Mentally Ill Sex Offender Arrested for Failing to Report Address as Homeless
Our Fort Lauderdale sex crimes criminal defense attorneys have long believed that sex offender registration laws and residency restrictions are not good laws. This is in part because they create homelessness and obstacles to rehabilitation, but also because they don’t allow flexibility for special circumstances. We believe that flexibility may have been called for in the case of a homeless man recently profiled in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. The newspaper ran an article March 1 following up on a Feb. 25 profile of Gary Kerpan, 60, who is a sex offender because of his conviction for raping and killing a 12-year-old girl in Illinois. He is also a Vietnam veteran with paranoid schizophrenia and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Kerpan confessed in 1990 to the 1977 rape, stabbing and murder of a child in the Chicago suburbs. He was released from prison in 2006 and came to Florida, in part because his mother lives here. However, he was arrested in early 2007 for failure to register as a sex offender and imprisoned until August of 2009. At that time, he started living on the streets in Fort Lauderdale. Because of his sex offender status, he is not allowed to stay with his mother or in Broward County shelters. After the newspaper profiled him, he was arrested Feb. 26 for failing to report his address as “transient” to the state as part of his sex offender obligations. The Department of Veterans Affairs said it could help Kerpan with housing and mental health services if a judge agreed. However, the Broward State’s Attorney’s office has not yet decided whether to prosecute him.
This article doesn’t emphasize Kerpan’s schizophrenia or post-traumatic stress disorder. However, our West Palm Beach sex offense defense lawyers suspect that these are the primary causes of his homelessness. Even the mentally ill who are lucky enough to have loving families and financial resources can end up on the streets. Their illnesses make it nearly impossible to meet basic obligations like holding down a job and paying rent. In Kerpan’s case, his mental illness may also make it difficult to remember, and follow through on, his obligation to register. Holding offenders like him to their obligations may still be necessary, but the state should do so with realistic expectations, and possibly by providing help when necessary. If that’s not possible, the least police and prosecutors should do is show some mercy to people like Kerpan, who now faces his second felony failure-to-register charge.
Law offices of Sebastian John Balliro, P.A. represents people accused of crimes throughout the state of Florida. We do not shy away from defending people accused of serious sex crimes, even though those crimes are controversial and sometimes attract severe negative publicity. Our Miami-Dade sex crimes criminal defense lawyers handle defense against high-profile or serious crimes like sexual assault, as well as quieter but onerous sex offender registration or residency violations. And partner David Seltzer is a former cyber crime prosecutor who has a special focus on defending people accused of online sex crimes such as solicitation of a minor. The earlier we take your case, the better we can protect your family and your employment from the negative social and legal consequences of a sex crime prosecution.
If you’re accused of a sex crime, don’t wait to call Balliro for help. You can reach us 24 hours a day and seven days a week through our site, or call us toll-free from anywhere in Florida at 1-866-ARRESTED.
