Senator Look to Close Sexual Offender Registration Loophole
January 26th, 2021 by Jake Stofan
Legislation aiming to close a loophole that has allowed at least one convicted sex offender to skirt registering with the state after his release from prison passed its first Senate committee Tuesday morning.
The loophole came to light after a Tampa man who was convicted for molesting two young girls was released from prison in 2016.
Two courts found that he was not required to register as a sex offender until he’d paid a $10,000 fine tied to his case due to poor wording in state statute.
Senator sponsor Lauren Book said fixing the technicality is imperative to public safety.
“If left unfixed it will absolutely pave the way for other sex offenders to legally exploit the same loophole to avoid registration and the stipulations that come with it,” said Book.
The legislation is backed by Florida’s Attorney General and numerous law enforcement agencies.
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