The County Commissioner in Brevard County, Florida has put this rather odd item on next week’s County Commission agenda.
County Commissioner John Tobias is apparently not satisfied with the current state residency statute for those convicted of certain sexual offenses. The existing 1,000 ft. restriction of registrants from schools, daycares and playgrounds doesn’t seem to be “safe enough” for him.
The Commissioner has proposed an ordinance that would also restrict registrants from certain businesses, an “expansion of the buffer zone” if you will.
Those businesses that are willing, can “voluntarily” sign up to be put on a registry, registrants would then be required to maintain a 1,000 ft. distance from any business on the registry. Law enforcement would have the ability to arrest, as Commissioner Tobias says “offenders and predators” found within the buffer zone of these businesses.
The potential for harm from this proposed ordinance would be enormous. Now, not only would registrants be denied the day to day activities that other parents participate in, such as taking their children to school or daycare or watching their children play at the playground, now they would also be denied taking their children to stores or other business venues within expanded buffer zones.
Comments made by one business owner (for whom I will not provide free advertising) eager to sign up for the registry, echoed the comments of Commissioner Tobias, he reported he was “happy to be part of a new voluntary registry that “certified” his establishment as a place where children regularly congregate and where “sex offenders and predators” were restricted from coming within 1,000 ft.” According to the business owner, “we’re protecting our kids and community”.
From their similar statements, it appears that both the Commissioner and the business owner seem to view “sex offenders and predators” as all one and the same.
It’s terrible to read news interviews like this one which was done by Spectrum News 13, Orlando, and see how often the terms “sex offenders and predators” are used interchangeably and incorrectly by the general public. The news media never seems to question their use nor do they correct the public’s mis-use of the terms.
Those who want to be on the voluntary registry are being led to believe that anyone working or patronizing a business inside of the sacred buffer zone is a safe person and not a threat, as opposed to those who would be denied access. I suppose a registry “certified safety buffer zone” could be a great marketing tool for their business and I can’t wait to learn how they will “certify” that anyone within the allowed zone is safe. One thing is certain, the business owners that participate in this type of registry are obviously are not interested in any potential revenues lost from decent people who might have patronized their establishments, but can’t, simply due to the fact that they are on a “different registry”.
Something that doesn’t seem to have been addressed yet is businesses that choose not to be on the “voluntary registry” but happen to be located within the same 1000ft buffer zone of a business on the registry. Maybe those businesses would welcome ex-offenders as patrons of their establishments, but if registrants can’t breach a common buffer zone, what happens then? Seems there’s a few glitches in this ordinance proposal that haven’t yet been considered.
It’s only a matter of time, since most brick and mortar schools are closed due to the pandemic and children are being educated at home, before some county official with too much time on their hands, declares that “homes should be considered schools” and “sex offender buffer zones” need to be expanded even further.
If we allow the further expansion of restriction zones, soon there will be no place left for those on the “punitive registry” to go.
This agenda item will go before the Brevard County Commission next Tuesday. I hope there are some sensible business owners who will vote down the “voluntary business registry” idea.
Why not just dust off the old “Whites Only” and “Colored Entrance” signs stashed somewhere in the basement of the Capitol in Tallahassee (and Montgomery, and Jackson, and….) and update them a little?
The biggest problem with this scheme is it violates the targeted person’s rights to associate with every other person or business within that 1000-foot area. The particular business may not want to engage in Free Speech with someone, but that business has no right to prevent the one next door from doing so. However the ordinance is worded, it sure seems it’ll have a tough time overcoming intermediate scrutiny.
doesn’t this guy know or follow or even update his IQ?? how many years have this seen been played out? who is the real monster *that guy* or the registrants? of course keeping in mind YES there some that really do need help BUT we all know and have known not all are the same *case by case*
Well, all I can say is, thank goodness somebody this stupid is the one proposing this idea. You can tell Mr tobia’s a moron just by looking at him.
Their was an article several years ago entitles “Are we all sex offenders” that article has a lot to say in this game of internet spying and inducing another via texting off color sexual slurs. One wonder’s if law enforcement have been guilty all along. Inducing others up i this Polly Anna game of sexual distruction. So should we say all are guilty?
Yes their are many rights. Civil Rights Matter, Offender Rights Matter, Black Rights Matter, Human Rights Matter, and yes True Justice Matters. If were talking about IQ than I would tend to believe that the president know’s more than anyone else on the planet, remember his slogan, Make America Great Again or one can go to Hollywood Planet and say anything oe wants.
Guess thats why he wears a mask for his dignity, honor, and his true undersdtanding. These sex offenses done via this internet are so out of balance and who’s offending who when it all comes down to it. One wonders who’s inducing and controling this deceptive downfall that bares to shout out “I can’t breathe”, in so many ways for True Justice for all. And they call this True Justice via money launder scaming by their rules and principals.
I thought they already had an ordinance with a 2500’ buffer zone. Let’s ban the state of Florida after all it looks like part of the male anatomy. No wonder Florida is one of the most corrupt states in the country. The good ole boy system is alive and well in the Stuck on Stupidity state of Floriduh!! This county commissioner is a prime example of stupidity; what a joke. You took an oath to defend the constitution and that includes people you don’t like.
I bet this numbnut hated being punished for something he didn’t do. I’m tired of being punished for things I haven’t done and courts not calling it punishment. Truly I say to you the hate in this country is frightening and high; right Justice Roberts, Kennedy and Alito!!
“In other words, persons required to register will not be able to go within 1000 feet of these businesses, including any other residence or business located within that 1000 foot exclusion zone.”
So a business owner placing itself on this list can deny a registrant from visiting a friend or relative who happens to be within this so called “buffer zone”.
It states ” including any other residence”. Not to mention the fact it prevents one from going into a store that may want to stay off this registry but will lose customers now because of a store near it not wanting registrants.
The next ordinance they will try and pass is allowing businesses anywhere to just post a sign at the entrance stating “No Sex Offenders Allowed By Law to Enter this Premise”.
Who signs along the road where businesses that place themselves on this list the town now posts signs on that road, “No Sex Offenders Allowed on this Road”.
Maybe the good commissioner and one Mr. Book should get together and share a taxi after they’ve had just a drink or 2 too much? Maybe he ought to be reminded of his mistake at the meeting too?
@Kat – don’t give them any ideas WRT home schooling and measurements that aren’t part of the curriculum. You do not know who the people are reading this forum besides the usual crowd.
Wow is this commissioner friends with Ron Book. 3 drunken idiots: Ron Book, Rep. Matt Graetz and the commissioner need to spend less time sipping their whiskey; at their respected workplaces; and get the treatment they need. They must give up the keys to all vehicles owned or could be operated by them. They must stay 4500’ from any roads or areas that have access to alcohol. They must do random polygraphs on their use.
Still think the “tide is turning” or the “pendulum is swinging the other way?”
Yeah, I read comments like that on here back in 2013.
I guess everybody has so much business right now that they can pick and choose their customers…must be nice to be in that situation. How would they even enforce that with everybody wearing masks? Check ID at the door before you entered any business and then check that against the “list”? People are such idiots.
I say let them have this “feel good” crap. There is no way this would survive any kind of challange. It is easy to see this preventing grocery store access(loss of life), inability to access to accees large swaths of town/state(loss of liberty), forced out of homes because corner store “volunteers” under pressure. This could be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. This proposal is open & blatant banishment using the facebook model without the facebook benefit of aleternatives as well as forcing others to conform to the volunteers choice inside 1000′ bubble.
Yeah that’s bad. what if every grocery store singed up – now registrants can not buy food any more? I dont see how that works out except the death off all registrants so – working as intended? which seems to be the case in all things. If we are killed by the public – working as intended. Not able to find housing, working as intended. cant get a job – working as intended? If they leave us no choice, we will have to kill other humans to survive at all.
Geez, what major a-hole. Let’s hope he gets the Big C, either the new one or the old one.
Let them do it.
This way Florida can use Michigan’s case as a template of increasing penalties.
This is nothing more but an election year stunt to pretend they care and are trying. No way this would hold up muster in court as it would prevent other businesses from making sales, not to mention cut off residential access.
There’s also no way to enforce this. It’s one thing someone enter school grounds and another thing entering a random store. Do they plan on screening the thousands of customers they get each month, week, or even day? And even if they want to pretend they’ll use facial recognition, I can’t wait for false identification, and then having that person sue them and the county into oblivion.
Is this true? I only did a brief search and didn’t see anything. If it is true, I will personally contact the scumbag to chastise him and insist that he rectify his failure to protect children by getting the national, public, lifetime, big government Drunk Driver Registry created. I thought Registries protect people. Guess not.
One word. Florida.
If this would pass what would they do when “normal” people commit sex crimes in their holy buffer zones. Oh wait it happens all the time, but these scum wouldn’t see the writing on the wall. To many Karens and whatever the male version is harassing people. Very sad when people can’t mind their own business.
I see a ton of violent crime against children in NY. The entire US actually. It is abundant. Always has been actually. No end in sight. Some children maimed and some are dead but no registry proposed for this group of convicts? Please explain.
How about the 2 year old boy that was killed by his parents in California recently? Did his tragic murder get any airtime? Of course it didn’t get as much As if his murder was sexual in nature. It’s time for Americans to grow up and stop being repulsed by Only sex crimes against children. Protect them from violence on the streets, in schools, and break the cycle of abuse including addictions along with other mental health issues.