Convicted sexual predator Robert Taylor, who spent 13 years behind bars for raping his 8-year-old daughter, might be back on the streets just in time for Christmas, his lawyer says.
It won't be the first time. He has been in and out of jail at least three times since 2003 for violating vagrancy laws -- mainly because no landlord, shelter or employer in Broward will take a convicted sexual predator.
He has survived on the streets before, regularly reporting to his Broward probation officer as to what parking lot, building steps or bridge he calls home, until he is arrested again for vagrancy.
Taylor, like most sexual offenders and predators, won't be on the street long before he ends up in jail again, said Heather Henricksen, Broward prosecutor for sex crimes and child abuse.
''No one wants Taylor to live in their neighborhood or work for them, and I don't blame them,'' she said.
The revolving door of jail and homelessness seems to await most sexual predators like Taylor.
Across the nation, cities are adopting stringent laws, laying out where convicted sex offenders and predators cannot live. Many of them have enacted ordinances that leave little, if any, place for them in their communities.
Many cities in Broward and Miami-Dade counties have adopted or are considering adopting laws that prohibit sex criminals from living within 2,500 feet of a school, park, bus stop or any place where children congregate.
As it stands, the newest proposals could effectively drive many of the offenders underground, or north to parts of South Florida not yet zoned to keep them out.
And the state, which now prohibits sex offenders from living within 1,000 feet where children gather, is also contemplating widening the scope of its law when the Legislature convenes in March.
CAUTION FROM CRITICS
While the laws restricting sex offenders multiply, some critics point out that not all of those designated as sex offenders are dangerous or even likely to pose a threat for children.
Officials in some states take note of this and aggressively notify neighbors, schools and day-care centers and post highly specific information online about the more serious offenders.
In Florida, these distinctions are more blurred but became even fuzzier after the horrific killings of third-grader Jessica Lunsford and 13-year-old Sarah Lunde in Central Florida this year. In both cases, the men charged were sex offenders on probation.
Politicians across the nation -- joined by a chorus of prosecutors, law enforcement officials and victims' rights advocates -- believe the new laws provide an added measure of protection against criminals who prey upon children.
In Iowa, an appeals court upheld the state's 2,000-foot rule as being constitutional. Dr. William McEchron, who treats sex offenders, testified that there is no cure for sex offenders and because of that, ``there are never any guarantees that they might not reoffend.''
Another sex offender expert, Dr. Luis Rosell, said reducing an offender's access to children is necessary because ``if you remove the opportunity, then the likelihood of a re-offense is decreased.''
As of early September, almost all cities in Broward, except Hollywood, Hillsboro Beach, Southwest Ranches and Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, have enacted or are considering passing sex offender ordinances. And the Broward County Commission is also planning to review whether to place such ordinances in the remaining unincorporated areas.
Miami-Dade's initial proposal would have virtually banned sexual offenders from living within county limits, but county commissioners later removed provisions that would have created half-mile barriers around thousands of day-care centers and public school bus stops. The proposal now sets a 2,500-foot restriction around schools.
Harry Boreth, president of the Broward chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, said his office is waiting to get the right plaintiff to challenge the ordinances, but he expects a tough time in court.
''We are losing in the courts. It is being upheld. Conservative courts and emotional Band-Aid approaches to protect children from sexual predators are hard to beat,'' Boreth said.
South Florida lobbyist Ron Book, whose daughter was a victim of sexual abuse by a female live-in nanny, says the less temptation offenders are exposed to, the better.
''It is simply one step in the process to protect children,'' said Book who, with his daughter, Lauren, now 20, has been instrumental in encouraging cities to pass these ordinances.
And as of Sept. 1, released sexual predators and offenders are being electronically monitored, a measure that passed earlier this year.
Still, some think the laws sidestep the real concern.
''The issue is not where released sex offenders live, but where they go,'' said Ernie Allen, president of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.
''Released sex offenders who are supervised to ensure they obey the law are not the problem,'' Allen said.
He said of the nation's 563,000 released sex offenders, 100,000 are not accounted for.
HIGHEST RISK
''Those are the ones that are more likely to repeat their crimes,'' Allen said.
Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jim Naugle admits he doesn't know whether these ordinances will make the city safer. But he does know that by not passing restrictions when other cities are, Fort Lauderdale would risk becoming ``a sex offender dumping ground.''
He expects Fort Lauderdale will enact the ordinance late this month.
''Our reason for enacting it was self-defense,'' Naugle said.
Hollywood Police Chief James Scarberry said a 2,500-foot zoning rule would actually hurt Hollywood.
He said it could result in having one or two neighborhoods housing all the sex offenders and predators, ''which would be grossly unfair to those residents,'' Scarberry said.
The city has found it far more effective to have police officers aggressively tracking where sexual offenders live, what they do and where they go, said Carson Chandler, spokesman for the city.
That includes a ''reverse 911'' -- alerting residents through phone calls and fliers when a released offender or predator moves into the neighborhood.
''When the community gets involved in helping the police keep these people law abiding, it helps everyone,'' Chandler said.
In an unprecedented move, a group of sex offenders and their families gathered for a protest Thursday in Palm Bay, Brevard County. The city is considering one of the toughest laws in the state, one that would make it difficult for offenders to also work in the city.
Michael and Betty Price, leaders of the Sex Offenders Support and Education Network in St. Petersburg, held the rally, which included more counterprotesters than protesters.
''Eighty percent of released sex offenders return to their family or friends, but this law will prohibit them from doing so,'' said Michael Price, a convicted sex offender who was among more than a dozen others and their families who participated in the protest.
FAMILIES TARGETED
He and others explained that the families then become targets of the communities.
Supporters, however, said Palm Bay needs to protect its children.
''We've got a problem in this country. We have individuals that want to harm our children,'' Palm Bay Police Chief Bill Berger told local station WESH-TV.
But others fear another, more sinister consequence. The worst offenders, including the state's 5,300 sexual predators, could be driven into hiding by the new laws.
Broward Public Defender Howard Finkelstein said his office has two clients who have been effectively rendered homeless by various anti-sex offender ordinances.
''Having them homeless is no good,'' said Henricksen, the Broward assistant state attorney. ``Our No. 1 priority is to know where they are and what they are doing.''
One alternative would be for the county or state to put sex predators and offenders under a supervised work-release program to enable them to pay for supervised housing, while keeping society safe, Henricksen said.
Late last month, state Rep. Susan Goldstein, R-Weston, introduced a bill that would allow the state's current 1,000-foot rule be expanded to 2,500 feet.
''It would open up discussion of whether expansion would make neighborhoods safer,'' Goldstein said.
