Florida Archives - Page 4 of 23

FL: Revisions made to Hernando County Sex Offender and Sexual Predator Ordinance

August 8, 2023August 8, 2023 R H

Source: hernandosun.com 8/4/23 Last week, the Hernando Sun ran a story on recent changes to the Hernando County Sexual Offender and Sexual Offender Ordinance found in Chapter 21 of the Code of Ordinances. The story was largely based on a copy of the revised ordinance posted on the BOCC website for their July 11th meeting. We have learned that the copy of the ordinance posted did not reflect some of the final revisions. County Commissioner John Allocco spoke with us about the final revisions and why the changes were needed.…

FL: Sex offender camp growing in Florida woods; public apparently not warned

July 28, 2023 R H

Source: fox8.com 7/28/23 CLEARWATER, Florida (WFLA) — A Florida camp powered by solar panels and a generator is home to about a dozen sex offenders who claim they were sent there by probation officers, but there is no indication the public was alerted. Land records indicate the tents that sit under a structure made from branches are on land owned by the Florida Department of Transportation. A state spokesperson said they were “not aware of this.” Several sources, including a defense attorney, told Nexstar’s WFLA that anyone on probation is…

FL: Man jailed after allegedly attempting to use pickup to run over sex offender

July 15, 2023 R H

Source: villages-news.com 7/15/23 A 67-year-old Wildwood man has been jailed after allegedly attempting to use a pickup to run over a convicted sex offender. William Harold Bailey went to the sex offender’s residence on County Road 121 shortly before noon Thursday and “aggressively” confronted the sex offender, according to an arrest report from the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office. He allegedly took a swing at the sex offender, who was not identified in the report. Bailey got into his tan pickup truck and attempted to strike the sex offender, with whom…

FL: The liability of unreliable crime data in election season

June 30, 2023 R H

Source: themarshallproject.org 6/20/23 In announcing his presidential bid, Florida’s governor relied on data from only half of the state’s law enforcement agencies. When Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced his bid for the presidency on Twitter Spaces last month, he touted Florida’s low crime rate as a proud accomplishment. “Claiming that Florida is unsafe is a total farce,” DeSantis said in the announcement. “I mean, are you kidding me? You look at cities around this country, they are awash in crime. In Florida, our crime rate is at a 50-year low.”…

ACSOL Nationwide Action Alert: Oppose a 1,500 foot Residency Restriction in a Florida County

June 27, 2023June 27, 2023 R H

Source: Florida Action Committee Let’s all support Florida registrants in Volusia County by opposing a terrible ordinance that would make it very difficult to find a place to live! All registrants in all states should email, call, or send letters through the U.S. Mail to the Volusia County Council members to let them know that you OPPOSE the expansion of the residency restriction requirement to 1,500 feet in the unincorporated areas of the county for people required to register as a predator. Click here to read the details

FL: Sextortion crimes continue to rise across Tampa Bay area

June 26, 2023June 26, 2023 R H

Source: news.yahoo.com/WFTS-Tampa 6/26/23 Sextortion crimes continue to rise across the Tampa Bay area. A St. Pete detective said it’s one of his top priorities to catch these suspects. Sextortion is when a suspect convinces a person to send inappropriate photos and then threatens to release those photos unless the victim sends money. It’s a crime targeting both children and adults in our area. Read the full article Related: St. Pete PD say sexting extortion cases more than doubled in 2023, with young people the primary targets [baynews9.com 6/6/23] Documentary…

FL: Florida Capital-Punishment Bill Regarding Sexual Offenses Sparks Controversy

June 15, 2023 R H

Source: discover.hubpages.com 6/4/23 1. Introduction When I moved from New York to California so many years ago, what really bewildered me was when I discovered that under their statutory-age-of-consent laws at the time, a 14-year-old boy could have been charged with statutory rape for having consensual relations with a 17-year-old girl. I had never heard of such a thing. I had thought that in those kinds of criminal cases, the perpetrator was always supposed to be older than the victim. In a situation wherein a boy that young had been…

FL: Homeless, delusional defendant sent to prison for life shown mercy by Miami judge

June 12, 2023 R H

Source: aol.com 6/12/23 Jared Stephens, a homeless and mentally ill man who committed an inexplicable crime, shouldn’t spend the rest of his life in prison, a judge ruled Monday. Miami-Dade Circuit Judge William Altfield undid a sentence handed down five years earlier by a different judge, who sentenced Stephens to a minimum of 150 years — with 120 days in jail for good measure. Stephens’ delusional behavior, before and during his trial, had stymied his defense. Read the full article

FL: Weaponization of Florida’s Legal System Being Used Against People on the Sex Offender Registry

June 10, 2023 R H

Source: tampabay.com 6/9/23 Gov. Ron DeSantis vowed that if he wins the presidency he will “excise political bias and end weaponization” of the U.S. Department of Justice “once and for all.” “We have for years witnessed an uneven application of the law depending upon political affiliation,” he wrote on Twitter on Thursday night in response to news that former President Donald Trump has been federally indicted on charges related to mishandling classified documents. The tone was consistent with DeSantis’ portrayal of himself as fighting against liberal takeovers of powerful institutions.…

FL: Republican prosecutor declined to pursue cases similar to those brought by DeSantis’ election police

June 10, 2023 R H

Source: orlandosentinel.com 6/5/23 A Republican state attorney last May declined to prosecute six voter fraud cases that involved circumstances strikingly similar to the cases later brought against 20 ex-felons by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ election police unit and statewide prosecutors. The office of State Attorney Bill Gladson, whose district includes The Villages and five Republican counties, confirmed six convicted sex offenders in Lake County had voted in the 2020 general election, according to a determination letter obtained by the Orlando Sentinel. Read the full article

FL: Orlando man arrested by DeSantis’ election police works to rebuild his life — again

May 12, 2023 R H

Source: orlandosentinel.com 5/12/23 Peter Washington Jr. had never voted in his life. But, in May 2019, he filled out a voter application so he could join his wife and “do something good.” “We had just gotten married,” he said. “We were doing a lot of things together.” Days after submitting his application, he was cleared by the state and received his voter ID in the mail. In October of the following year, the couple walked into the Hiawassee Library, near their home in Pine Hills. “I was anxious … scared,”…

FL: Officials: Florida Sex Offender Charged With Illegal Voting

May 11, 2023 R H

Source: usnews.com 5/10/23 MELBOURNE, Fla. (AP) — A registered sex offender in Florida has been arrested on charges that he voted illegally in the November 2020 election. Louis Palmieri, 77, of Melbourne, was charged Tuesday with false affirmation in connection with an election and voting by an unqualified elector, both third-degree felonies, according to Brevard County jail records. Melbourne is on the Atlantic coast, about 60 miles (96 kilometers) southeast of Orlando. Palmieri voted in the November 2020 election after signing paperwork claiming he was eligible to vote, the Florida…

FL: ‘Justice’ reformer, ex-BSO deputy Bleiweiss avoids prison but must submit to sex-offender treatment

May 11, 2023 R H

Source: floridabulldog.org 5/10/23 Self-appointed justice reformer Jonathan Bleiweiss, credibly accused of molesting 25 men when he was a Broward Sheriff’s Office deputy, has shut down an attempt to send him back to prison for a long stretch. Prosecutors wanted substantial prison time to punish Bleiweiss for violating his probation. Under the terms of a generous 2015 plea deal, he served less than four years of a five-year sentence for multiple counts of battery, stalking and armed false imprisonment, at the same time ducking a possible life sentence for multiple sex…

FL: Sex Tape of Florida Middle School Students Airdropped to Other Students, Incident Under Investigation

May 9, 2023 R H

Source: ibtimes.sg 5/6/23 School officials and the Jacksonville Beach Police are investigating a situation at Fletcher Middle School that allegedly involves an explicit video that shows two students having sex. Officials say the video was sent out to via AirDrop and text messaging apps, popping up on the cell phones of their peers at the school. Principal Joe McKenzie called parents to inform them of the incident this week. “We’ve recently learned that someone shared an inappropriate, obscene video with students via text message and Airdrop,” McKenzie said, in part.…

FL: Gov. DeSantis signs law that would punish child sex offenders with death penalty

May 3, 2023 R H

Source: cbs12.com 5/2/23 WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — Gov. Ron DeSantis signed three bills into law that would continue his tough-on-crime narrative for Florida. One of those bills would punish some child sex offenders with the death penalty. However, it could face some legal challenges – like similar cases before it. Read the full article

FL: Florida sex offenders could be required to have special colored license plates

April 27, 2023 R H

Source: nbc-2.com 4/27/23 Sex offenders in Florida could be forced to get bright green license plates. Democratic Senator Lauren Book added this to Senate Bill 1252 on Tuesday night. If passed, all vehicles owned, driven or leased by the offenders will be required to have a fluorescent green license plate. It would also make it illegal to disguise the plate. Sen. Book also wants all registered sex offenders to have the word “sexual predator” printed on the front of their driver’s license in the color red. For this to become…

Action Alert for Florida: Email/Call TODAY (4/26) to fight fluorescent green license plates and more!

April 26, 2023April 26, 2023 R H

Source: floridaactioncommittee.org 4/26/23 Florida residents, write and call today! There are multiple bills and amendments that would do things like assign a distinctive, fluorescent green license plate, red coloring on driver’s licenses, and require 24-hour vacation rental reporting. This will be voted on TOMORROW, Thursday, April 27, 2023. Read the details and take action today

ACSOL Action Alert for Florida: Fight SB 1252 red lettering on driver’s licenses

April 22, 2023 R H

Source: Florida Action Committee 4/20/23 Florida residents, SB 1252 would put red lettering on registrant’s driver’s licenses! Now is the time to fight this evil bill! Florida Action Committee has details on how to do that. Click here for details If you don’t fight it, who will?