Butts Co GA Sheriff Gary Long is misinterpreting notification laws to place harassment signs in registrant yards

While O.C.G.A. 42-1-12-i(5) covers some form of notification, I am sure that this was not the intent of notification. This filthy pig simply wants attention as well as cause harm to registered persons and their loved ones. If you have Facebook, educate this fool.

https://fox11online.com/news/nation-world/georgia-sheriffs-office-places-no-trick-or-treat-signs-in-sex-offenders-yards

Georgia sheriff's office places 'No Trick-or-Treat' signs in sex offenders' yards

by Chris White

A Georgia sheriff's office is placing signs that read, "WARNING! NO TRICK-OR-TREAT AT THIS ADDRESS!!" in registered sex offenders' yards. (Courtesy: Butts County Sheriff's Office)

JACKSON, Georgia (WSYX/WTTE) —
A Georgia sheriff's office is placing "No Trick-or-Treat" signs in sex offenders' yards in an effort to keep children safe.

"As Sheriff, there is nothing more important to me than the safety of your children," said Butts County Sheriff Gary Long. "This Halloween, my office has placed signs in front of every registered sex offender's house to notify the public that it's a house to avoid."

Long said Georgia law forbids registered sex offenders from participating in Halloween. That includes decorating their property or handing out candy.

The sheriff told residents to keep an eye out for signs marking the sex offenders' houses.

The sign reads, "WARNING! NO TRICK-OR-TREAT AT THIS ADDRESS!!'

Long says the signs were placed in accordance with Georgia Law O.C.G.A. 42-1-12-i(5), which states the sheriff shall inform the public of the presence of sexual offenders in each community.

https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/georgia-sheriffs-office-placing-no-trick-or-treat-signs-in-yards-of-registered-sex-offenders/275-609453487

Georgia sheriff's office placing 'No Trick Or Treat' signs in yards of registered sex offenders
Georgia state law prohibits registered sex offenders from placing Halloween decorations on their property.
Author: Michael King, Nick Sturdivant
Published: 2:21 PM EDT October 29, 2018
Updated: 3:59 AM EDT October 30, 2018
JACKSON, Ga. -- Thousands of kids will hit the streets for trick or treat in just days.

In Butts County, Sheriff Gary Long said deputies in his county are putting preventative measures in place to keep kids safe. They have started placing 'No Trick Or Treat' yard signs in front of registered sex offenders homes in their county.

"This Halloween, my office has placed signs in front of every registered sex offender's house to notify the public that it's a house to avoid," Long said in a Facebook post.

Georgia state law prohibits registered sex offenders from placing Halloween decorations on their property. The signs have the universal "no" symbol over a trick or treat bag underneath the message "NO TRICK-OR-TREAT AT THIS ADDRESS!!"

"Georgia law is very, very clear," he said. "It doesn’t say that the sheriff can or the sheriff may. It says the sheriff shall and it says that the sheriff shall in fact notify each community of the presence of sex offenders."

The idea to put yard signs in front of registered sex offenders homes came after organizers decided not to have an annual trick-or-treating event.

"The big challenge that we face here in Butts County, for years and years and years and years they’ve always done Halloween on the square and on Halloween night we would have anywhere from 2,500 to 4,000 children," he said.

With no central place to go, the sheriff said he knows more kids will be going door-to-door to trick-or-treat. Instead of putting signs on offenders doors like the sheriff's office has done in years past, Sheriff Long said he decided to place them in the yard where everyone can see them.

"The activity in our neighborhoods is really going to increase," he said. "We actually launched the signs out Saturday."

There are more than 50 sex offenders in Butts County, according to Sheriff Long. The Georgia Bureau of Investigations' website shows close to 31,500 registered sex offenders in the state.

In Gwinnett County authorities will be doing compliance checks. They also plan to post their offenders watch page as well. A few years ago, The Bartow County Sheriff's Office did a similar initiative, posting "No trick-or-treat" signs on the homes and apartments of sex offenders.

‘There are some sex offenders that are not happy, "Long said. "But I’m not in the business of making them happy. I’m in the business of keeping safe communities and making sure that our children are protected."

Each county has an offender watch page on its website and a link to the statewide sex offender registry.

Arkansas College Classroom gets a lesson on Predator Panic from backwater, misinformed "Detective"

Presumably, Det. Ted Schaeffer is pointing to the stupid one in the picture

Wow, talk about an out of touch cop! This guy has no idea what he is saying.

1. You may not have "other registries" in Arkansas, but across the countries, we DO have registries for other types of crimes. Here in Ohio where I live, we have an arsonist registry.

2. Reoffense rates for people convicted of sexually based offenses are far lower than any other crime type. They are unique, alright-- uniquely low.

3. This cop is admitting to using the registry as an intimidation tool. That being said, the registry has been proven ineffective. That means it DOES. NOT. WORK!

4. This guy makes an erroneous assumption every registrant suffers from an illness and cannot be "cured." Very few offenders are of the "fixated" variety. I'd trust decades of research over a lone cop who only has "the beat" as a reference point.

This guy was at the college, so maybe he should have enrolled in school since he obviously needs an education!

http://harrisondaily.com/news/sexual-predators-like-to-use-social-media/article_1faabe9e-0d1e-11e8-96e3-332dec6aa5b5.html

A computer networking class at North Arkansas College recently got a little computer instruction they didn’t expect.

Harrison Police Detective Cpl. Ted Schaeffer spoke to the class about the use of social media and how sex offenders or predators can use it to mark potential victims.

Schaeffer told students that the sex offender registry is unique in that it’s the only criminal registry. For instance, there’s no registry for narcotics and burglary convicts.

He said the reason is that for most crimes people can be rehabilitated, but there is no way to rehabilitate a sex offender.

One student said she had taken a psychology class in which some psychiatrists argued that there is rehabilitation for sex offenders.

Schaeffer said that argument is made largely because offenders are taught suppression techniques. They may be able to avoid the situations that made them offend in the first place, but those sexual urges are always present from puberty to the grave.

The sex offender registry is based on the theory that presence is prevention. When people see a police car at the side of the road, they instinctively slow down.

With the registry, the community and police are aware of who are sex offenders, who also have a lingering fear of being arrested again.

But before an offender is arrested, they can easily use social media to stalk victims.

Schaeffer shared with students a 2014 story in the Harrison Daily Times in which a man who had been arrested for sexual assault of underage girls agreed to be interviewed, although he declined to allow the newspaper to use his real name and was identified as “Jack.”

Jack explained that he always used Facebook to meet young girls, although any internet site with private message capabilities would suffice. It also helps if the site allows users to upload photos.

He’d research their profiles, reading past posts and checking out pictures. He’d look for pictures they posted of themselves in skanky clothing or at parties with older guys.

“You know what kind of girl she is,” he told the Daily Times. “It’s easy to read people by how they represent themselves with their clothing and their attitude, previous posts on Facebook.

“If they’re talking about going out and partying in a previous post, even though she’s 12 to 15, if she’s got a bunch of pictures on there of her at a party, you know she loves to party. That opens up a new conversation.”

Jack had also said he would make contact with a number of girls before connecting with one, so it was a numbers game like most other internet scams.

So, Schaeffer urged students to check their social media feeds and profiles, making certain they — even though not under age — could prevent falling victim to a sexual predator.

Than can mean checking friend lists; a predator could easily be checking them as well.