FL- State Senator Taking Action to Change Sex Offender Bridge Law

7-21-2009 Florida:

JACKSONVILLE, FL -- After seeing a First Coast News investigation, State Senator Tony Hill says a Florida law has to change.

We told you about Causey Guyden at the beginning of the month.

He is a sex predator sentenced to live under a bridge. He has to stay there because there is nowhere else for him to go.

Causey Guyden, a registered sexual predator, is back in prison and he will be there for a while. He violated his probation because he wasn't under the Dunns Creek Bridge when officials came looking for him.

Guyden is one of more than 90 registered sex offenders and predators in the state who have been ordered to live under a bridge because they have nowhere else to stay.

"I didn't know until you brought it to the attention but I was not surprised and probably will hear some more of it."

State Senator Tony Hill represents the area that covers where Guyden is living. After seeing the First Coast News investigation, Hill decided something had to be done.

Not only is a bridge an unacceptable place to call home, he says this is a growing trend. "We have people getting out of prison every day in that same situation. They give them that bus ticket and that's it." said Hill.

Guyden was ordered to stay under the bridge from 6 p.m. until 7 a.m. The state said he could live under the bridge because Guyden couldn't live with family since they were too close to schools and bus stops.

Senator Hill says that is where the problem starts. Each county has different rules on how far sex offenders have to be from schools and bus stops.

"We need to address the public policy issue on that. We can't stick our heads in the sand," added Hill.

He says he plans to address the issue with other lawmakers and get the law changed where it is standard across the state and not different in every county.

"We need to see if we can get it uniform, where we can keep them under control and law enforcement can know where they are; right now we don't."

The Department of Corrections says it does not like the situation, but its hands are tied.

And that's where Hill comes in, to make a difference.

There are currently 91 sex offenders or predators living under bridges in Florida; most live in south Florida. Guyden is the only one living in our area. ..Source.. by Taren Reed