Roughly 1 in every 450 people in Georgia is a registered sex offender, according to data from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. Of those, 1,230 have been classified as sexually dangerous predators, meaning they pose the highest risk of committing future crimes.

Sex predators live in communities across the state, mostly in the Atlanta, Savannah and Columbus areas. All but a fraction of Georgia’s 159 counties host at least one predator listed on the state’s sex registry, on top of thousands more sex offenders convicted of less-severe crimes. Due to Park’s case, state officials expect about 600 predators to be freed from their ankle monitors by the end of this year.

Meanwhile, state lawmakers have let nearly two years slip by without passing a legal fix suggested by a state Supreme Court justice, who recommended giving judges more leeway to include lifetime ankle monitors as part of a predator’s sentence. A bill to do exactly that has stumbled twice during legislative sessions in Atlanta. Its author, Rep. Steven Sainz, R-Woodbine, has puzzled over why the bill hasn’t reached the finish line. He’s hopeful for the bill’s chances since it will be carried by one of the governor’s Senate floor leaders, Sen. Bo Hatchett, R-Cornelia, when the legislature reconvenes in January.

But Sainz also points out his bill would not retroactively place GPS devices back on those who’ve had them removed. So the longer lawmakers wait, he says, the more predators in Georgia will walk free without ankle monitors.

“I’ve made it clear every year that we don’t pass this, sentences can’t be modified for the most violent offenders,” Sainz said in a recent interview. “The longer we leave that gap, the more permanent that gap is for those populations.”

With the bill languishing, many advocates feel the state has not done everything it can to protect victims by barring the use of GPS tracking for the most serious sex offenders. The loss of ankle monitors also caught them by surprise. Out of six advocates covering dozens of counties interviewed for this story, none knew that monitors were being removed from predators.

“Without question, it is concerning,” said Ann Burdges, a victims’ advocate in Atlanta who works with the nonprofit End Violence Against Women International.

“It is more a matter of urgency that our state elected officials should prioritize and get some clarity and policy in place to remedy this.”

What else would you like to know about sex-related crimes and the judicial system in Georgia? Share your thoughts/tips by emailing [email protected].

• Ankle monitors gone for hundreds of sex predators in Georgia
• Part V: Long road for survivors
• Part IV: ‘Peace of mind’ for sex predators
• Part III: Search and seizure
• Part I: Celebration in the sheriff’s office

Twitter @STATEAFFAIRSGA
Facebook @STATEAFFAIRSUS
Instagram @STATEAFFAIRSGA
LinkedIn @STATEAFFAIRS

Header image: Discarded bills litter the Georgia Senate floor after state lawmakers adjourned the 2021 legislative session “sine die” just after midnight on April 1, 2021. (Credit: Beau Evans for State Affairs)