ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — A man arrested in a child sex sting is suing the Orange County Sheriff’s Office on claims of entrapment. ____ ____’s attorney said deputies tried to entrap his client, who he said never had any intentions of meeting a 14-year-old girl. Full Article Related http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2011-11-01/news/os-sex-sting-child-predators-arrests-20111101_1_youth-pastor-disney-worker-disney-employee
Read MoreTag: Florida
FL: Unmanned Drones and Sex Offenders
TALLAHASSEE, FLA. — A state lawmaker from Central Florida has filed a bill that would make it a crime for registered sex offenders to use a remote control drone to spy on kids or take their pictures. Senator Dorothy Hukill of Port Orange says predators are required to stay away from schools, playgrounds and other places where children gather… but there’s nothing in the law about drones. “What they can’t do personally, they can do with a drone,” she said. “They can do it pretty unobtrusively without people being aware or knowing…
Read MoreFL: Miami-Dade Homeless Sex Offender Encampment Surpasses 200 People
The torture started in 2006. The cities of Miami-Beach and Miami got into a war of sex offenders because Miami Beach’s ordinance drove registrants without anyplace to live over to the mainland. Miami countered by passing their own ordinance to drive them back. The result, sex offenders couldn’t find anyplace to live and were living under the Julia Tuttle Causeway; the bridge that connects Miami Beach to Miami. Full Article
Read MoreFL: Group sues Seminole County, sheriff over sex-offender rules
An organization that works to reform sex-offender laws in Florida is suing Seminole County and Sheriff Don Eslinger, alleging that a decade-old county ordinance is so restrictive that it prevents registered sex offenders from traveling to a grocery store, eating out at a restaurant or, in some cases, even leaving their homes. According to Seminole’s ordinance, sexual offenders or predators in most cases are not allowed to “travel through or remain within” 1,000 feet of schools, parks, day care centers or playgrounds. Full Article
Read MoreFL: Halifax Health launches visitor ID system
… The process will take less than a minute and the system will screen visitors to see if they are on the sexual offender list, said David Hall, director of education and volunteer services. “We don’t want to build a wall and moat around the hospital,” Hall said. “We want to decrease our potential risk.” Sex offenders will be denied access. Sex offenders and those without a photo ID could be granted an exception to visit dying relatives, Hall said. Full Article
Read MoreFL: Woman Filmed Having Sex on the Beach in Front of Kids: ‘I’m Not a Sex Offender!’
Elissa Alvarez is paying a high price after she was filmed having sex on a crowded public beach. She told INSIDE EDITION: “I am a sex offender right now.” The 21-year-old and her bodybuilder boyfriend, Jose Caballero, are now on the national sex offender registry. Full Article
Read MoreFL: FAC Sues Seminole County, Florida over Sex Offender Exclusion Zones Ordinance
The Florida Action Committee (FAC) has sued Seminole County and its Sheriff over the County’s proximity ordinance, which prohibits certain registered sexual offenders and predators from traveling through or being present within “exclusion zones” that encompass most of the County. The problem is that the zones are so broad and so vague that law abiding registered citizens cannot comply with the ordinance. Full Article
Read MoreCollateral damage: Harsh sex offender laws may put whole families at risk
Research says that registries and residency bans leave children of sex offenders vulnerable to bullying, homelessness. When ____ ____, 38, bolts from his desk around 5:30 most weeknights, he’s up against his most important deadline of the day. ____ is an audiovisual editor and social media manager at a Christian television studio in St. Petersburg, Florida. By the time he gets home, he and ____ , his wife of nine years, have just over three hours to make dinner for their three children, squeeze in a half-hour of playtime, get…
Read MoreFL: Court backs sex offender ordinance in Palm Bay
PALM BAY, Fla. – There is a major victory for a Central Florida city looking to impose tougher restrictions on sex offenders. Palm Bay’s sex offender ordinance has been debated many times at city hall. Some say it puts too many restrictions on sex offenders, but Friday an appellate court released a ruling saying the ordinance does not violate offenders’ constitutional rights. Full Article
Read MoreFL: New security system will keep sex offenders out of Palm Beach County schools
WEST PALM BEACH (CBS12) – School will soon be back in session in Palm Beach County, and this year, new technology is offering an added layer of security. Ashley Frost is a parent and a teacher in Greenacres and says “I feel responsible to keep them safe so having one more security system in place can’t hurt.” Full Article
Read MoreThe Hunt for Child Sex Abusers Is Happening in the Wrong Places
It’s late March when Lauren Book and I head into the bowels of the Florida Civil Commitment Center (FCCC), armed with loose-leaf paper, pencils and the knowledge that we are about to sit face to face with three of the most dangerous sexually violent predators in the state. Full Article
Read MoreFL: Polk sheriff, lawmakers push for employee polygraphs in businesses dealing with kids
POLK COUNTY, Fla. – Polk County Sheriff’s Office held a news conference on Monday to discuss a bill that would allow private employers whose businesses interact with children to polygraph test potential employees during the hiring process. The Protecting Our Children Act would amend the Employee Polygraph Protection Act of 1988, which prohibits the use of polygraph tests during hiring, with the exception of law enforcement fields. According to a release from PCSO, the polygraph testing would help identify child sex predators during the hiring process and allow companies dealing with…
Read MoreFL: Driver’s license mistakenly labeled me a sex offender
ORLANDO, Fla. – A Florida woman who was issued a driver’s license that labeled her a sexual predator — by mistake — says she plans to file a defamation lawsuit against a county tax collector’s office. ____ ____, 42, said Thursday she was denied service when trying to book a room at a hotel, and has endured funny looks from cashiers when cashing checks because of the blue letters in the bottom-right corner of her license that say “SEXUAL PREDATOR.” Full Article
Read MoreFL: Couple found guilty of having sex on Florida beach
A jury Monday found a couple guilty of having sex on Bradenton Beach after only 15 minutes of deliberation. The convictions carry a maximum prison sentence of 15 years. ____ and ___ were charged with two counts each of lewd and lascivious behavior for having sex on a public beach on July 20, 2014.Video played in the courtroom during the 1- 1/2-day-long trial showed Alvarez moving on top of Caballero in a sexual manner in broad daylight. Witnesses testified that a 3-year-old girl saw them. Both ____ and ____ will…
Read MoreFL: Welcome to Pariahville
When you are a registered sex offender in America, you lose the right to choose where you want to live. By law. Your backstory doesnt matter. Nor does the nature of your crime or your excuse. You are exiled from society, and only a few places will welcome you. Like this place in South Florida. The City of Refuge. Jay Kirk reports on life in an American community—yes, that’s definitely the right word—like no other. Full Article
Read MoreFL: Council toughens sexual predator ordinance
The Marco Island City Council passed a tough new ordinance Monday that council members say has made Marco Island a less likely home for a registered sex offender or sexual predator. Full Article Related: Pasco toughens regulations on where sex offenders may live Sex offender surprises Pasco County commissioners with emotional plea
Read MoreFL: FSCJ changes policy to restrict sex offenders, bar sex predators from campuses
Florida State College at Jacksonville has implemented a policy that mandates sex offenders go through an additional application process while baring sexual predators from enrolling. Full Article
Read MoreFL: Beach to consider sexual offender ordinance
With the more people coming to St. Augustine Beach, the police department thinks it’s time to consider a sexual offender ordinance. … “We’ve seen the crowds double in the past couple years, and the ordinance will protect both the residents and tourists,” Parker said. He also said the city needs to adopt a sexual offender ordinance because there have been two related incidents within their jurisdiction. “Recently we had an incident on the beach with a guy who was using binoculars to watch girls,” he said. … “He turned out…
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