Fearful Fla. Actors Want Their Addresses Protected

Florida actors are campaigning to protect state files that list their home addresses, saying the information could make them vulnerable to attacks by crazed fans.

In July, television actress Rebecca Schaeffer was killed in Los Angeles by a disturbed fan who got her address through the California Department of Motor Vehicles.

The Florida Motion Picture and Television Assn. is lobbying the state Legislature to increase the confidentiality of motor vehicle and driver’s license files.

Under current Florida law, such information is listed on computerized files with the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. By paying a deposit fee, anyone can access the records with a computer.

Under the association’s proposal, Florida drivers would be allowed to register an alternate address, such as a business or post office box, for both driver’s licenses and plates. Home addresses would be released only to law-enforcement officers, insurance companies and banks.

The proposal is patterned after a bill passed by the California Legislature after Schaeffer, the 22-year-old co-star of the TV series “My Sister Sam,” was shot outside her Los Angeles apartment by an obsessed fan.