Call to Action on Florida’s Legislation on Sex Offender Laws

Weekly Update 2017-04-18

Dear Members and Advocates,

It’s crunch time! We are coming to the end of legislative session and we are busy organizing and advocating. We need your help in calling on the legislators to OPPOSE the proposed Internet Identifier bills, specifically SB 684.

This bill attempts to clarify the Internet Identifier statute which passed last year requiring all registrants provide an overwhelming amount of information on their web activity. The pending lawsuit still doesn’t have an order from the court. Although the legislature has tried to somewhat lessen the burden, this bill still violates your constitutional right to free speech. LET’S TELL FLORIDA’S LEGISLATURE NO!! They cannot take away our first amendment rights.

At the bottom of this email there is a list of legislators who are on committees yet to hear the bill. Please contact all of those on the list, asking them to vote NO on this bill.  (Contact information can be found here: http://flsenate.gov/Senators/#Senators).

Also, we are actively working on a lawsuit benefitting people on the Florida Registry who are no longer living in Florida. If you or a family member have moved, been deported, died or are otherwise no longer in Florida but are listed on the Florida Sex Offender Registry and you have not been contacted about this lawsuit, please write to legal@floridaactioncommittee.org. For more information, visit: https://floridaactioncommittee.org/no-longer-fl-fl-registry/ and please share this link with other State’s affiliates so we can reach people who are not in Florida and let them know we are working on this.

As you can imagine, we have a lot going on from our end and count on your continued support and voices to keep us going.

Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Criminal and Civil Justice

Committee on Appropriations

Please step up and take action.  Make these calls and state “I am asking the Senator to OPPOSE Senate bill 684. This bill violates one’s constitutional right to free speech. You cannot take away one’s first amendment rights.  Please Vote NO on Senate Bill 684.”

Sincerely,

The Florida Action Committee

SOME HEADLINES FROM THIS WEEK:

2nd Circuit Declares CP Sentence Unreasonable<https://floridaactioncommittee.org/2nd-circuit-declares-cp-sentence-unreasonable/>

In Jenkins (attached), the Second Circuit reversed as substantively unreasonable a within-guideline sentence of 225 months (plus 25 years of supervised release) in a child pornography case in which the defendant was convicted of possession and transportation, and the…

The punishments are getting out of hand!<https://floridaactioncommittee.org/punishments-getting-hand/>

The punishment for minor registration violations are out of hand. Case in point, this story out of West Virginia: BUCKHANNON – The West Virginia State Police have made an arrest for a man failing to update his sex offender registry. John Paul Shipman, 43, of Adrian,…

100 Years for first-time CP offender<https://floridaactioncommittee.org/100-years-first-time-cp-offender/>

A 36-year-old St. Johns County man is looking at spending the rest of his life behind bars after Circuit Court Judge Howard Maltz sentenced him to 100 years in prison Wednesday morning. The sentencing came nearly two months after a jury found Jesse Graham Berben…

NY: No sex offender registration for non-sexual offense.<https://floridaactioncommittee.org/ny-no-sex-offender-registration-non-sexual-offense/>

Today, an Appellate Court in NY issued an opinion in People v. Diaz holding that an individual cannot be subject to Sex Offender registration for a non-sexual offense committed in another state. In 1989, Frederick Diaz was upset with his 13 year old sister because she…