The Miami Herald reports the story of a registered sex offender caught in a quirk of a local ordinance designed to keep such offenders from living near schools, parks and playgrounds. The offender, Joseph Mortimer, and his wife took out an equity loan on their longtime Miami-Dade home during the real-estate boom then fell into foreclosure in February. They bought another house just a block away, but they barred by law from moving there.
Mortimer was convicted of molesting a teenager in 1993. Because he lived in his house before the ordinance was passed in 2005, he was allowed to stay there despite its proximity to two schools. But the location of his newly purchased house -- about one block away -- violates county law. In court recently, Mortimer begged Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Jorge Cueto for help. The judge said there was nothing he could do. Critics of Miami-Dade's controversial ordinance say it leaves offenders with few places to live.
Posted by Ashley
Wednesday, July 13, 2011 01:38
ok, I live in Florida, so my story is that I met this guy and we started talking behind my parents back, at the age of 15 and he was 25 well we started dating and we had sex still at age 15 and so nobody knew since I skipped school ad he would pick me up and nobody knew we went to his sisters house and his parents house, well with the time at 16 I became rebellious and one night I sneaked out with my mom’s van to see him, my mom called the cops so I ran on the van to my aunts house so nobody knew I was with him, and still nobody knows… so then my parents asked me without knowing I have had sex with this guy what do I want and I told them I want to get married, so we got married, while before getting married he had promised me a better life a car, go to Disney, go to Puerto Rico by the end of the year and a lot of stuff which never happened, so we got married but we were always arguing he actually once grabbed me by the neck to choke me but he stopped and he begged for me not to call the cops on me and I never did I just let it pass.. and so when we got out own place and we were still arguing and anyways I got to this point where I can’t handle it no more and so I filed in a divorce now I’m waiting on the court to give me a date to show up to do all the process, my question is can I put him in jail still since he had sex with me before we got married at me being only 15? I am now 17 please reply to my email i need help before the court date is given so i can report him ashley.m.colon@gmail.com
Posted by Doubting Thomas
Monday, August 09, 2010 04:18
The law/statute can not be taken to the absurd. If he was allowed to reside within proximity to the school before he poses no greater threat residing elsewhere in proximity to the same school. If such were the case vigilantes could burn down a registrant’s home to force him to "reside’ and register elsewhere during the rebuilding and then prevent him from returning to the original residence. The man poses no greater threat moving within the proximity of the same school.
Get a grip people!
Posted by ROAR
Monday, August 09, 2010 09:21
“the location of his newly purchased house — about one block away — violates county law. "
Obviously he did not see if the new residency location was legal. One call to the local Sheriff’s Office & he would of been told otherwise. Easy to blame the “law” but realize this man failed to check beforehand if he could move a block away.