Sex Offender on County Payroll
TAMPA, Fla., April 22, 2005 -- -- A day after Hillsborough County tried to yank the pension of a convicted pedophile, ABC News affiliate WFTS-TV made a startling discovery: the county has a registered sex offender on the payroll.
Synrick Dorsett has worked for the county since 1981 and kept his job with the water department even after pleading guilty to sexual battery on a minor in 1994; he spent 10 years on probation.
"This person is getting paid by your tax dollars," said water department employee Dave Moreda, who works under Dorsett. "You know, I've worked for the county for 20 years. I'll be happy to work there, but not underneath a sexual predator. He should not be there."
But the county has no rules specifically preventing someone with that background being hired or employed.
"Currently, there's no policy that prohibits that," county human resources manager Danielle May said. "But we do take into consideration criminal convictions, and what type of conviction an applicant may have."
The county won't let someone with Dorsett's record work with children, but he is allowed to drive around in a county vehicle unsupervised, officials said.
Dorsett's service area includes Ruskin, where Sarah Lunde was killed last week. A convicted sex offender has been charged in the case.
The state legislature on Thursday approved a bill named for Jessica Lunsford, another girl allegedly killed by a convicted sex offender who had failed to register, that would make GPS monitoring technology mandatory for every sex offender.
Under the bill, offenders who molest children under 12 will face a minimum 25 years in prison and will have to wear an ankle monitor for life.
The bill was sparked by the slayings of three young Florida girls, all allegedly by sex offenders who had violated their parole, in just over a year. Sarah's death was the most recent; the first was Carlie Brucia, whose abduction last year was captured on a car wash video surveillance camera. And last month, Jessica Lunsford was abducted and killed, allegedly by a sex offender who lived a few doors away from her in Homosassa.
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