residency restrictions Archives - Restore Georgia

Restore Georgia Opposes SB 468: Automatic Risk Classifications Undermine Evidence-Based Public Safety

Brandon Bowman — Mon, 09 Feb 2026 19:28:47 +0000

Restore Georgia strongly opposes Senate Bill 468, legislation that would fundamentally alter Georgia’s sexual offender risk classification system by replacing individualized, evidence-based assessment with automatic offense-based designations.

Georgia currently operates a structured, risk-based classification system through the Sexual Offender Risk Review Board. That system evaluates individuals using empirically developed assessment tools and reviews dynamic and historical factors to determine actual risk to the community.

SB 468 shifts away from that model.

Under the bill, individuals convicted of certain offenses would be automatically placed into Level II or classified as “Sexually Dangerous Predator,” regardless of individualized assessment. Offense type alone would determine classification in specified cases.

This legislation replaces risk science with statutory assumption. Two individuals convicted of the same offense can present very different levels of future risk. Georgia’s current system recognizes that reality. SB 468 does not.

Replacing Risk Assessment With Automatic Labels

Modern risk assessment models rely on validated tools that evaluate multiple factors — including age, prior history, treatment participation, and behavioral indicators. Decades of criminological research demonstrate that individualized assessment is more accurate than offense-based assumptions in predicting recidivism.

SB 468 would mandate automatic classifications for certain convictions, bypassing that individualized review process.

If the concern is backlog at the Risk Review Board, the solution is increased resources and staffing — not eliminating individualized evaluation.

Increased Reporting Without Increased Safety

The bill also:

Imposes heightened reporting requirements on homeless registrants, including a 12-hour window for reporting changes in sleeping location.
Requires sexual offenders to report international travel 21 days in advance.
Requires stable housing accountability programs to report accepted applicants who are registered sexual offenders to local sheriffs.

Additional housing reporting requirements may discourage participation in stable housing programs — a factor widely recognized as reducing recidivism.

Housing stability is one of the strongest predictors of successful reentry and reduced reoffending. Policies that destabilize housing undermine long-term public safety.

Protecting Children Requires Accuracy

Protecting children and communities must remain a top priority. The critical question is whether Georgia is using the most accurate and effective tools available to assess and manage risk.

Automatic labeling may appear decisive, but it is not necessarily precise. Georgia’s current risk-based system was designed to evaluate actual risk. SB 468 substitutes that evidence-based framework with offense-triggered classification mandates.

Accuracy strengthens public safety. Overgeneralization weakens it.

Constitutional and Structural Concerns

Expanding automatic lifetime designations such as “Sexually Dangerous Predator” without individualized assessment increases the risk of constitutional challenges, including due process concerns.

As registry schemes become more automatic and more restrictive, they risk being viewed as punitive rather than regulatory in nature, increasing legal vulnerability for the state.

A Better Path Forward

Restore Georgia urges lawmakers to:

Fund and expand the Risk Review Board to reduce backlog;
Preserve individualized risk assessment;
Maintain evidence-based classification practices;
Strengthen supervision resources without sacrificing accuracy.

Public safety is strengthened by precision. Georgia should reinforce its existing evidence-based system rather than replace it with automatic statutory mandates.

For more information, visit www.restore-georgia.org.

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NYT Magazine (The Ethicist): I Saw a Neighbor on the Sex-Offender Registry. Should I Tell Others?

Brandon Bowman — Mon, 12 May 2025 13:24:52 +0000

The magazine’s Ethicist columnist on whether to disclose information about a neighbor on the sex-offender registry.

By Kwame Anthony Appiah:

I recently reneged on an offer to buy a house because I discovered that a registered sex offender lived across the street. I found this information on a public website that is available for our state and county.

This discovery raised many questions for me. First, the sales contract of the home specifically said the seller and seller’s agent are not obligated to divulge information about any nearby neighbors on the sex-offender registry. It’s unclear if they knew about this specific registered sex offender across the street. If they did know, would it have been unethical for them to keep this information a secret? And what about me? Now that I know about it, should I keep it a secret, too?

I feel some compulsion to spread the word to others who might be interested in purchasing this property, as knowing a sex offender lives next door could affect what a prospective buyer might be willing to offer. And I feel uncomfortable telling my friends the truth about why I dropped out of the contract that I had entered for this house, because I feel I have discovered private information that I should keep secret. In the end, I think I would rather not have made this discovery in the first place. — Name Withheld

From the Ethicist:

Sex-offender registries in the United States were created for the reason you’d expect: to protect the vulnerable by informing the public. They provide names, addresses and other identifying details of individuals convicted of sex crimes. Every state has such a registry; the federal government maintains a consolidated version. The idea was that access to this information would allow families to take, as one federal agency puts it, “common-sense measures” for their protection. But what began as a law-enforcement tool has, over time, evolved into a system of prolonged public punishment, treating vastly different cases as if they were the same.

Some people are on the registry for horrifying, predatory acts. Others wind up on a registry for nonviolent conduct committed when they were children or teenagers, including a 10-year-old girl who “pantsed” a classmate. But that’s what the system has allowed. Teenagers in a relationship who consensually swapped nude pics, adults who got busy in a car parked in a municipal lot, a drunken undergraduate who went streaking across the quad — all may be subject to lengthy registration mandates. Even those no longer on the official registries may find that for-profit data-collection websites still display their names and photos, demanding payment for delisting.

In theory, registries can distinguish among offenses by labeling them according to tier and type. In practice, a person on the list becomes a sex offender — full stop — regardless of the details. Elizabeth J. Letourneau, who directs a center at Johns Hopkins University dedicated to the prevention of child sexual abuse, has observed that a vast majority of sexual offenses are committed by individuals who aren’t on any registry. A concern for evidence-based policy has led the American Law Institute to recommend eliminating public notification and limiting registry access to law enforcement. Public registries don’t reduce recidivism or protect people, researchers have concluded. The old “once a sex offender, always a sex offender” wisdom is a discredited generalization. Yet policies built on that assumption remain, despite a growing belief among experts that the registries do more harm than good.

You recently decided not to purchase a house after discovering that a neighbor was on the registry. You didn’t mention what the offense was or how long ago it occurred; presumably the person’s mere presence on the registry was enough for you. That’s your prerogative, of course. But it’s worth pausing to think about what your decision was based on.

How dangerous is this neighbor, really? That depends on details the registries rarely convey: what happened, how long ago it happened, how old the person was at the time and what the person has done since. A quarter of people currently on the registries, it has been estimated, were minors at the time of their offense. The presence of a name on a list tells you very little about your actual risk.

In that light, it seems neither reasonable nor just to fault the sellers for withholding this information, especially since the contract exempted them from any such obligation. In New Jersey and Delaware, home sellers and real-estate agents are actually prohibited from disclosing information about registered sex offenders. As a third party who came across the information independently, you were obviously free to act on it. But others have the same access you did and can reach their own conclusions.

Having access to more information often feels empowering. At other times — and this may be one — it burdens us with uncertainties we struggle to resolve. While your decision may feel like a form of self-protection, it’s also a reminder of how difficult it is to balance justice, fear and fairness in a world shaped by imperfect systems.

Thoughts? If you would like to share a response to today’s dilemma with the Ethicist and other subscribers in the next newsletter, fill out this form.

Kwame Anthony Appiah is The New York Times Magazine’s Ethicist columnist and teaches philosophy at N.Y.U. His books include “Cosmopolitanism,” “The Honor Code” and “The Lies That Bind: Rethinking Identity.” To submit a query, send an email to ethicist@nytimes.com.

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NARSOL: Florida Action Committee Condemns Sheriff’s Office for Evicting Registrants as “Perverts”

Brandon Bowman — Thu, 06 Mar 2025 03:37:47 +0000

By Florida Action Committee… NARSOL Florida State Affiliate the Florida Action Committee (FAC) is outraged by the recent actions of the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office, which has forcibly displaced individuals attempting to rebuild their lives after serving their sentences. By clearing out a trailer park he described as a “cesspool of sex offenders” and calling its residents “perverts,” the sheriff’s office has not only dehumanized these individuals but also undermined their efforts to reintegrate into society as law-abiding, productive citizens.

“These people are not clustered in the trailer park because they want to be there,” said the president of FAC. Residence restrictions leave them nowhere else to go. Municipalities pass these misguided ordinances and then complain about the unintended consequences they created themselves.”

Stable housing is a cornerstone of successful rehabilitation. For many of these individuals, the trailer park provided a rare opportunity to establish a home, maintain employment, and access support systems. He might not care about these individuals, but the Sheriff should care about the safety of the community. By displacing them, the sheriff’s office has created a crisis of homelessness and instability, increasing the likelihood of recidivism and endangering public safety. “How can we expect individuals to rehabilitate when they are denied the basic dignity of a place to live and are subjected to public shaming?” asked FAC’s President.

The use of derogatory language like “perverts” is not only unprofessional but also counterproductive. Such rhetoric perpetuates stigma and fear, making it even harder for individuals to find acceptance and support in their communities. Rehabilitation requires a level of compassion, not condemnation. It requires opportunities, not obstacles. The sheriff’s actions demonstrate a fundamental misunderstanding of what it takes to create safer communities.

The FAC calls on the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office to reconsider its approach. Instead of displacing and demonizing individuals, we urge law enforcement to work collaboratively with community organizations, social services, and policymakers to develop solutions that prioritize both public safety and rehabilitation. Stable housing, access to social services, and employment opportunities are not privileges—they are necessities for reducing recidivism and fostering safer communities.

The Florida Action Committee stands ready to work with all stakeholders to ensure that individuals seeking to rebuild their lives are given the support they need to succeed. Public safety and rehabilitation are not mutually exclusive—they are two sides of the same coin.

Written by a guest writer

NARSOL accepts original, unpublished submissions no longer than 750 words and written in Word or a comparable, editable program. Whether used or not, you will be notified. All submissions are subject to editing for grammatical structures and clarity. Please specify the name you wish used as author, a sentence or two of self-identification, and a valid email address. Email as an attachment to communications@narsol.org.

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