The sex offender registry and accompanying laws have been around for a while and have served more as instruments of oppression than as instruments of justice. Over the course of time we have explained why the registry and laws not only do not work but actually increase the risk for reoffending. Many states’ laws on sex offenders are tough—Georgia, which is where we live; Alabama, our neighboring state to the west; and of course, Florida, just to name a few. In fact, Florida’s sex offender laws, their application, and their abuse provide us with a case study in why the registry and the RSO laws must be abolished. We begin our discussion in the 2006 to April 2010 period. This was when a group of homeless sex offenders—a sex offender colony—lived under the Julia Tuttle Causeway in Miami, FL.
The so-named causeway connects Miami, FL, to Miami Beach, FL. This colony was created by a lobbyist named Ron Book, who wrote ordinances in several Miami-Dade County cities to restrict convicted sex offenders from living within 2500 feet of schools, parks, bus stops, or homeless shelters. Since Book was also head of the Miami Homeless Trust, he was also in charge of finding housing for released RSOs. Under these ordinances, the only areas where sex offenders could legally reside within Miami-Dade County were the Miami Airport and the Florida Everglades. [1]
Florida proximity laws, already among the strictest in the country, place this distance at 1000 feet. But Miami-Dade laws are significantly stricter, thanks to Book’s lobbying. Legal challenges arose against the extreme 2500-foot proximity law in that county. In September 2009 a judge responding to a lawsuit by the ACLJ ruled that the City of Miami was allowed to set its own ordinances. As of 2009 Miami was facing other lawsuits about moving sex offenders. In February 2010 Miami-Dade County passed a new ordinance that still prevented sex offenders from living within 2500 feet of schools but only forbade them from living within 1000 feet of places such as parks and daycares. The county also made this ordinance effective throughout the whole county and declared any stricter ordinances passed by other Miami-Dade cities to be superseded and repealed. As a result, various pockets of the county were now legal for sex offenders to live in, and most, but not all, of the sex offenders ceased to be homeless. [2, 3, 4]
Throughout the camp’s existence, the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust, an organization tasked by the county to help end street homelessness in that area, had been working to find permanent housing for all the sex offenders living under the bridge. To this day, Ron Book chairs this trust. His writing of the extremely strict county ordinance was prompted by the abuse of his daughter at the hands of a hired caretaker, so in essence, he punished everybody for what one person did. On April 15, 2010, the Trust moved the last of the sex offenders living under the bridge into other housing. Former residents of the colony called it “Bookville.” [5, 6]
Analysts studying the colony agreed on two relevant issues: that inability to find a stable home for offenders increased the risk that they would reoffend, and the close proximity of offenders to schools or parks did not increase the possibility that past offenders would reoffend. And Miami City Commissioner Marc D. Sarnoff, who…criticized the problem of homeless sex offenders in the county, has himself built miniature “pocket parks” in order to prevent sex offenders from being able to move into the Little River area of Miami, which he represented. Sarnoff now practices land use and government relations law. [7, 8]
So Ron Book and Marc Sarnoff knew each other and made things harder for sex offenders than they are already. If that isn’t weaponization of the government against a population group, then what is? Ron’s daughter Lauren Book, the one mentioned earlier who had been abused by a caretaker, was a Florida legislator from 2016 to 2024 representing Broward County and has also been a supporter of stricter sex offender laws. [9, 10] This brings us towards and into the present time.
There are more than 86,000 registered sex offenders and predators in Florida, over 30,000 of whom reside in Florida communities. The other 63% are either incarcerated or living outside the state. Among those required to register, 7% of sexual offenders and 12% of sexual predators list a transient address, meaning they are likely homeless. These transient offenders are spread across 49 of Florida’s 67 counties, but the highest concentrations of homeless sex offenders are found in Broward County (34%) and Miami-Dade County (31%). These counties, as we have already seen, have some of the most restrictive residency laws, which experts say contribute to the homeless problem. [11]
Currently, there are 196 local sex offender residency ordinances across the state with 129 cities (31% of all Florida municipalities) enforcing their own rules; 32 counties (48% of all counties) adding additional restrictions; and five counties implementing laws limiting sex offenders’ access to emergency shelters. [12] As if all that isn’t enough, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed four new sex offender house bills into law on June 10, 2025 [13] :
- House Bill 777: Strengthens laws against luring or enticing children, expanding the age of victims to include those under 14, expanding the scope of the offense to include luring or enticing a child out of a structure, dwelling, or vehicle, and eliminating certain defenses.
- House Bill 1351 (Registration of Sexual Predators and Sexual Offenders): Enhances registration, reporting, and verification requirements for sexual predators and offenders. This includes reporting occupation, business information, and in-state travel residences.
- House Bill 1455 (Sexual Offenses by Persons Previously Convicted of Sexual Offenses): Enhances mandatory minimum sentences for repeat offenders of sexual offenses.
- House Bill 1161 (Removal of Altered Sexual Depictions Posted Without Consent): Also known as “Brooke’s Law,” this bill addresses the creation and dissemination of deepfakes, requiring platforms to remove altered sexual depictions within 48 hours of a victim’s request.
There are those of you who are going to read this blog and wrongly conclude that we’re whining and bellyaching because we’re on the registry. That is dead wrong! Implicit in releasing a person from prison is a second chance at life. Even for those who are on parole or probation for other offenses, there is no lingering aftermath once they’ve completed all the requirements. This includes murderers, kidnappers, armed robbers, and so on. But when it comes to sex offenders, everything changes. Why?
With the registry, life is still possible, but it is disproportionately more difficult as it constitutes not only lifelong probation but, in reality, a full-fledged life sentence, just without the prison walls. Our prison is invisible, consisting of legislated barriers and boundaries. For those of us who no longer offend, it is hellish at times. Who would tolerate the weaponization of the government against any group in society?
Not many, especially if the group targeted is a minority. What Book and Sarnoff did in Florida, as stated earlier, that is government weaponization! Even with the increased risk of reoffending posed by such instability as caused by their ridiculous laws, they wrote these laws up and enacted them anyway. And we are supposed to believe that it is for the public safety? It proves a point we made a long time ago: Rehabilitation is not profitable, but keeping the revolving door of prisons going is profitable.
Screwing with people just because they can, because no one cares. After all, they’re just sex offenders, right? And when these RSOs blow up on the launching pad and create another victim, it’s, “See, I told you they can’t change!” They say this, all the while knowing that if these individuals had been given a fair chance, many of these new offenses would not have happened. Remember, too, John Q. Public, if these legislators will weaponize the government against sex offenders, not only is such weaponization unconstitutional, but who’s to say that at some point they won’t come after you, too?
And then there is the religious aspect. We do not know if Ron Book or Marc Sarnoff profess to be Christians, but it is clear that many politicians do, one notable example being former Georgia governor Sonny Perdue, who made sure some truly onerous sex offender laws were passed on his watch. As for Ron DeSantis, he was raised Catholic and identifies as Christian. He has discussed his Christian faith openly. [14] Wow. He would have been right at home alongside Tomás de Torquemada of the Spanish Inquisition.
Not only Ron DeSantis, but also governors and legislators before him, have worked together to make Florida into a virtual prison state for registered sex offenders. The amount of money, manpower, and other resources spent on dealing with this group of people could be better spent elsewhere and in other ways, particularly since a number of these individuals not only do not reoffend, they also will not commit such other crimes as robbery or theft if given a fair chance at living and working. The absolute, over-the-top absurdity of Florida’s sex offender laws is a glaring example of why the registry, and the proximity restrictions need to go away permanently.
If our country, the United States of America, is truly the land of the free and the home of the brave, then all these legislators including those in Florida, who know that the system is a travesty, should summon the courage to abolish this whole sex offender legal superstructure. All of society, including victims of sexual offenses, would be better served if sex offenders got the same chance at rebuilding their lives that all other categories of offenders get. No matter how hated the group, everyone in America has a constitutional right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. They have the right not to be oppressed, harassed, and otherwise targeted by the government. That includes convicted sex offenders. If our rights are to have any meaning at all then they must be applied to and enjoyed by everyone. If not, then we are as hypocritical as a nation as those who profess to be Christians are who strive to come up with more and more sex offender laws.
For over a generation now we’ve heard it said that these laws are necessary to keep people safe, to keep the kids safe. Really? If these laws are so effective, then why keep adding and adding to them? Safety? No, such laws are job security to unscrupulous politicians and soothing pablum for an undiscerning public who for the most part can’t see past their next meal, their next raise, and so on. Just wait till one of your loved ones winds up on the registry! You’ll care then—if there’s any humanity in you.
REFERENCES
[1] Wikipedia article, “Julia Tuttle Causeway Sex Offender Colony.” Retrieved 08/13/2025.
[2] https://rpfoley.com Article, “Unlawful Residency by a Sex Offender – Florida Statute 775.215.” Retrieved 08/13/2025.
[3] Wikipedia article, “Julia Tuttle Causeway Sex Offender Colony.” Retrieved 08/13/2025.
[4] Ibid.
[5] Ibid.; edited with our belief added.
[6] Google: “Search Labs | AI Overview: Ron Book Still Chairs the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust.” Retrieved 08/13/2025.
[7] Wikipedia article, “Julia Tuttle Causeway Sex Offender Colony.” Retrieved 08/13/2025; emphasis added; slightly edited.
[8] https://www.shutts.com “Marc D. Sarnoff – Miami, FL.” Retrieved 08/13/2025.
[9] Wikipedia article, “Lauren Book.” Retrieved 08/13/2025.
[10] https://www.cbsnews.com August 14, 2019, article, “Court Voids Stalking Injunction Involving Florida Senator Lauren Book.” Retrieved 08/13/2025.
[11] https://muscalaw.com February 12, 2025, article, “The Challenge of Tracking Homeless Sex Offenders in Florida.” Retrieved 08/16/2025; some paraphrasing.
[12] Ibid.; some paraphrasing.
[13] Google: “Search Labs | AI Overview: On June 10, 2025, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Signed Into Law Several Bills Focused on Protecting Children From Sexual Predators and Enhancing Penalties For Sex Offenders.” Retrieved 08/16/2025; list adapted from.
[14] Google: “Search Labs | AI Overview: The Christian Faith of Ron DeSantis.” Retrieved 08/21/2025.
