The Sex Offender Registry is a Legislative Minefield

(Weekly Update #195)

Dear Members and Advocates,

This week marks the final week in the 2022 Florida Legislative Session and we are pleased to see that so far we have been successful in our efforts to prevent some of the more concerning bills from moving forward. We will wait for the session to officially close before making any final determinations – since lawmakers have been known to sneak stuff into bills at the last minute – but so far S.B. 1932, which proposed to re-define “day” for purposes of what is considered “3 or more days” as part of a calendar day, appears unlikely to become law.

It is impossible to know what happens behind the scenes that influences these bills to move forward or die. Was it the numerous calls and emails legislators received from our members in response to our calls to action? Was it the decision in Ex Post Facto II, where the judge implied that the three or more days in the aggregate was already pretty ridiculous? Or, was it simply common sense prevailing? We will never know, but at the end of the day it’s likely a combined effort of all three; the hundreds of calls from constituents asking them to oppose, the pressure applied by pending litigation, and educating the public to realize that these registry laws are not working.

We have to offer some very deserved appreciation to our legislative team, who did a fantastic job of tracking legislation, identifying the concerns, formulating the talking points and putting together the calls to action. We must also acknowledge the efforts of our members who stepped up, made the telephone calls, sent the emails and reached out to friends and family asking them to do the same. This year’s effort was more organized than ever before and we hope that as we enter the final week, we all make a strong final push to lock in success.

Remember, even if it might seem as though a bill is going to die on the vine, it is possible for a lawmaker to take all the offensive language from a dying bill and insert it into another bill that is at the finish line, so lets not stop pushing and let’s give this last week our full effort. You can find our calls-to-action at the top of our website.

This past week, the guest speaker on our monthly member call was an assistant public defender who was kind enough to talk about some of the registry violations she has had to represent clients against. Many of our listeners were confused by some of what she outlined and some questioned her interpretation of some of the requirements. As with all of our guest speakers, member submissions, and website commenters, the views and opinions expressed by third parties are not those of FAC and we may not always agree. If anything, it was an illustration of how vague and unclear certain registration requirements are and how even people with legal training and experience with these laws can have differing interpretations of how they apply.

Sincerely,

The Florida Action Committee

ANNOUNCEMENTS

New Calendar of Events – Keep up with Meet-and-Greets in your area, Support groups, Membership Calls, and other events.  Click Here for Calendar, and double click on the event to view details and RSVP instructions. For questions, contact membership@floridaactioncommittee.org or call 833-273-7325,Option 1.

• New Member Orientation Call Thursday March 10 at 8pmET.  Learn more about the organization, ask questions, get resources and discuss volunteer opportunities. Dial 319-527-3487 – All members and callers interested in learning more about FAC are welcome.
• Join the County Coordinator Team.  Only requirement is your desire to HELP us organize your county.  Training for new Coordinators is available.   Choose best day/time for you:  Wednesday 7pm (March 9 or 16), Thursday 1-2pm (March 10  or 17), Sunday 7-8pm (March  13 or 20)   Dial (760) 548-9898.
• Family Support Group (by Zoom) Sat Mar 12th from 11:00-1:00pmET
• Monthly Membership Call Thursday April 7 at 8pm.  Topic: Untouchable Documentary.  Guest speaker Shawna Baldwin.  Dial 319-527-3487
• A national conference is planned for March 2023 that includes a vigil on the steps of the United States Supreme Court.  Watch for details!

SOME HEADLINES FROM THE WEEK

Call To Action – Oppose SB 1732

CALL TO ACTION ON SB 512 and HB 325

CALL TO ACTION FOR SB 1932

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