Sex Offenders Living Under Bridge (An Update)

[Pangloss]

Some of you may recall a story I've mentioned here a couple of times about convicted sex offenders forced by the state to live under a bridge here in South Florida. I thought you might appreciate an update. To summarize, because of the new restrictions on where sex offenders are allowed to live, 2500 (?) feet from the nearest park or school, and the fact that they've been under terms of probation that denied them the right to leave the area, they were effectively trapped by a bizarre catch-22. A judge "resolved" the situation by having police transport the offenders to a site undernearth the Julia Tuttle causeway, and a government official actually comes by each day to make sure they are present for a head count. Some of the "residents" were actually victimized, but the situation improved somewhat with local media attention, resulting in regular security guards and police monitoring of the area.

 

But the situation continues, and has actually grown worse over the last year. Over 30 people have now been sent there by the state, and they gradually move away as their bizarre probation terms expire, but there are over 20 people living there right now. The story has come to be ignored by most of local media, and more or less dropped by state and local officials, except to continue to send people there. (Between this and the primary situation, I really have to wonder who the heck is minding the shop these days!)

 

In another odd twist, an advocacy group set up a web site to promote the cause. The local independent (free) paper Miami New Times has been following the story and you can read it here (it includes a link to the group's web site):

 

http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/riptide/2008/01/sex_offenders_under_bridge_get.php