Miami Sex Offender Registration Law
In Miami, defendants who are convicted of certain sex offenses are required by Fla. Stat. 775.21 to register as sex offenders, attend regular meetings with a probation officer, and refrain from living near or working with children.Who Qualifies as a Sexual Offender in Miami?
Those who are convicted of certain sex crimes in Miami are required to register with the Miami Department of Law Enforcement. This includes anyone who is convicted of the following offenses:- Sexual misconduct
- Kidnapping a minor
- Enticing or luring a child into a dwelling or a conveyance for an unlawful purpose
- Falsely imprisoning a minor
- Human trafficking
- Sexual battery
- Unlawful sexual activity with a minor
- Procuring a minor for prostitution
- Buying or selling minors into sex trafficking
- Molestation of a person under the age of 16 years old
- Lewd or lascivious exhibition
- Video voyeurism of a minor
- Lewd or lascivious offenses committed in the presence of or upon an elderly or disabled person
- Promoting sexual performance by a child, including selling or buying a minor for a depiction involving sexual conduct by or with a child
- Selling, renting, or otherwise distributing obscene materials to a minor
- Possessing, transmitting, buying, or selling child pornography via computer
- Transmitting child pornography via electronic device
- Transmitting harmful material to a minor using electronic equipment
- Racketeering-related sex offenses
- Sexual misconduct with a juvenile offender
Sexual Predators
In Miami, there is a separate designation for those who are convicted of either:- A capital, life, or first degree felony violent sexual offense when the victim was underage
- A violent felony sexual offense when the victim was a minor, the sex crime involved racketeering, and the offender had been convicted of a sex offense with a minor on a prior occasion
Registration Requirements
When registering with the sheriff’s office, sex offenders and sexual predators are required to submit specific information, including their name, SSN, birth date, height and weight, hair color and eye color, and a description of any tattoos. In addition to this information, they must also provide a current address, all email addresses and phone numbers, a description of their place of employment, and details about their vehicles. Officers will also take fingerprints and record the date and place of each conviction, as well as a list of offenses. In addition to reporting this information twice a year, offenders must also report any changes immediately. This includes reporting an address change or the purchase or sale of a vehicle within two days.Once they report to the sheriff, offenders have two days to register in person at the DMV, where it will be necessary to present proof of registration. Relocation to a new address or a name change must also be reported immediately. Generally, sex offenders are required to maintain registration for the duration of their lives. The only exceptions apply to those who receive a full pardon for their crimes or who have been released from prison for at least 25 years, have not been arrested since their original incarceration, and have petitioned the court and had their claim approved. However, offenders who commit certain crimes are never eligible for release from the registry. These crimes include kidnapping, sexual battery, lewd battery or molestation of victims under the age of 12 years old, and sexual battery of a disabled or elderly person.
The penalties for failing to comply with these requirements are severe. Those who move out of state, but fail to report it to authorities, for example, face second degree felony charges, which could mean up to 15 years imprisonment. Even failing to notify law enforcement of a change in phone number or vehicle registration is chargeable as a third degree felony.
