FAC Weekly Update 2024-05-15- Read Your Orders
Dear Members and Advocates,
On the May Monthly Membership call and in a recent post, we addressed “paper felonies” and strongly encouraged members to check their Registration paperwork for accuracy. We have received loads of comments, emails and calls from members expressing their appreciation as they discovered and corrected errors and omissions in their paperwork that would have otherwise gone unnoticed and potentially lead to a paper felony.
Following the laws after you are released from probation can be challenging because you are on your own to know the current restrictions and changes, at both state and municipal levels. Once a person is released from probation, following the registry requirements is a strict liability. That is, you cannot defend yourself based on the reason that the law changed, and you were not notified of the new requirement. FAC is constantly trying to reach people to remind them of the current restrictions and caution them on the damaging outcome to those who were unaware of the consequences.
While on probation, it is a different matter to some extent. A person on probation can be violated when it is shown to be an intentional action. So you have some degree of security, but it is still your responsibility to know the requirements of your probation. It is important to rely more on yourself and less on the probation officer to keep you from an unintentional violation.
Time to take this short quiz, as it applies to you:
- Do you have your Court Orders that define your probation?
- Do you have the paperwork your Probation Officer gave you during your first meeting?
- Do you have your most recent Registration paperwork?
- When was the last time you read your court order, probation paperwork, or Registration paperwork?
- When are you planning to take it out and read it again to become very familiar with it, and ask questions when something is vague?
Today, I spoke with a member who is on Federal probation. Within months of his return home, he was able to find housing, start a business, bond with his family, and have a great social life. He just needed a car, so he began to focus on improving his credit rating. He applied for a new credit card, which seemed harmless, until you realize that his federal probation guidelines clearly state that he must report credit applications to his PO. He is now serving 7 months in federal prison for the probation violation that could have been avoided….if he had only read the probation papers before filing them away in a drawer. He told me today, he would have posted them on his wall had he known what could happen. He asked that I share this with you so you don’t fall victim to this, or any other paper felony as he did.
Remember that municipal ordinances differ from county to county; individual court orders will vary; state and federal probation requirements are not the same; and probation officers are unique. Therefore, make no assumptions based on hear-say or what others were told. Know what applies to you.
I get it….we only want to spend the minimal amount of time on this stuff, and that “out of sight is out of mind” so we just want to shove the paperwork in drawer and forget it even exists. Before you do that, please make it a priority to read it first and re-read it periodically. Don’t risk losing all that you have, whether it’s a little or a lot, it is still all that you have worked hard to get. It can be lost if we fail to make this a priority.
On a very positive ending note…as FAC membership grows, we are able to reach more people and educate them about these paper felonies. You can do your part by passing on the warning to the person in front of you, or behind you, the next time you are in the Registration Office, and be sure to hand them a white FAC membership card so they can learn more about the issues, and how we are lobbying to reform these draconian laws on their behalf. You can pick up FAC materials at a local meeting or contact us to receive materials. Spread the word….With Unity Comes Change.
Sincerely,
The Florida Action Committee (FAC)