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Homeless Sex Offender's Plight Is Common

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By JOSH POLTILOVE and KEITH MORELLI

The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 20, 2008

TAMPA - Zackery Hicks has a new home. At least for now.

Hicks got out of prison last month after serving a 14-year term for robbery and for a while couldn't afford a permanent residence. He had limited options on where to stay because he is a convicted sex offender, so he spent time camping in a field under a Selmon Crosstown Expressway bridge.

Things changed Friday morning. Now, he shares a room at the Ranch House Motel in Tampa with another convicted sex offender.

Hicks, 42, said he also has a temporary job lined up.

"I think I have a good chance of staying off the streets," he said. "The people at the church I go to are giving me their support, and they're there for me whenever I need to talk."

"Everybody's different," state Department of Corrections spokeswoman Gretl Plessinger said. "If he can get a permanent job, obviously his chances will increase. If he has a roommate, that will help as well. But unfortunately, we do see these offenders sometimes find a place to live, and it's temporary, and they're back out, homeless again."

The homeless situation Hicks faced largely is because he is a sex offender. His situation is not uncommon in Florida, where the stigma of being a sex offender is nearly insurmountable.

Hicks' conviction for lewd and lascivious molestation of a child younger than 16, when he was 19, kept him from staying with his stepmother. Her home is near a bus stop and day care center; sex offenders are prohibited from living within 1,000 feet of where children gather.

Without a steady income, Hicks couldn't afford an apartment. He wears an ankle monitor so his probation office knows where he is. His spot under the Crosstown was his home as far as the probation office was concerned.

Plessinger said Hicks' predicament is not uncommon among the state's sex offenders.

There are 57 homeless sex offenders in the state, including two in Pasco County. Thirty live on the streets of Miami.

She said Hicks has been diligent in trying to find a home.

Together, at a rate of $20 a day each, Hicks and the other sex offender can afford to stay at the motel, 2909 S. 50th St.

She said it wasn't immediately clear who helped Hicks' situation improve Friday - whether it was a probation officer with contacts or a friendly motel owner.

Hicks said a probation officer visited him early Friday, a day after Hicks was contacted by The Tampa Tribune and News Channel 8 about his story, and the probation officer helped him line up a room and a job. The probation officer told him media attention had nothing to do with it, Hicks said.

"He said, 'There's no way I can leave you out here where anything can happen to you,'" Hicks said. "He just had compassion in his heart. He said that field is a dangerous place for an individual to be."

Reporter Josh Poltilove can be reached at (813) 259-7691 or jpoltilove@tampatrib.com. Reporter Keith Morelli can be reached at (813) 259-7760 or kmorelli@tampatrib.com.

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