Residents living in the Midway community in Sanford say they’re concerned about dozens of sex offenders living in their area, and they’ve planned a rally for Thursday night to make their voices heard.
- Teen says she finds it 'disturbing' that sex offenders live near her
- Seminole Sheriff's Office says no issues have been reported
- ALSO: 10 arrested in internet child-sex operation
News 13 found almost 50 men listed on the Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s sex offender registry living within 2 miles of Midway Elementary School in Seminole County.
Jaden Jacobs, 16, was surprised to find out she lives just down the street from a couple of men listed on the state’s sex offender registry.
In this search map from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s sex offender registry, the red circle represents a 2-mile radius of Midway Elementary School. Within that circle, the blue pins represent a registered sex offender.
“I’m just really, speechless. It’s really scary,” Jacobs said.
With her mother’s permission, Jacobs commented on what she thinks about dozens of sex offenders living in her community.
“It’s disturbing. It makes me more cautious where I go in the area, or if I’m hanging out outside, how cautious I need to be in my own personal neighborhood where I should feel at home,” Jacobs said.
When News 13 checked FDLE’s sex offender registry, at least nine men listed on the registry live in a home in Midway that’s right across the street from a church and a bus stop. When a reporter tried to talk to the men in the house, no one answered the door.
“Some walk back from Midway past that place every day,” resident Bertha Jackson said.
Only a few of the registered sex offenders living near Midway Elementary are considered by FDLE as sex predators, but most of the men’s criminal pasts show convictions of sex crimes involving minors.
A spokesperson for the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office said deputies regularly patrol the area and they’ve had no problems involving the residents who are listed as registered sex offenders. The Sheriff’s Office also notifies residents when sexual predators move into the neighborhood.
The spokesperson also said the agency does not encourage registered sex offenders to move to certain areas or move in with each other.
By law, registered sex offenders are required to live farther than 1,000 feet of a school. But many students within 2 miles of a school don’t get bussed and walk to school if they don’t get a ride with a parent.
That has residents concerned.
“I’m not saying people don’t change, because they do change. It just makes you more cautious of the area and what you do,” Jacobs said.
Concerned residents have planned a “Stand Up for Children” rally to begin at 5 p.m. Thursday night at Sipes Avenue and 20th Street in Midway.