Sex offender Registry

Every crime carries a stigma that is difficult to erase, but registration requirements make the sex offender stigma more tenacious than most. The Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent Offender Registration Act, a federal act, requires released sex offenders to register with law enforcement and further requires offenders convicted of crimes against children to verify their address to law enforcement annually. Offenders deemed to be sexually violent predators must verify their addresses more frequently. States that do not meet the requirements of the Act are subject to reduced federal funding. As a result, all states require some type of registration and most maintain a central registry of resident sex offenders. In most states, sex offenders are required to register their addresses, along with other identifying information, with their resident state's law enforcement agency. Most registration statutes also require offenders to re-register each time they change their residencies and may require verification of the offender's address. If you are concerned about your status under these rules, contact an experienced attorney from our firm for help and advice.

Will I Be Required To Register?

A sex offender needs to register only if he has been convicted of certain sex offenses, which vary from state to state. More serious offenders, such as sexual predators, may be required to register for life. Generally, the term "sexual predator" refers to a sex offender who is either a repeat offender, a violent offender, or an offender who victimizes children.

Can the Public Access the Registry?

Requiring sex offenders to register is not new in many states, but public access to the databases is a fairly recent development. Megan's Law, a federal act that required the Department of Justice to maintain a database of sex offenders and the states to enact public notification laws or lose federal crime-fighting funds, opened up the information to the public in most states.

Implementation of each state's Megan's Law varies significantly. Typically, the public may browse the contents of the state registry on the Internet or at the sheriff's offices and police departments across the state. In some states, an active notification procedure is mandated, whereby residents and businesses within a certain geographic area around a sex offender's residence are notified when the offender moves into the neighborhood. Some states offer name lookups, some offer community searches where a list of offenders in a given area is provided, and some provide both. Most states also categorize sex offenders as either offenders or sexual predators. The length of time that an offender remains on the registry varies greatly from state to state.

If you must register as a sex offender, in most states your neighbors will have access to personal information about you and your location. Most people will assume the worst about your past, even though registration can include those who violated a lesser sex offense. An experienced criminal defense firm understands the personal impact of being labeled a sex offender and will use its experience to provide you with the best possible defense to help you try to avoid having to register as a sex offender.

Conclusion

Although sex offender registries exist for a good reason, they can be devastating to a sex offender. In the drive for safety, some sex offenders such as teenagers convicted of statutory rape or gay people convicted of sodomy, have occasionally been labeled sexual offenders and pulled into the registration system. If you are facing sexual assault charges, you need an experienced and aggressive defense firm to provide a successful defense in order to avoid the sex-offender label.