Sexual Offenders Requirements

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June 7th, 2005

"Federal appeals court upholds Fla. sex offender requirements"

The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals disagreed with a group of sex offenders who challenged the current Florida laws requiring sex offenders register with the state after getting out of prison and submitting DNA samples.

Enacted after the 1994 kidnap, rape and murder of a seven-year-old girl by a convicted sex offender in New Jersey, the registration law was created and spurred the creation of similar statutes nationwide.

The Florida law requires convicted sex crime offenders, as well as non-sex crimes, including any offenses using firearms, murder, burglary, carjacking and elderly abuse, to submit DNA samples.

The appeals court upheld U.S. District Judge Daniel Hurley’s dismissal of a lawsuit that was filed on behalf of sex offenders suing anonymously under the name John Doe.