every corner of the state. Just lurking and awaiting kidnapping your kids when your not looking.
Yes we know that is not the case but with them inflating the #’s, that does not look good for the tourism perspective. Everyone pretty much agrees it is about funding for more and more registry resources so they can hire more officers, which means more patrol cars, more training, more equipment, more over time etc. etc. etc. Oh and pay raises for the Sheriff’s themselves of course.
Small % about safety , HUGE % about the money. How do you think they pay for sting operations where they arrest tons of people that are meeting cops, not a real victim, but get the same charges anyway. Traveling to meet a minor that doesn’t exist.
A concept crime I guess.
Sure. That’s not the part I was talking about, but it is also relevant.
What I meant is IF Floriduh ACTUALLY thinks it is important for visiting PFRs to tell the regime that they are visiting, then they would make it as easy as possible to do it. Instead, they give a bunch of disincentives. I don’t even feel like talking about them, let alone doing them. But to start with, I’m not interested at all in taking hours out of my life to tell a criminal regime that I am going to be visiting somewhere for a few days. I’m not interested in telling them so they can tell me all the places I supposedly cannot go or be, or all the various ways that they plan to harass my family. Definitely not interested in being listed on their Hit List after I leave their jurisdiction. All that. And THEN, I have to take even more time to retaliate for all of it. Very time consuming. Not interested.
Floriduh could make it very quick and easy. But they don’t want to. They don’t want visitors to be able to Register easily. Because it doesn’t affect public safety at all and/or they don’t care if it does. And because they want to be able to arrest some % of visitors. Bottom line is that they are criminals who aren’t fit to govern anyone. They deserve no respect and all the contempt people can give them.
Regarding your point, I have a wholesome family that takes a lot of vacations. I also personally pay to take all of my extended family on a long vacation every year and it always, always costs at least $10K. Usually a lot more. We’ve gone to Floriduh a bit. But I’ve started insisting that we don’t any longer. There are a number of scumbag states we avoid. Funny thing is that I don’t pay any attention to the Hit Lists where I’m going. I don’t care if they have 50K people listed, or a million. I know they are lying scumbags who can’t be trusted. I’ll protect my own family.
De-f’ing-fund all big government and especially their law enforcement criminals.
Florida’s got two registries: the one we all hate with 80k on it and the one for Soliciting prostitution. The latter has one name on it and as of now your name is listed for 5 years. I thought human trafficking was a huge problem in Florida; but who’s trafficking who. I never paid for sex, but Florida gets paid for trafficking my name as dangerous to their communities.
This is one of the most horrific story’s of all its kind!! It goes to show the lengths that public figures will go to catch a innocent person all fueled by hate and money. The Books are famous for this shit more than they want public to know. The real truth is they didn’t like the fact that Mr. Louge has a big heart and he helped the homeless and people who cannot live in suitable housing because of their ridiculous laws and ordinances. Florida is the worst state I have ever seen in my life!! PRR is also there and it is ridiculous as well. Innocent men and women who will be very get out because Florida is a Sundown State!! No sunshine if you commit more than one crime especially if your a convicted Sex Offender they will chase you with power and money across multiple states. What was once known as a Sunshine State is now Known as Sundown Black Out State!! Shame on Florida and it’s lawmakers, what you done was wrong!! What your doing is still wrong!!