Injunction Would Allow Shantytown Residents the Opportunity to Find Lawful Housing; Make Community Safer
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
August 20, 2009
CONTACT:
Brandon Hensler, Director of Communications, (786) 363-2737 or media@aclufl.org
MIAMI – The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, Florida Institutional Legal Services, and the ACLU of Florida’s Greater Miami Chapter filed for a preliminary injunction in Miami-Dade Circuit Court today seeking to prevent Miami-Dade County officials from enforcing the 2,500-foot residency restriction for registered sex offenders.
If granted, the injunction would allow the individuals – whom have had to seek shelter under the Julia Tuttle Causeway – the opportunity to find lawful and affordable housing while the ACLU’s lawsuit moves forward, without violating the state’s 1,000-foot residency restriction.. The ACLU’s lawsuit, filed on July 9, 2009, asserts that the County’s ordinance is preempted by the State’s complex and comprehensive legislative scheme, and therefore should be struck down.
“There is a mounting public safety crisis in Miami, created by the County and evidenced by the scores of individuals who are now living in a make-shift shantytown under and around the Julia Tuttle Causeway,” said Maria Kayanan, ACLU of Florida Associate Legal Director and lead attorney in the lawsuit. “This injunction, if granted, will make our community safer by allowing for proper tracking and monitoring of released sex offenders by state officials. It’s time for politicians to stop pointing fingers – we believe that this will create a solution that will be a win-win for everyone, especially our children.”
The 29-page motion outlines the many ways in which Miami-Dade County’s ordinance impedes the state from effectively implementing its legislative solution to track and monitor registered sex offenders, and to regulate, rehabilitate and safely reintegrate them into society. Allowing the state to enforce its uniform statewide scheme will allow individuals the opportunity, now foreclosed to them, to find affordable housing in the county, thus decreasing the likelihood that they will re-offend or flee, therefore exacerbating the public safety crisis that has been created by the County’s overreaching ordinance.
“We’ve been working for years to find a solution to this problem and the time for action is upon us,” said Carlene Sawyer, President of the Greater Miami Chapter of the ACLU of Florida. “This is an unpopular subject, but someone has to deal with it, and we are aiming to solve this public safety crisis that has gone ignored by city, county and state officials for too long.”
To view a PDF of the ACLU’s motion for preliminary injunction, click here: http://www.aclufl.org/pdfs/sorrPI.pdf
In addition to Kayanan, attorneys in Exile and Bloom v. Miami-Dade County include Randall Marshall, ACLU of Florida Legal Director; Jeanne Baker, ACLU of Florida cooperating attorney; and Cassandra Capobianco, Peter Sleasman, Christopher Jones, and Robert Dwyer, all of Florida Institutional Legal Services.
About the ACLU of Florida
The ACLU of Florida is freedom's watchdog, working daily in the courts, legislatures and communities to defend individual rights and personal freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. For additional information, visit our web site at: www.aclufl.org.
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