Florida Citizen (1)

I was a Special Education teacher for about 23 years, teaching all kinds of students from Mentally Challenged to Learning Disabled. I was (I think) well respected because I related to my students and treated them like people. Yes, I even gave hugs to both guys and gals!!! I was accused and convicted of touching a 16 year old male special education student and flashing my breasts, supposedly in the downstairs locker room area where they have cameras. When asked on what date(s) this happened, the police said “victims don’t have to provide specific dates”. When asked about what the video cameras showed, they told me they weren’t working at the time.

When brought to the police station, I didn’t ask for a lawyer because I didn’t believe anything would come out of it. I was arrested for 2nd degree misdemeanor child molestation, forced to resign my job and was a WRECK for 4 months. I had serious thoughts of suicide but because I had a daughter and husband, I did not follow thru. I was scared too that if I went to trial, I would automatically be found guilty because that summer was when all the news showed THAT pretty blonde teacher from Florida who had admitted to having sex with underage students. There was this hysteria that was going on in the public’s mind. If I was found guilty, I could spend up to 7 years in prison, the prosecutor said.

My lawyer told me the prosecuting attorney would charge me with a felony and would bring up a 30 year old drug felony from the 70’s (that was wiped off my record by then; but of course, the police can see it!) if I went to trial. His reasoning to not go to trial supposedly was because it would “disrupt” the victim’s schooling and sports. My lawyer said to plead guilty to child molestation (a misdemeanor). I had asked my lawyer if a change of venue was possible and he said NO! My husband and I did not know what to do since we had never been in this situation before. Right before the time came to plead guilty, my husband convinced me to go to trial instead. When I told my lawyer that I wanted to go to trial, he said “it’s too late to do that”.

So I did plead guilty, believing the lawyer was telling me the right thing to do, not knowing what that meant in my state …….LIFETIME REGISTRATION.

I was on probation for 2 yrs, went to work at commercial sales at JC Penney’s in the window covering department. I was a model worker (the highest commission seller in my department, the 17th highest in our district which included St. Louis and #9 in catalog sales in the U.S.!!!!) and a model citizen. A local newspaper decided to do a story on where sex offenders work. Guess where they got their info? You got it….the Sex Offender Registry. When hired, employees at JC Penney’s were not given a Background Check. But after the newspaper called and ALERTED them, they suspended me and two other good workers who had been there longer than I but who were also sex offenders. We were then all FIRED because we failed to pass the Background Check. DUHHHH!! Another job that I was hired at fired me after one week, one day and one hour. I was a receptionist for an office machine’s company that only did work out of the office. I answered phones, opened and sent mail and made copies. There were no children around, but after my employer found out about my conviction from the background check, I was fired. Now mind you. I never lied on my applications because they only asked if I had any FELONY convictions, which I don’t.

So my husband and I learned that we didn’t ask the right questions but neither did my lawyer. After serving 15 days in jail and working at Penney’s for 17 months and then being fired, I have been struggling to find a decent job, one that doesn’t demand a background check. I have been collecting food stamps, unemployment, and going to the food bank. The stress has been so bad that even though my husband supported me through it all, we have divorced after 27 yrs. of marriage!!!

The summer after my conviction, my lawyer committed suicide. Yes, I found out through the local paper that he had Bi-Polar Disease most of his life and lately had not been taking his medication. So one month after my release from jail, he attempted suicide unsuccessfully by stabbing himself 30 times. Then he tried it again 3 more times unsuccessfully. In the summer of 2006 he was successful. Evidently his attorney’s firm knew all about this the whole time. But I was not made aware of his problems. I was told I cannot contest my conviction based on my belief that he was incompetent due to his illness, because he is dead.

After being laid off from a job in December, 2009 I worked and worked to find another and when I couldn’t I moved to the city my mother lived in. I wanted to live with her because I had little money and also to take care of her. I told her to call the Police department to make sure that I was living outside of the 1000 feet restriction. She called twice before I moved and they said it was all good. I lived there from August through January and then was told I lived 120 feet too close to the school. How could that happen after 5 months??? I was told the state Highway Patrol said the map on the Sex Offender Registry was NOT an exact science. So I am