Cpl. Ron Morris, of the Floyd County Sheriff’s office, knocks on the door of a registered sex offender to confirm their residence Monday afternoon. (Daniel Varnado, Rome News-Tribune)
It’s the job of Lt. Mark Blanton and Cpl. Ron Morris of the Floyd County Sheriff’s Office to make sure those wee monsters are protected from those who may want to harm them.
On Monday, the Sheriff’s Office unveiled Floydcountysheriff.org, a new website at that allows parents to pinpoint the exact locations of Floyd County’s 196 registered sex offenders.
Click here to search the state sex offender registry.
For the past few weeks, Morris has been visiting registered offenders to confirm their addresses, a job he does many times throughout the year.
Unlike in Tennessee, where sex offenders are forbidden from placing any kind of Halloween decorations or even answering their doors to trick-or-treaters, Georgia law does not impose such restrictions.
“We really want the parents to be aware where the sex offenders are in the neighborhoods,” Morris said. “They need to use caution when going trick-or-treating. With the new website, you can subscribe so you can get updates in your e-mail.”
The new mapping system is done locally and does not rely on state officials or others who may not be familiar with the area.
For example, there are four Lindsay streets and someone outside Floyd County could get them confused, Blanton said.
The new site has additional details such as what kind of cars the registrants drive and any tattoos they may have.
“The state asked us to start gathering that kind of information,” Blanton said.
The website also alerts parents to the “level” of the sex offender, based on the crimes and the possibility that they will reoffend.
The level is determined by a sex offender review board that consists of three people in each of the five regions of the state drawn by the Department of Human Resources.
Floyd County does not have any Level 3 sex offenders —those who are considered sexual predators and the most dangerous — Blanton said. Such local offenders all are in jail or prison, he said.
The state sex offender registry requirements have changed over the years in response to court challenges and new restrictions put in place by the Georgia Legislature.
For example, as of July, any sex offender who committed their crime before 2003 can now live anywhere. Before, they were forbidden from living within 1,000 feet of a school, daycare, church or anywhere children congregate.
That law still applies to those convicted of sex crimes after 2003.
The article said, '“We really want the parents to be aware where the sex offenders are in the neighborhoods,” Morris said. “They need to use caution when going trick-or-treating. With the new website, you can subscribe so you can get updates in your e-mail.”'
Parents who are trick-or-treating with their children have absolutely no need to "be aware where the sex offenders are". That is categorical nonsense. Is Mr. Morris afraid that some "sex offender" is going jump out onto their porch and molest a child on the spot? What exactly is it that these geniuses think could happen? Especially with a responsible parent standing right there? Oh, I have a guess what the geniuses think - that the "sex offender" is going to see a child that he/she likes and go hunt them down later? Stupid cr*p.
In the past couple of HUNDRED years, you would be very lucky if you could find any instances at all of where someone convicted of a sexual offense had committed a sexual crime against someone who was trick-or-treating at their home with a responsible adult. It just doesn't happen. I understand that doesn't fit into the fear mongering that Registry supporters love, but facts are facts.
On a completely different note, I will also point out that the new Floyd Country Sheriff's Office's SEX OFFENDER website fairly well demonstrates the pure, through and through stupidity of the governments of Georgia (and throughout the United States).
There is absolutely no reason why it is even allowed in the State of Georgia for multiple governments to have multiple websites (and policies and procedures) for the SEX OFFENDER witch hunt. It should be illegal for local governments to even waste money on such things.
The fact that Georgia did not establish from the very beginning a single website for SEX OFFENDER Registration is unbelievable. The whole thing has been an outrageous waste and abuse of taxpayer resources.
Additionally, it is even more outrageous that Georgia did not MANDATE the policies and procedures for Registering people. Why in the hell did they not even simply provide all law enforcement through the entire state with at least the same forms with which to Register people? I know for a fact that many counties have had to revise their forms, policies, and procedures over and over again just because they couldn't handle those basic tasks (not even taking into account changes that have been required because of changes to the thoroughly moronic laws). I also know for a fact that many counties have had to waste expensive legal (and other) resources because of their forms, policies, and procedures. The fact that all of this has happened and CONTINUES TO HAPPEN just so clearly illustrates the pure stupidity of our governments. It is unreal.
Lastly, the article said "The new mapping system is done locally and does not rely on state officials or others who may not be familiar with the area." Good God. Like that is a freaking problem.
There is a single SEX OFFENDER website run by the State of Georgia. That website needs to be accurate as well. The information on that website is MANDATED by law to be provided by the sheriffs of Georgia's counties (duh, including Floyd's). If Floyd County gave the State of Georgia accurate information like they really ought to (duh, again), then the mapping software used on the State of Georgia website can absolutely be just as good as anything Floyd County might have on their web site.
Since this is 2010, we should understand that Floyd County personnel could directly update the information in the state's system. Then, they would not be relying "on state officials or others who may not be familiar with the area." And the Floyd County geniuses should consider that if they relied on the state's website (which freaking should be accurate regardless of anything else Floyd County does), then Floyd County could actually simply look at that website as often as they like and ENSURE that the data is accurate. Or, apparently Floyd County does not think that is possible? That's the huge, nanny, wasteful governments for you.
And unfortunately, SEX OFFENDER Registration and again, especially all of the idiotic tag-along laws, are not just nearly worthless, they are much worse. The laws are counterproductive, immoral, anti-factual, negligibly beneficial, often clearly idiotic, often illegal, anti-religious, and un-American. Good Americans do not even think about supporting these laws. I could go into great detail about each of these points, but who really cares about facts anyway? Certainly not the people who support the laws.
Lastly, I will just point out that we cannot afford these laws. You people who refuse to be responsible parents need to pay for these laws. You people who want these laws, who love huge, nanny governments, you need to step up and pay at least your fair share of taxes. I believe that most people who support these laws do not. I, for one, am getting very tired of carrying your load, supporting you, and your outrageous, nanny governments. Pay more taxes!