Florida Sex Offender/Predator Registry

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement provides a link to their Sex Offender/Predator database. You can look by name, full or partial, or geographic area (city, county, zip). It might be worth your while to check to see how many predators live in your area. If you don't live in Florida, here is a link to your state.

Remember on thing: just because a sex offender lives in your area doesn't mean that you have the right to harass them or try to run them out of your neighborhood. Take appropriate precautions such as being sure your doors are locked at night. Know where your children are, what they are doing, and who they are with. Make sure younger children are always supervised. Teach children how to react when strangers approach them or snatch them. If an incident happens in your neighborhood, let the authorities investigate and handle it, don't be vigilantes. It might not be handled as quickly as you would like, but they want to be sure the right person is brought to justice and all the "i's" dotted and "t's" properly crossed so that the person is prosecuted, not persecuted. And most of all, and maybe hardest for some, use common sense.

A horrible thing happened to Jessica Lundsford. Florida's laws with sexual offenders/predators have to be reviewed, but we must remember that even the lowest of the low, have certain rights and are assured of certain Constitutional guarantees. We might not like it, but that's the way it is. Would I like a child predator living near me? Absolutely not, and I don't have children. I never met Jessica, but like her father, I would like just a few minutes with Couey. I can't describe the rage I feel when I think of what that child went through.

Yes, a truly horrible thing happened and the best way to make sure Jessica and other children like her don't die in vain is to review the current law and make any changes necessary to protect our children. Sex offenders cannot be rehabilitated. it just doesn't happen. Should sex offenders be required to where monitoring devices? I don't know. It might be a start, but I don't know that it's an answer.

The best way to protect our children is to monitor them. As I said before, know where they are, who they are with and what they are doing. Monitor your home security. Make sure doors and windows are locked, especially at night. Use common sense.